Sony Pictures‘ controversial comedy The Interview, which saw its December 25 theatrical release canned last Wednesday in the wake of terror threats levied by the group responsible for last month’s Sony hacks, has found new life, according to a report from the New York Post.
Per the report, Sony intends to release the film for free on its own Crackle streaming service. It was previously rumored Sony might scrap the film’s release entirely in order to pick up full insurance proceeds on the write-off, but the studio released a statement Friday informing the public it was seeking an alternative release strategy for the film and hoped “anyone who wants to see this movie will get the opportunity to do so.”
Sony previously announced it had explored VOD as a release option for The Interview following the cancellation of its theatrical release, but no intermediaries took the bait, which prompted plenty around the web to wonder why Sony wouldn’t just release the film on its own platform. The obvious answer is money: Crackle is a free service, and surely Sony would want to recoup some of its production and marketing losses by making a VOD release for the film a lucrative pay-per-view event.
Now it seems Sony may indeed go the free route, though the studio’s lawyer told “Meet the Press” this morning that while the film would be released at some point, Sony wasn’t yet sure of its exact plans. One other question I have is whether Crackle could handle the traffic an online release of The Interview would cause, but if this happens I guess we’ll find out soon enough. I’ve used the service before, and it’s definitely no Netflix, so I’ll be curious to see what happens if the film does wind up on Crackle.
If you ask me, any form of release of this film is a win, not just for Sony but for filmmakers and artists in general. As Brad wrote last week, choosing not to release the film due to pressures like those from the “Guardians of Peace” sets a horrible precedent, as it could well mark the beginning of a very slippery slope that ultimately leads to censorship from parties not involved in the filmmaking or distribution process. Say what you will about the movie’s storyline and the fact it was co-directed by stoner comedy team Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, The Interview is still a piece of creative expression, and at the end of the day I’m not a fan of censoring artists, no matter how stupid their films might be.
