Cullen lodged papers at Los Angeles Superior Court late on Tuesday (15Sep15), just three days before the Amber Heard and Billy Bob Thornton crime thriller is due to premiere at the Toronto Film Festival on Friday (18Sep15).

In the suit, the filmmaker claims Chris Hanley and Jorden Gertner engaged in "fraudulent efforts" to rework the movie without his knowledge, stating, "None of the revisionary elements that Defendants have interjected into the film appear anywhere in the script. Nor do they have any place in the film, at least not the one that Plaintiffs were asked to direct. Among other things, these elements include incendiary imagery evoking 9/11 jumpers edited against pornography, as well as juxtaposing the holiest city in Islam against mind-control. No cast or crew member signed up for this, nor did Plaintiffs."

Cullen also alleges the producers failed to pay him the $300,000 (£187,500) fee he was promised for his work.

In addition to damages, he is demanding a judge issue a declaration banning the producers from using his name to promote the project without his approval.

London Fields is based on Martin Amis' 1989 book and also features Jim Sturgess, model Cara Delevingne and a guest appearance from Heard's husband Johnny Depp.

The film is still scheduled to premiere at TIFF on Friday, with two additional screenings over the weekend (19-20Sep15).