It appears Sony has given in to the pressure and has canceled the release of The Interview expected to hit theaters on Dec. 25. The terroristic threats sent by hackers were enough to get theaters to cancel the Seth Rogen-James Franco comedy, though at this point it is not clear if the hackers have the resources and man power to go through with their threat.
There were reports that Sony Pictures Entertainment considered working out a deal that would see the film released via on-demand instead. Such a move would be safe for moviegoers who could come across a potential attack at the theaters should the hackers carry out their threat. However, going the route of on-demand means that the company will likely not make a lot of money from the film. However, any digital release of the said film was also downplayed by Sony.
"Sony Pictures has no further release plans for the film," a Sony spokesperson said.
The Interview is apparently a movie designed with clear propaganda intentions in mind. In the beginning, we all thought the movie was just something with comedic purposes, but as it stands, it was a crazy attempt at getting the North Korean people to topple Kim Jong Un and usher in a democratic party.
According to a recent report via The Daily Beast, head executives at Sony wanted to end the film with Kim Jong Un dead. However, before going ahead with the plan, the execs sought advice from a U.S. Department of State official. They also held discussions with the U.S. special envoy for North Korean human rights on the matter of the ending of The Interview.
The company also asked for advice from RAND Corp. analyst Bruce Bennett on the matter. Bennett saw the ending and made a response in an email statement to Sony.
"I believe that a story that talks about the removal of the Kim family regime and the creation of a new government by the North Korean people (well, at least the elites) will start some real thinking in South Korea and, I believe, in the North once the DVD leaks," wrote Bennett, a specialist on North Korea. "So from a personal perspective, I would personally prefer to leave the ending alone."
We understand that Sony in the same day, responded by saying the views of Bennett were shared by an insider in Washington.
These email conversations took place back in June of this year.
Sony has clearly failed with this attempt, and the company should be ashamed. A movie about assassinating a currently living leader of a country, dictator or not, should not have been made in the first place.
We have no love from Kim, but that doesn't mean we should wish for him a violent death.
