A look inside Hollywood and the movies incorporating Outtakes, Cinefile and Production Chart. : TROUBLES DEPT. : Dylan Thomas, the Movie . . . Maybe

Gary Oldman (“Sid & Nancy”) as the Welsh poet Dylan Thomas. His real-life wife, Uma Thurman (“Henry and June”), as Thomas’ wife. The appeal of the $4.5-million “Dylan,” to be produced by London’s Harlech Films (a division of HTV International) and distributed by Miramax, was apparent. But a funny thing happened on the way to the screen.

Nine days into the late-January shoot, Oldman collapsed on the set in Wales, said by doctors to be suffering from “nervous exhaustion.” The production was shut down, in the words of a press release, “until such time as Oldman has regained his health and is available to re-start work.”

Some insiders--as well as the irrepressible London tabloids--have cast the incident in a different light, however, claiming that Oldman’s collapse was precipitated less by fatigue than by creative conflicts on the set. It’s a charge that Harlech (which has filed an insurance claim for the $1.5 million lost) disputes.

“There were no creative differences, to the best of my knowledge,” says Paul Sarony, general manager of Harlech and the producer of the film. “No one got canned. The director, David Drury, did resign afterwards but, then, we couldn’t keep him on hold forever. What happened is very simple: Gary got sick. Doctors confirmed it. Anything else is pure speculation, making a mountain out of a molehill.”

Harlech is trying to get another incarnation of the project (new director, heavily rewritten script, bigger budget) off the ground in the fall--hopefully with Oldman in tow. No prospect of lawsuits at the moment, Sarony claims. “Certainly not between the production company and Oldman. But whether the insurance company will go after the actor I can’t say.”

Oldman is currently in Dallas tackling his next role: Lee Harvey Oswald in Oliver Stone’s “JFK,” an investigation into the assassination of President Kennedy. Kevin Costner also stars as former New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison.