Assistant Director Says of Christian Bale’s Terminator Set Rant – “It Was Just a Moment”

You can’t get away with anything these days without someone recording you or snapping your picture, just ask Michael Phelps.  Remember that  story of Christian Bale losing it on the set of “Terminator Salvation”? Well of course there’s a leaked recording, and man it ain’t pretty.

The intense “Dark Knight” star launched into a lengthy, expletive-laced tirade against Shane Hurlbut, “Terminator’s” director of cinematography, after he allegedly walked into the actor’s shot during an intense scene.

Bale unleashed a multi-minute tirade against Hurlbut in July while the film was shooting in New Mexico. According to TMZ.com, who obtained the tape, producers sent the audio to their insurance company in case Bale walked off the film.

And they had good reason to think he might: Bale spewed forth a bevy of curse words that would make even a sailor blush.

“I want you off the f—ing set, you p—k!” Bale screamed as Hurlbut can be heard quietly apologizing. “Don’t just be sorry – think for one f—ing second. What the f— are you doing?!”

The rant, captured on tape last year, continued in that vein for several minutes, with the F-word taking center stage.This is not the first report of Bale’s batty behavior. He was arrested in England last July after a tussle with his mother, Jenny and sister Sharon, who called the cops on him. In August, authorities dropped the matter.

In Bale’s defense, Bruce Franklin, an assistant director and associate producer on the fourth Terminator film, tells E! News that Bale, a “consummate professional,” just had a bad day.

“If you are working in a very intense scene and someone takes you out of your groove…It was the most emotional scene in the movie,” said Franklin. “And for him to get stopped in the middle of it. He is very intensely involved in his character. He didn’t walk around like that all day long. It was just a moment and it passed.

“This was my second movie with Christian, and it has always been a good experience with him,” added Franklin, who also worked with the actor on 2000′s Shaft. “He is so dedicated to the craft. I think someone is begging to make some noise about this, but I don’t think it’s fair. The art of acting is not paint by numbers, it’s an art form. ”

Listen to the full audio here. (Warning: explicit language if you haven’t already noticed)