Terrence Howard is in need of a career rehabilitation. He was hit with a restraining order yesterday.
The Oscar-nominated actor was ordered to stay at least 100 yards away from his estranged wife, Michelle Howard, based on claims that he repeatedly threatened to hit her throughout their marriage.
“Despite my efforts to remove myself physically from [Howard’s] life, his periodic mood swings from anger, threats and violence to statements of love and requests for reconciliation continue and have not subsided,” Michelle wrote.
Today the star is denying the allegations.
In his own sworn personal declaration Howard said that he never threatened to hit his wife and this is her attempt to ruin his career.
“I live in constant fear of Michelle’s endeavors to ruin my reputation; even providing this declaration may well lead to my being subjected to a paparazzi blitz which would not be good for my career,” Howard wrote.
This is not the first time Howard has been dogged with allegations of spousal abuse.
In 2001, the actor was arrested for charges related to his then ex-wife Lori McCommas. The charges consisted of simple assault, terrorist threats, harassment and stalking.
He ultimately plead guilty to disorderly conduct.
Details from Michelle’s claim are startling; including the actor threatening to throw her from a hotel balcony in South Africa last year, to violent text messages that she said he sent her.
Howard’s fears of Michelle’s claims of violence hurting his career are legitimate; however one could argue that the actor’s career has been on downward spiral for several years.
Howard’s first major film role was in 1995 crime film Dead Presidents. Some of his subsequent roles in major movies include The Best Man, Ray, Lackawanna Blues, Get Rich or Die Tryin, and August Rush.
The actor gained mainstream notoriety in 2004 with his appearance in the Oscar-winning ensemble film Crash. He received an Oscar nomination in 2005 for his role as a hustler and pimp who aspires to be a rapper in Hustle & Flow.
Over the last few years the actor has starred in films which have received minimal acclaim and poor reviews.
His last blockbuster hit was in 2008 with Iron Man which grossed of $300 million. Many Hollywood insiders believed that Howard was not asked to be in film’s sequel due to his difficult behavior on the set of the first Iron Man.
According to Entertainment Weekly, Howard was the first actor signed to the film and was the highest paid. It was a combination of the actor’s poor behavior on-set, and the Marvel’s inability to negotiate a financial deal that led Don Cheadle being as Howard’s replacement in Iron Man 2.
Howard currently can be seen on Law and Order: Los Angeles, and is set to star on the big screen in Red Tails and in the Winnie Mandela Biopic, Winnie.
Momentum is beginning to build around Red Tails, which is scheduled to hit theaters January 20, 2012.
Last Saturday Oprah gathered the all-star cast of the film, including Howard, for a private screening in Dallas, Texas.
George Lucas, who directs the biopic about the Tuskegee program during World War II, has already poured $93 million of his own cash into the film.
Red Tails could in many ways be Howard’s first mainstream box office success in this decade.
However, the recent allegations of domestic violence might overshadow the actors attempt at a comeback.
