Sony Entertainment has canceled the Dec. 25 release of “The Interview” after theater chains decided not to show the movie following threats of 9/11-style attacks.
"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," Sony Pictures said in a statement. "We respect and understand our partners' decision and, of course, completely share their paramount interest in the safety of employees and theatre-goers."
Four theater chains — Regal Entertainment Group, AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc., Cinemark Holdings Inc. and Carmike Cinemas Inc. — had said they wouldn’t play the movie until a federal investigation of the
cyberattack and terrorist threats is completed, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Hackers calling themselves “Guardians of Peace” threatened attacks at theaters during the opening of the comedy film, which stars Seth Rogen and James Franco in a plot to assassinate North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un. The FBI is investigating the threat.
The four theater chains control more than 18,000 out of about 40,000 movie screens in North America.
Wednesday’s announcement was the latest development in the ongoing events that have been unfolding since Thanksgiving week, including hackers leaking budgets to Sony films, salary information of top executives, employee social security numbers, controversial emails of executives, and aliases of Hollywood stars.
Fran Townsend, a former senior national security official in the George W. Bush administration, criticized the company’s decision to cancel the movie’s release.
"When you are confronted with a bully the idea is not to cave but to punch him in the nose,"
Townsend said, according to The Associated Press. "This is a horrible, I think, horrible precedent."
Reactions to the cancellation of "The Interview" release were mixed on Twitter.
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