Natalie Portman's 'Lady in the Lake' Halts Baltimore Production After Threats of Gun Violence, Extortion Attempt

Updated August 31, 2:23 PM ET: The Baltimore Police Department has now released more information disputing the initial extortion reports. According to the , the BPD located the 43-year-old street vendor who said he spoke to the production team of "Lady in the Lake" around 6 a.m. ET on August 26 to seek compensation for the blocking of his business. . His official statement does not mention a firearm or threat of gun violence.

The 'Lady in the Lake' location manager who submitted the initial report has since "retracted his initial statement that he saw the weapon and indicated that he did not see any gun but that one of the drivers [had] seen the gun, "but adding that he witnessed 'a large quantity of marijuana' at the street vendor's house. The seller was later arrested for drug trafficking. Police were called to the set later that afternoon at 4:45 p.m. ET in response to a separate report of people causing disruption. An officer spoke to a man who was "arguing" but denied threatening the production crew.

A supervisor from a security company working on set claimed that people first demanded $4,000 and then $50,000 for the crew to film and threatened to shoot in the air. However, according to the report, "She had no knowledge of who made the threats or demanded the money."

IndieWire has contacted Apple for comment.

Updated August 30, 1:36 p.m. ET: The Baltimore Police Department has confirmed that local street vendor Keith L. Brown has been arrested for drug trafficking and is believed to be the source of the extortion threats. Brown was "upset that he wasn't compensated by production for lost business because he couldn't operate his clothing business while the crew was filming there," as reported.

Brown told officers he was in contact with a member of the 'Lady in the Lake' crew and a security official and was awaiting documents to receive compensation. The investigation is still ongoing.

Update, 2:08 p.m. ET: Alma Har'el, creator of "Lady in the Lake," an update on heightened security precautions for the Baltimore-based production after an extortion attempt and a threat of violence.

"The safety and security of our crew, cast, vendors and production partners is of paramount importance," the 'Honey Boy' director wrote. "Production will resume with enhanced safety procedures in the future."

She captioned a series of set photos, "I wanted to post this to say it was a privilege to shoot 'Lady in the Lake' in Baltimore. Allow me to celebrate the beautiful people of Baltimore who come sit and sit with me by the monitor Our thanks and gratitude to Mayor Brandon M. Scott, the Baltimore Film Bureau, the Maryland Film Bureau and the Baltimore Police Department for their incredible support as we continue production in greater Baltimore and surrounding areas.

40 days left in production.

Originally published Aug 29 at 11:24 a.m. EST: Upcoming AppleTV+ series "Lady in the Lake" mired in production issues.

First, the series starring Natalie Portman was set to co-star Oscar-winning actress Lupita Nyong'o, before the 'Black Panther' actress pulled out due to unknown circumstances. Breakout "Obi-Wan Kenobi" Moses Ingram has been chosen to replace Nyong'o.

Now the production has been hit with threats of extortion and gun violence, forcing the show to shut down production. Deadline first reported that "Lady in the Lake," which had been filming in Baltimore for several months, halted production on Friday, Aug. 26 after several locals threatened producers and attempted to extort money from them. Portman and his producing partner Sophie Mas are the series' executive producers.

A Baltimore Police Department spokesperson said the "Lady in the Lake" crew was shooting around 4 p.m. ET in the city center when the producers were approached by several people. The band claimed that if they didn't st...