Steven Spielberg demanded Megan Fox be fired from Transformers, says Bay

As Lars von Trier knows, comparing a film director to Hitler – even if it's yourself – is rarely wise. And it's now been confirmed by Michael Bay that it was Megan Fox's remarks likening Bay to the German dictator that led to her being dismissed from the Transformers franchise.

Speaking ahead of the 4 July premiere of Transformers 3, in which British model Rosie Huntingdon-Whitley replaced Fox as the female lead, Bay has revealed it was the film's executive producer, Steven Spielberg, who demanded Fox's dismissal. Bay said: "You know the Hitler thing? Steven (Spielberg) said, fire her right now."

Fox, 25, made the offending remarks to British magazine Wonderland shortly before production was scheduled to begin on the third instalment of the franchise. "He's like Napoleon and he wants to create this insane, infamous madman reputation," she said of Bay. "He wants to be like Hitler on his sets, and he is. So he's a nightmare to work for but when you get him away from set, and he's not in director mode, I kind of really enjoy his personality because he's so awkward, so hopelessly awkward. He has no social skills at all. And it's endearing to watch him. He's vulnerable and fragile in real life and then on set he's a tyrant. Shia [Labeouf] and I almost die when we make a Transformers movie. He has you do some really insane things that insurance would never let you do."

At the time, Fox's departure was credited to her desire to pursue other acting opportunities.

Bay's appointment of Fox was not universally popular. In an open letter posted on Michael Bay's website, a Transformers crew member disparaged Bay's decision to cast her over more experienced actors. "He told everyone around to just trust him on his choice … she became one of the most Googled and [ogled] women on earth. She was famous! She was the next Angelina Jolie, hooray! Wait a minute, two of us worked with Angelina. Second thought: she's no Angelina. You see, Angelina is a professional. We know this quite intimately because we've had the tedious experience of working with the dumb-as-a-rock Megan Fox on both Transformers movies."