Bay says Spielberg told him to fire Fox

LOS ANGELES, June 20 (UPI) -- U.S. director Michael Bay says producer Steven Spielberg told him to fire Megan Fox from the "Transformers" franchise because of controversial remarks she made.

In an interview with Wonderland magazine in 2009, the actress compared Bay to notorious Nazi leader Adolf Hitler. She then did not return for the third "Transformers" flick.

EW.com said Bay finally confirmed the long-rumored reason for her dismissal in an article for GQ.

"She was in a different world, on her BlackBerry. You gotta stay focused. And you know, the Hitler thing. Steven [Spielberg] said, 'Fire her right now,'" Bay recalled.

EW.com said Spielberg's publicist declined to comment on the story.