'The Interview' Movie Release Date Update: How Will Terrorist Threats Affect Holiday Box Office?
Sony has cancelled the New York premiere to the upcoming "The Interview" after a number of controversial issues.
The Landmark Sunshine Cinema confirmed the news that Thursday's premiere would be cancelled after an ominous message was sent by Sony hackers on Tuesday morning. The message threatened a 9/11-style attack on theaters showing the film.
The message comes a few days after the stars of the film, Seth Rogen and James Franco, attended the Los Angeles premiere. That premiere was a low-key affair which had no interviews or press allowed. After the ominous messages, the duo also cancelled their media appearances including a BuzzFeed Brews conversation, Rogen's Thursday appearance on "Late Night with Seth Meyers" and an interview with both of them on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" on Wednesday.
The premiere cancellation comes a few hours after Sony gave theater owners the option of deciding whether they wanted to play the film. Carmike Cinemas has already opted out of playing the film and it is likely that other theaters will also cancel the screenings.
The movie is currently slated to open nationwide and it is tracking well at the box office. According to boxoffice.com, the film is slated to open with $22 million and predicted to make $95 million by the end of its run. However, with theaters cancelling the film in cinemas and moviegoers scared to go out due to terrorist attacks, the film could suffer at the box office. Additionally, if cinema goers get scared that an attack may happen, the overall box office could suffer.
Hollywood is counting on a healthy Holiday box office, especially after the disastrous summer the studios had. However, with an imminent attack, the overall Holiday box office could suffer and the yearly gross could be one of the worst in years. "The Interview" opens on Christmas Day alongside a slew of other films, including "Into the Woods," "Unbroken," "The Gambler," "Big Eyes" and "Selma." The studios have high expectations for all these films.
Whether the movie is delayed or not has not been announced. However, if other theaters decide to pull the film, Sony may have to delay or scrap any release plans.
"The Interview" has already been delayed once after North Korea threatened to start a war on the U.S. However, things calmed after the film was delayed.
While Sony still intends to release the film, a few weeks ago, the studio was hacked and a number of private emails were released as well as movies and future scripts.
"The Interview" tells the story of Dave Skylark and producer Aaron Rapoport, who run the celebrity tabloid show "Skylark Tonight." When they land an interview with a surprise fan, North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un, they are recruited by the CIA to turn their trip to Pyongyang into an assassination mission.
The film has obtained terrible reviews and currently has a 46 percent aggregate score on Rotten Tomatoes. Variety wrote that the movie was "About as funny as a communist food shortage, and just as protracted" while The Wrap said "While 'The Interview' never slacks in its mission to tell jokes, it's such a messy and meandering movie that it never quite lands as a satire of politics or the media or anything else."
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