John Travolta Is Too Fat to Do Nude Scenes

Well...he said it, not us, in explaining why he left The Double

So now we know: John Travolta's explanation of why he walked off the set of The Double last month in Paris before director Roman Polanski could utter his first "action." Polanski didn't like Travolta's acting style and--the last straw--wanted him to do a nude scene, the actor says.

"First of all, there were no naked scenes in the original script," Travolta grouses to the French weekly Paris-Match in an interview published today. "Roman added it for no reason. And what's more, I have never acted naked in my whole career, and it's not now that I'm fat that I'm going to start."

Travolta felt so strongly about his artistic vision--or his waistline--that he offered to pay $3.5 million to have Polanski removed from the production, he says. "Our views on the film were completely different: I wanted to do a dramatic comedy, he wanted a cartoon."

From the start of rehearsal, Polanski apparently did not give Travolta the star treatment. "At the first reading, Roman didn't like my acting. He told me I was bad and showed me what I should do."

The production company and the U.S. distributor are suing Travolta for walking out on the movie. In court documents, they claim that Travolta's "ego had been bruised by Polanski's legitimate efforts to direct."

The future of The Double is murky. According to the distributor, Mandalay Entertainment, Steve Martin has replaced Travolta, and Polanski is still directing, despite rumors of his departure, but the production has been delayed for an indefinite period.