Video of Riverdale star Cole Sprouse confronting a Vancouver busker has gone viral.
Musician Babe Coal has lashed out at the 24-year-old actor, claiming she is being trolled with hateful comments on social media.
“It was a vicious attack upon me,” she fumed in a statement posted on Facebook. “Cole Sprouse was fully aware or should have been aware that his actions would incite aggression towards me online or in person with his supporters.”
Coal, whose real name is Megan Regehr, was busking last Wednesday in busy Robson Square with and amplified guitar and a microphone. Inside the nearby Vancouver Art Gallery, Sprouse and some cast mates were shooting scenes for the second season of the popular series.
She said a woman who identified herself as a member of the sound crew came over and politely asked her to turn the volume down, which she did.
Then, she claimed another woman from the crew “aggressively” told her to stop playing or she would call police.
“The production company had sent this rude, young and arrogant person who’s demeanor was intent on starting a conflict and was determined to dominate and embarrass me in front of my audience,” Coal wrote.
The veteran busker said when she offered to stop playing in exchange for financial compensation, the crew person called her a scammer.
Coal said police officers arrived on scene but told her she was doing nothing wrong.
Eventually, Coal said she was confronted by Sprouse, who plays Jughead Jones, and other cast members including Lili Reinhart, who plays Betty Cooper.
In video posted on YouTube, Sprouse can be heard asking Coal to stop playing for an hour so the Riverdale production can proceed.
“We can't film anything. I know you're asking for compensation. We're asking simply for an hour," he said.
When Coal repeated her request for compensation, Sprouse turned to onlookers and said: “Just in case you guys don't know how this thing works, this is one of the secrets of film production. We give a location to the city and then some scam artists come out…”
Coal interrupted the actor. "You can't call me a scam artist because you guys came into where I perform,” she said.
On Twitter, Coal said: “Short edited videos don't show the whole thing, I had a choice to either stand my ground or cower to being bullied, I chose the first.”
In her Facebook statement, Coal alleged that Sprouse “began to aggressively and arrogantly use his fame and popularity to publicly attack and defame me.”
In another video shared online, Sprouse is seen breaking one of Coal’s CDs while onlookers cheer.
At time of posting, there has been no public comment from Sprouse or reps for Riverdale.
Sprouse is best known for his run on the Disney series The Suite Life of Zack and Cody. He also played David Schwimmer's son Ben Geller on Friends.
According to Vancouver bylaws, buskers can not perform in one location for more than an hour and can’t play past 10 p.m. (Coal says she was on provincial land so the city bylaw did not apply to her.)
In 2012, Coal received $600 in tickets for using amplified sound in North Vancouver. She appealed to the B.C. Supreme Court, which set aside the fines. Last year. she filed a civil lawsuit against the city of North Vancouver seeking $140,000 in lost income.