Theater Chains Cause Sony to Bow to Terrorists, Cancel Release of “The Interview”
I actually blame the theater chains more than Sony.
Under the threat of terrorist attacks from hackers and with the nation’s largest multiplex chains pulling the film from their screens, Sony Pictures Entertainment took the unprecedented step of canceling the Dec. 25 release of the Seth Rogen comedy “The Interview.”
The cancellation announced Wednesday was a startling blow to the Hollywood studio that has been shaken by hacker leaks and intimidations over the last several weeks by an anonymous group calling itself Guardians of Peace.
Those of us who share the constrained vision (Thomas Sowell’s conception; see my ongoing series here, here, and here so far) are very much concerned with incentives, and are less concerned with isolated bad events. I am very concerned about the precedent this sets, and my first reaction upon hearing the news was to wonder how I could punish the theater chains.
There’s not much I can do right now other than criticize them as craven sissies on my blog, and point out the horrible precedent they are setting.
The whole episode is reminiscent of the refusal to show Mohammed cartoons on the part of spineless media outlets. Teach thugs that their thuggery can control speech, and you get more thuggery.
This is also why you don’t settle with Brett Kimberlin, by the way. Theater chains, The American Spectator, and the Franklin Center share a willingness to avoid (very small) risks, at the price of encouraging bad behavior by bullies. They all deserve to be punished and called out.
I will continue to do so here.
UPDATE: Wow. They have completely scrapped it. No streaming, no DVD, no Blu-Ray, no nothing. It’s like it never happened.
Why would anyone ever make a movie for Sony again.
UPDATE x2: This is reportedly the scene where Dear Leader is killed in the film:
UPDATE x3: Wow. Steve Carell’s upcoming film Pyongyang has been cancelled. It is no exaggeration to say: we now live in a world where Kim Jong Un calls the shots as to what movies Hollywood will make.
Ding.
Patterico (9c670f) — 12/17/2014 @ 6:18 pmDamn… there goes their Oscar…
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 12/17/2014 @ 6:19 pmand i’m proud to be an american where at least i know
hah
lol
happyfeet (831175) — 12/17/2014 @ 6:19 pmI want to see it even though it looks pretty crappy.
Patterico (9c670f) — 12/17/2014 @ 6:22 pmi’m not giving sony my monies Mr. P
i’m just not
there’s got to be local whores what give better value
happyfeet (831175) — 12/17/2014 @ 6:23 pmCue teh Ben Affleck frothy-mouthed denunciation…
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 12/17/2014 @ 6:24 pmGiven the fact that the last three movies I watched in theater were Star Trek VI, Schindler’s List, and Junior (tge one with Schwarzenegger, DiVito and Thompson), there is not much impact I would have on Regal Cinemas et al.
But consider what would happen if you were a theater owner who chose to show the film, and found that no one came to see because they were afraid. Or even worse, you were the one theater the loony thugs decided to actually target.
kishnevi (3719b7) — 12/17/2014 @ 6:28 pm150 Iraqi women slaughtered outside Fallujah for refusing to submit to ISIS and Michelle Obama talks of being a victim at Target? #Can’tMakeThisSh*tUp
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 12/17/2014 @ 6:31 pmkooky or what?
this photo of NPR idol Fidel Castro
is it just me or does he bear a scary resemblance to our nokoho friend James Franco
happyfeet (831175) — 12/17/2014 @ 6:37 pmWhat would Team America say?
Simon Jester (3d3f38) — 12/17/2014 @ 6:39 pmThey so ronery?
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 12/17/2014 @ 6:41 pmHello.
Denver Todd (5f001f) — 12/17/2014 @ 6:41 pmI agree with kishnevi. It’s a legitimate business decision for the theaters. Let Sony stand up for Hollywood’s principles.
nk (dbc370) — 12/17/2014 @ 6:42 pmSimon Jester,
Funny you mention Team America:
Dana (8e74ce) — 12/17/2014 @ 6:48 pmHollywood’s principles
Big assumption there.
Dana (8e74ce) — 12/17/2014 @ 6:49 pmJust a ronery guy…
http://youtu.be/UEaKX9YYHiQ
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 12/17/2014 @ 6:55 pmshucks, Americans missed out on the chance to attend movies Israeli style.
seeRpea (01f6d3) — 12/17/2014 @ 6:57 pmDana?! 🙂
nk (dbc370) — 12/17/2014 @ 6:59 pmNot too long ago I heard a perspective on the draw Mohammed, etc., that I had never seen nor thought of myself.
Agitating Muslim sensibilities can have repercussions on non-Muslims living in predominantly Muslim countries. We may think we are making a stand on a free press, but it may result in a new round of persecution. When people die in riots, it may not be the Muslims dying, but the local non-Muslims who are seen as the closest representatives of “them”.
MD in Philly (f9371b) — 12/17/2014 @ 7:01 pmCurse it as illogical if you want, but you may want to think about it twice before we go out of our way to agitate Muslims without a significant point to it (of course, people will disagree on what is “significant”).
The cancellation isn’t about “The Interview”, it’s about the other films showing at the same multiplexes. The theater chains are afraid that people will stay away from ALL these movies over the holidays. Would you take your kids to a theater that just might be the target of a bombing? Many would not. It’s not cowardice, it’s commerce.
Paranoid thought:
I wonder if the Norks had anything to do with this. If Obama responds forcefully (yes … yes, I know) then maybe it’s all just been a setup. North Korea doesn’t have a lot of hacking expertise (how would they learn in a country where hacking was death, if you even had a computer?). The NSA, though…. Most of the people at Sony who got outed in the hacks dissed Obama….
Kevin M (25bbee) — 12/17/2014 @ 7:02 pmAs I understand the movie business, the studios get the lion’s share of the ticket sales for new releases, with the movie theaters making it up with volume and concessions.* Sony can work out a deal with theater, even guarantee a gate, if it wants to take the money incentive out of them not showing the movie.
*I read that Star Wars got 100% the first week, for example.
nk (dbc370) — 12/17/2014 @ 7:05 pmI don’t go out of my way to agitate Muslims because the ones in the family all have knives at Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner, but we can’t let them hold their Christian neighbors in Cairo hostage for our good behavior here. Or the whole world hostage. That is the definition of terrorism to begin with — to strike not directly at your enemy but at innocents in order to influence the conduct of your enemy.
nk (dbc370) — 12/17/2014 @ 7:14 pmOT- Conservative veteran officer McSally wins House seat in AZ by under 200 votes. I said I doubted that would ever happen.
MD in Philly (f9371b) — 12/17/2014 @ 7:16 pmI agree nk to some degree, but I think people need to think twice when somebody else pays the consequences of their own actions.
MD in Philly (f9371b) — 12/17/2014 @ 7:18 pmAnd I agree with that sentiment also, MD.
nk (dbc370) — 12/17/2014 @ 7:21 pmAgitating Muslim sensibilities can have repercussions on non-Muslims living in predominantly Muslim countries
Way I understand it the whole country of north korea is held hostage. It’s one big prison, where if the inmates don’t cry or curtsy on que, with the proper amount of fake anguish or deference, punishment is swift and arbitrary.
papertiger (c2d6da) — 12/17/2014 @ 7:51 pmBesides the hackers aren’t threatening North Koreans with a 9/11 style attack, if Sony does this or that.
They are threatening us.
If I were president, after perfunctory consultations with our Japanese and South Korean allies I’d order a batch of those low collateral damage jdams to make rubble of the dictator’s palace, with the intention of ending the Kim dynasty once and for all.
papertiger (c2d6da) — 12/17/2014 @ 8:05 pmI disagree that the movie theater chains should be criticized for this, let alone punished. The federal government has assumed the responsibility to far too many things, but two of things it’s supposed to do is secure the border and protect America from foreign threats, both physical and cyber-based. But Obama and the Democrats have failed to do either of these things, so now the movie theater chains have to deal with this particular threat on their own. What’s more, it isn’t the theater owners and managers who are primarily at risk, it’s the minimum wage workers and patrons. Taking reasonable steps to avoid that risk is a no-brainer.
The Obama Administration should have been hardening our infrastructure against grid-based and cyber threats, but instead it wasted taxpayer money on crony deals. It should have been strengthening our border, but instead it has opened the southern border and invited illegals to come in. It’s put too much emphasis on drones and not enough on human intelligence, and it has undermined the CIA and the military while our nation is at war.
I’m glad when Americans bravely stand up to threats. The passengers on Flight 93 are examples of Americans at our best, but they had no choice. Why intentionally expose innocent movie-goers to a heightened risk just to show how brave we are? We need Obama to show the world how brave he is by proving that he and his government will stand up and protect Americans.
DRJ (a83b8b) — 12/17/2014 @ 8:07 pmi want some of whatever DRJ has been indulging in…
redc1c4 (dab236) — 12/17/2014 @ 8:23 pmDon’t hold your breath, DRJ… http://t.co/NoLEBz0Kse
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 12/17/2014 @ 8:27 pmIt’s not like you were going to vote for me.
papertiger (c2d6da) — 12/17/2014 @ 8:33 pmI guess ABC didn’t get the memo. I just saw a promo for “The Interview” on Kimmel while waiting to see Megan Kelly. She’s on now talking about the whole thing.
Ag80 (eb6ffa) — 12/17/2014 @ 9:26 pmjust what i wanted for Christmas: another reason to despise Hollyweird and everyone/thing associated with it.
redc1c4 (34e91b) — 12/17/2014 @ 9:40 pmhttp://www.dailyherald.com/article/20141217/news/141218513/
elissa (bd83d8) — 12/18/2014 @ 4:44 amNot because I hate commies, worry over the fate of Sony pictures, or even think much about Norks.
It’s because I hate hackers.
Right now I’m dealing with one of those Sony style rootkits attacking my computer’s cmd.exe
What I wouldn’t give for a minute alone with the sob who developed it.
papertiger (c2d6da) — 12/18/2014 @ 4:45 amAside from the actual method involved, could the results of “Kim Jong Un calls the shots as to what movies Hollywood will make” be that much worse than the current executives?
ErisGuy (76f8a7) — 12/18/2014 @ 5:03 amIt is no exaggeration to say: we now live in a world where Kim Jong Un calls the shots as to what movies Hollywood will make.
I think that would be a step up for Hollywood.
nk (dbc370) — 12/18/2014 @ 5:04 amAlamo Draft House in Dallas, which was slated to show The Interview, has decided to show Team America, World Police in it’s stead, for free, and is giving out US flags to patrons as well.
Suck it Kim Jong Uhn!
Rorschach256 (61bf43) — 12/18/2014 @ 6:59 amthere’s nothing really comparable to Alamo Drafthouse here in Choicago i found yet
i think there’s an iPic in one of the suburbs
happyfeet (a037ad) — 12/18/2014 @ 7:09 am*Chicago* i mean
happyfeet (a037ad) — 12/18/2014 @ 7:09 amSpeaking of incentives, doesn’t this create a strong ($$$) incentive to pirate (i.e., steal) the film and distribute the pirated film through pirate channels?
melanerpes (af3365) — 12/18/2014 @ 7:10 amhttps://cubaconfidential.wordpress.com/tag/rolando-roly-sarraf-trujillo/
narciso (ee1f88) — 12/18/2014 @ 7:35 amhttp://drafthouse.com/movies/quote_alongs_team_america/dfw
Rorschach256 (61bf43) — 12/18/2014 @ 7:49 amok, linky no longer workee… sorry.
Rorschach256 (61bf43) — 12/18/2014 @ 7:53 amhappy you could always move to a more civilized place… you know like uganda….=b
Rorschach256 (61bf43) — 12/18/2014 @ 7:58 amThe Vic/Brew & View. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Vic_Theatre Beat that.
nk (dbc370) — 12/18/2014 @ 8:05 amA sample of tweets:
http://www.today.com/popculture/ben-stiller-steve-carell-more-celebs-blast-interview-cancellation-twitter-1D80377922
Rob Lowe said that Hollywood has pulled a Neville Chamberlain. Assuming many of them know who Neville Chamberlain was I wonder if this cyber act of war is opening any eyes on the left. One can hope.
elissa (2f5175) — 12/18/2014 @ 8:14 amShow of hands. Who, here, was looking forward to going to see this movie? Who had even heard of it before this?
nk (dbc370) — 12/18/2014 @ 8:16 ama show of hands? This is for Hollywood and teh Norks!
…………………./ｴｯ/)
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 12/18/2014 @ 8:30 am………………..,/ｯ../
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…………./ｴｯ/’…’/ｴｯｯ`ｷｸ
………./’/…/…./……./ｨｯ\
……..(‘(…ď˝´…ď˝´…. ｯ~/’…’)
………\……………..’…../
……….”…\………. _.ď˝·ď˝´
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After Obama’s ill-conceived curtsy to Cuba, don’t be surprised when he sits down to break dog with the NoKo’s.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 12/18/2014 @ 8:40 amI have the black “Django” and “Skyfall” included in my On Demand package. I have not watched, nor want to watch, either. And I loved the Franco Nero spaghetti Djangos and even some of the knockoffs. Some come and go on YouTube still.
nk (dbc370) — 12/18/2014 @ 8:42 amskyfall is better than Quantum, of course Kim the lesser, might have gone after ‘Die another Day’ but that’s not the point,
narciso (ee1f88) — 12/18/2014 @ 8:55 amOn the newish installment of the XMen franchise they show The Interview preview. So I knew about it. Can’t say I was going to see it.
papertiger (c2d6da) — 12/18/2014 @ 8:58 amChristoph Waltz is one of my favorite working actors. Because he was in it and won the academy award for his performance, I rented Django. I thought it was very good, slightly off center/ bizarre entertainment. Hey, it’s tarantino doing a western! Leo and Jaime Foxx were good in it, too. You should watch it, nk!
elissa (2f5175) — 12/18/2014 @ 9:00 amelissa, there’s a theory that the more you cling to your childhood memories the less you age. I want to remember Franco Nero dragging around a coffin that in the end turns out to contain an impossible machine gun.
nk (dbc370) — 12/18/2014 @ 9:05 amThere’s another movie taht’s been cancelled.
“Pyongyang”
It was scheduled to begin production in March, and was being produced by New Rregency. Fox was to have distributed the film.
https://deadline.com/2014/12/north-korea-thriller-gore-verbinski-steve-carell-canceled-new-regency-1201328532/#
It’s based on an autobiographical novel nd was supposed t
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 12/19/2014 @ 9:25 amDuring the 1930’s Nazi Germany almost exercised censorship on films (partly because they were being distribuited in Germany) and theer were just about no films made with jewish themses. (The Jazz Singer was before)
Charlie Chaplin’s “the Great Dictator” I see was released in 1940. I thought it was earlier.
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 12/19/2014 @ 9:27 amThere’s a movie in development called “The defection”
North Korea has a cameo appearance, a sthe location to which a defector defects. (the story mostly tales place within the CIA)
Twentieth Century Fox is wondering whether they should change the country. (Wall Street Journal story)
http://www.wsj.com/articles/after-sony-hack-hollywood-searches-for-a-new-villain-1418950907
Wait, isn’t that now Twenty-First Cetury Fox?
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 12/19/2014 @ 9:33 amafter-sony-hack-hollywood-searches-for-a-new-villain-1418950907
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 12/19/2014 @ 9:34 amWhy not rerelease the Manchurian Candidate?
daleyrocks (bf33e9) — 12/19/2014 @ 9:53 am60. Maybe nobody should call attention to it, or the copyright owner might pull it.
Jonah Goldberg’s column:
http://www.nationalreview.com/article/395049/no-superheroes-interview-cave-jonah-goldberg
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 12/19/2014 @ 10:18 amhttp://deadline.com/2014/12/george-clooney-sony-hollywood-cowardice-north-korea-cyberattack-petition-1201329988
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 12/19/2014 @ 10:44 am