When it was first announced that North Korea would treat the release of "The Interview" as an act of war people just laughed it off. No one took it seriously. How could a silly buddy comedy be considered an act of war. Then someone hacked into Sony's system and stole a ton of information including emails and payroll information. While so far there has been no connection to North Korea with the hack those responsible said that if the movie is released they will plan 9/11 attacks at places that are showing the movie. This prompted theatre owners to cancel showtimes. Carmike Cinemas were the first to say they will not be showing it then other chains like AMC and Regal said they would not show it. At the end of the day the Top 5 theatre chains said they will not show it.
With theatres saying they won't screen the movie Sony did something unprecedented and decided the best bet would be to just cancel the release altogether. What that means for the movie is unknown. Will it be released at a later date?
One of the options that many people have been proposing is that Sony release it on VOD. This is something that studios have wanted to try for a long time. Will people pay to see a movie the same time it is playing in theatres. It has worked for smaller films but never with a big budget studio movie. With all the press about The Interview there is a good chance people want to see what all the fuss is about. How much will people be willing to pay to see the movie at home? If no one theatre is going to show it, it might be a good time to try it.
Besides giving terrorists what they want the question that will remain is did theatre owners just shoot themselves in the foot.
Sony's comment
“In light of the decision by the majority of our exhibitors not to show the film The Interview, we have decided not to move forward with the planned December 25 theatrical release. We respect and understand our partners’ decision and, of course, completely share their paramount interest in the safety of employees and theater-goers.
Sony Pictures has been the victim of an unprecedented criminal assault against our employees, our customers, and our business. Those who attacked us stole our intellectual property, private emails, and sensitive and proprietary material, and sought to destroy our spirit and our morale – all apparently to thwart the release of a movie they did not like. We are deeply saddened at this brazen effort to suppress the distribution of a movie, and in the process do damage to our company, our employees, and the American public. We stand by our filmmakers and their right to free expression and are extremely disappointed by this outcome.”
With theatres saying they won't screen the movie Sony did something unprecedented and decided the best bet would be to just cancel the release altogether. What that means for the movie is unknown. Will it be released at a later date?
One of the options that many people have been proposing is that Sony release it on VOD. This is something that studios have wanted to try for a long time. Will people pay to see a movie the same time it is playing in theatres. It has worked for smaller films but never with a big budget studio movie. With all the press about The Interview there is a good chance people want to see what all the fuss is about. How much will people be willing to pay to see the movie at home? If no one theatre is going to show it, it might be a good time to try it.
Besides giving terrorists what they want the question that will remain is did theatre owners just shoot themselves in the foot.
Sony's comment
“In light of the decision by the majority of our exhibitors not to show the film The Interview, we have decided not to move forward with the planned December 25 theatrical release. We respect and understand our partners’ decision and, of course, completely share their paramount interest in the safety of employees and theater-goers.
Sony Pictures has been the victim of an unprecedented criminal assault against our employees, our customers, and our business. Those who attacked us stole our intellectual property, private emails, and sensitive and proprietary material, and sought to destroy our spirit and our morale – all apparently to thwart the release of a movie they did not like. We are deeply saddened at this brazen effort to suppress the distribution of a movie, and in the process do damage to our company, our employees, and the American public. We stand by our filmmakers and their right to free expression and are extremely disappointed by this outcome.”
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