FILM director Zhang Yimou has filed a lawsuit against film producer Zhang Weiping, claiming the producer’s company has not paid him his due box office revenue for his 2009 comedy “A Simple Noodle Story.”

    The director said in his lawsuit that “A Simple Noodle Story,” released in December 2009, earned 261 million yuan (US$43.5 million) in box office revenue on the Chinese mainland.

    He said that according to the contract signed by his studio, Zhang Weiping’s Beijing New Picture Film Co. Ltd. and investor Hong Kong Edko Films, Zhang Yimou should have received one-third of the box office revenue from the Chinese mainland, which should have been 15 million yuan. The director told the media that he had not yet received the 15 million yuan.

    Zhang Yimou and Zhang Weiping had been longtime business partners since 1997, and the New Picture company is known for producing Zhang Yimou’s blockbusters, including “Hero,” “House of Flying Daggers” and “The Flowers of War.” The two split in early 2013 because of employee disputes.

    In May of last year, Zhang Yimou signed with mainland entertainment company Le Vision Pictures, becoming its film and art director. His most recent film is “Coming Home,” which was released in May this year. The film grossed 22.8 million yuan on the first day on the Chinese mainland. “Coming Home” had its international premiere at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival in the “out of competition” category.

    Beijing New Picture Film declined to comment on the lawsuit.(Cao Zhen)