Wentworth Miller is said to be “self-important” and acting “like a spoiled princess” on the set of Prison Break. He specifically forbids extras to talk to him and is said to have thrown hissy fits and flipped off the crew.

In contrast, his on-screen brother Lincoln, played by Dominic Purcell, is well liked on set and is said to be friendly with the crew and cast.

“Wentworth’s out of control with his self-important attitude,” an eyewitness on the set told The Enquirer. “The guy’s got the production assistants waiting for him with his flip-flops and beverages between scenes. They’re trained to respond to his every whim.”

The British-born Wentworth, 35, who’s guest-starred on dozens of shows including “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” and “ER,” was not well-known until he landed one of the starring roles on the Fox action series.

Gearing up for its third season, the show features Wentworth as hero Michael Scofield, who enters prison to help his false accused brother Lincoln, played by Dominic Purcell, to break out.

But Wentworth’s bravado ends when the cameras shut off, says the set insider.

In fact, he’s “downright prissy!”

While co-star Dominic chats up extras and crewmembers, Wentworth has given orders for everyone to leave him alone.

“He even told the director: ‘I don’t want the extras talking to me,'” said the insider.

“That’s rich coming from someone who did extra work for a long time before he got lucky with ‘Break’.”

According to the insider, Wentworth also “throws fits” and whines “in a high-pitched voice” when he’s not getting his way.

“He has even flipped off the crew during his fits,” said the insider.

[From The National Enquirer, print edition, September 3, 2007]

There isn’t a specific story of something Wentworth did on set other than being generally bitchy and flipping off the crew, so maybe he’s just standoffish and not as bad as they say.

I love the guy in Prison Break and as long as he’s simply demanding and not too over the top, why should it hurt his career? There aren’t any stories of him being snotty to waitresses or throwing fits on planes, so I would bet he’s moderately high strung and likes things a certain way. He may have a sense of entitlement, but he’s not late on set, neglecting his work or generally partying all over Hollywood. Our standards are low for celebrities, but this story about Wentworth certainly seems to be within the realm of acceptable star behavior.

As I said in an earlier story about Wentworth this week, he needs to go on to A-list film work. He’s already got the attitude down, and you know he can nail even the fiercest role.

Update The commentors here and most everyone on ONTD, where this news was posted (thanks!) says that Miller is known to be very nice to his fans and extremely humble. People have friends who have met him and gush about how great he is. He is known to be a very gracious and kind person, and everyone is saying this story is total b.s.

Thanks to Just Jared for these scans of Wentworth in German GQ, where there are a lot more pictures from the magazine.