Arbiter Rules in Favor of Jeremy Piven

An arbitrator found that Jeremy Piven did not violate his contract when he withdrew from "Speed-the-Plow" due to mercury poisoning, the New York Times reports.

Piven, a star of HBO's "Entourage," abruptly dropped out of the revival of the David Mamet comedy about Hollywood producers in December 2008. Piven said he had been suffering from elevated mercury levels in his blood, perhaps from eating fish twice a day for 20 years. He said the mercury poisoning left him feeling exhausted and disoriented.

The producers of the play, led by Jeffrey Richards, filed a grievance with the Actors' Equity Association in January. A February meeting of a grievance committee ended in a split decision and no penalty for Piven so producers filed for arbitration.

"I feel like all you can ask for in this life is to have your day in court and I had that, Piven said. "The facts were presented and it has been a really long journey for me. I am really happy that we can all move on and that all of the facts, and the medical facts, were heard. That the truth prevailed."

The "Speed-the-Plow" producers, however, were disappointed, saying that while they respect the decision, they disagree with it.

According to the Associated Press, "Speed-the-Plow" opened last October and ended its limited engagement in February. During the run, three actors followed Piven in the role of movie mogul Bobby Gould: understudy Jordan Lage, Norbert Leo Butz and William H. Macy. The play also starred "Mad Men's" Elisabeth Moss and Raul Esparza.