Scarlett Johansson's Directorial Debut in 'New York, I Love You' Cut Off

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Speculation that Scarlett Johansson's first directorial effort for a segment in "New York, I Love You" has ended up on the chopping block is indeed a true story. Entertainment Weekly has confirmed the report, though it further noted that the reason behind the elimination of the segment from the upcoming anthology film's final cut wasn't as what has been rumored.

Earlier, New York Post reported that sources have claimed Johansson's black-and-white section starring Kevin Bacon has been scrapped off the final cut because it is "really bad" and "unwatchable". "It's shot in black and white and there's very little dialogue or interpersonal relationships," an insider further explained. "It just didn't work in the context of the movie."

However, producer Emmanuel Benbihy has slammed down the alleged poor quality as the reason for the cutting of the segment. On defending Johansson, he said that he was "very much moved" by her "extremely compelling, albeit unconventional, narrative". Still, he agreed that Johansson's work is "extreme departures from the other films".

Nonetheless, Scarlett Johansson's section will be included on the DVD release of "New York, I Love You" alongside Andrei Zvyagintsev's segment starring Carla Gugino and Goran Visnjic, which was also edited out of the theatrical version.

Said to be the unofficial follow-up to 2007 romance drama "Paris, je t'aime", "New York, I Love You" highlights on love stories in five boroughs of New York which are conjoined together to form one whole movie. It is directed by 12 different helmers from the acclaimed Mira Nair to newcomer Natalie Portman.

Yet to have its official release date, this Palm Pictures romantic drama features the likes of Rachel Bilson, Robin Wright Penn, Orlando Bloom, Ethan Hawke, Blake Lively, Andy Garcia, Christina Ricci and Hayden Christensen among many other stars.