Stephen Baldwin is suing fellow Hollywood star Kevin Costner claiming the actor tried to pull off a slick move — that Costner and his business partner “schemed” to make millions off the BP oil rig disaster, according to a new bombshell report.
In a lawsuit filed in Louisiana federal court, Baldwin claims that in April, he had a meeting in the wake of the oil disaster and decided to become a 10 percent partner in an invention backed by Costner, TMZ.com reported.
Costner claimed he had a device that separated oil from water that was developed during the filming of “Waterworld.”
According to the lawsuit, Costner and his partners made it seem as if the actor had already sold his shares in the company when in fact he was still heavily invested, TMZ reported.
Baldwin claims the company misrepresented that there was no deal to sell the contraption to BP — alleging that he was duped into selling his shares back to the company so Costner and his partners could score an even bigger profit in a deal that was already inked with BP valued at more than $52 million.
Baldwin is suing for unspecified damages.
An explosion that killed 11 workers at BP’s Macondo well last April led to oil spewing from the company’s undersea well — more than 200 million gallons in all by the government’s estimate. BP disputes the figure.
Two weeks ago, the Justice Department said they had sued BP and eight other companies in the Gulf oil spill disaster in an effort to recover billions of dollars from the largest offshore spill in US history.
The Obama administration’s lawsuit asks that the companies be held liable without limitation under the Oil Pollution Act for all removal costs and damages caused by the oil spill, including damages to natural resources.
The lawsuit also seeks civil penalties under the Clean Water Act.
“We intend to prove these violations caused or contributed to the massive oil spill,” Attorney General Eric Holder said.
With AP