Jude Law, Ewan McGregor
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McGregor Resignation Risks Nylon Productions

British screen star Ewan McGregor has resigned from Natural Nylon, the film and theatre production company that he co-founded with his friends and fellow Brit actors Jude Law, Johnny Lee Miller, Sean Pertwee and Law's wife Sadie Frost. His departure, confirmed today, calls into question the future of the company and its planned projects, which, on stage, included promised productions of Chekhov's Three Sisters and an adaptation of John Fowles' novel The Collector.

A spokeswoman for McGregor confirmed that he had parted with Natural Nylon due to "back to back filming", not least for the continuing Star Wars prequel trilogy, that left him with no time to fulfil his commitments to the company. She said, because of his schedule, McGregor had no plans to return to the stage in a Natural Nylon or any other production.

McGregor and Law launched the theatre arm of its pre-existing film company in high-profile fashion in January 2001. At the time, they said the aim of the company was to produce a range of drama, comedy and mid-scale musicals that would either star the actors themselves or utilise their expertise and contacts. The company also planned to evolve as many as possible of the stage productions into film projects, building on a successful tradition of British film often originating from the theatre.

To date, the only Natural Nylon production to emerge has been the Jude Law-fronted Dr Faustus, co-produced with the Young Vic where it had a limited sell-out run this past March/April. No other announcements have yet been made about the other two productions promised at the 2001 launch - a new Christopher Hampton adaptation of Three Sisters, directed by Sean Matthias, and Mark Healy's adaptation of Fowles' The Collector, directed by Mark Clements.

McGregor last appeared on stage in Hampstead Theatre's 1998 revival of Little Malcolm and His Struggle Against the Eunuchs, which transferred to the West End. At the time, that production, directed by his uncle Denis Lawson, marked McGregor's first stage appearance after a seven-year absence.

No one from either ATG or Natural Nylon was available for comment.

- by Terri Paddock

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