Leighton Meester threatened to quit acting if she failed to land Country Strong role

Leighton Meester threatened to quit Hollywood if her agents failed to work out her schedule so she could accept a role in Country Strong.

The Gossip Girl star had her heart set on playing aspiring singer Chiles Stanton in the 2010 country music movie - and she was determined not to let anything stand in her way, especially when she learned the film would feature Gwyneth Paltrow.

She tells Britain's Company magazine, "Obviously, we're under contract (with Gossip Girl) for a certain amount of time. In the fourth year, they started going, 'OK, we know the timing of things. We know how much we need you and how much we don't', so they've been very kind to let us out. I've been lucky enough to find projects that I like.

"When Country Strong came up, though, I threatened everybody in my life, including my manager, my agent and everybody that I worked with. I was like, 'If I can't do this, if we can't work out the schedule, I'm moving to Costa Rica. I'm never going to work again. I'm turning off my phone!'

"I was bluffing, of course, but it worked."