Johnny Depp may be one of the richest individuals in Hollywood, but he’s still a man that sticks to his principles when it comes to the monetary terms of his work.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the 49-year-old actor has pulled out of the Whitey Bulger biopic “Black Masses” after refusing to take a 50 percent pay from his standard salary of $20 million.

Depp was to appear as the Boston mob boss in the Barry Levinson-directed film, which revolves around Bulger’s relationship with the FBI. It is based on a book by former Boston Globe reporters Dick Lehr and Gerard O’Neill called “Black Mass: The True Story of an Unholy Alliance Between the FBI and the Irish Mob.”

The movie was set to begin filming over the summer, however, that is now dependent on if they find a replacement lead actor by then. It is unknown on whether Depp’s departure will have any impact on the involvement of Joel Edgerton, who has been signed on to play FBI agent John Connolly. Deadline reports that Connolly was charged with assisting Bulger, his childhood friend, in hiding from the government for over a decade by giving him information about when officials were close to finding him.

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It remains unclear whether the film will move forward. A number of high-profile stars, including Meryl Streep, remain committed to the movie, according to various reports. It is also unclear who will replace Depp.  The film was supposed to start shooting immediately after Depp wrapped up work on Wally Pfister’s sci-fi film “Transcendence” and before beginning work on Disney’s 2015’s “Pirates of the Caribbean 5.”

Surprisingly, this is not the first time the film’s director has experienced a disruption while working on a mob film. The Huffington Post reports that Levinson had to abandon directing “Gotti: In the Shadow of My Father” due to money-related issues and was eventually replaced by Joe Johnston.

If the Cross Creek and Exclusive Media produced film doesn’t recast their lead actor soon, it may give Ben Affleck a chance to get ahead on the production of his own movie about the former mobster. According to Boston.com, there is a script currently in the works by “Boardwalk Empire” creator Terry Winter and Affleck’s buddy Matt Damon is expected to play Bulger while his brother Casey Affleck will play Bulger’s brother Billy.

“It’s one of those things: If you do Whitey, you better make damn sure you execute and make a good movie,” Affleck told the website last year.

Despite the fact that Depp will no longer appear in “Black Masses,” fans will soon see him in “The Lone Ranger,” which hits theaters July 3. He has also signed on to return as Jack Sparrow in “Pirates of the Caribbean 5” expected to be released in summer 2015.