14 DAY TRIAL // Pressed by terrorist threats and several leaks, Sony Pictures has given in to the demands of the hackers group known as Guardians Of Peace and has canceled the release of the comedy “The Interview,” which centers on a hypothetical assassination plot against North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
Alamo Drafthouse Cinema is perhaps the only cinema chain in the US to still want to screen the film, which stars Seth Rogen and James Franco, and is based on a script by Rogen (he also gets directorial credit).
However, because Sony has pulled it, they can’t – but they have the best idea of how to not let the terrorists win: they will screen another movie instead.
Don’t let the terrorists win!
This is the message from Alamo Drafthouse, only worded a bit differently. If the hackers from #GOP took offense with “The Interview” because it features Kim Jong-un, because they can’t screen that movie, they will run instead the second best thing… just because they can.
Here’s a bold statement if we ever saw one. Alamo will screen instead the animated film “Team America: World Police,” which is actually from 2004 but is still as relevant today, if not more so than ever before.
“The world is different in 2014 than it was in 2004. Kim Jong Il is gone. I don't know if Michael Moore is still around or not. But a lot of the brilliance in TEAM AMERICA is timeless. Acting is still the greatest gift any human being can possess, and it's the only way to save America from the terrorists. And Matt Damon is still Matt Damon,” a statement on the theater chain’s official website reads.
“We will have American flags, red white and blue streamers, balloons, and more for everyone. And THAT is how true American heroes will be celebrating this year, but if you want to let the terrorists win... well, that's your prerogative,” the message further says.
Clearly, Alamo isn’t scared of a bunch of hackers threatening to drop bombs on them.
#GOP and the Sony Hack
In November, #GOP broke into the Sony servers and made away with thousands of files containing all kinds of information, from email exchanges to employees’ private data. The hackers’ one request was clear from the start: if Sony doesn’t pull “The Interview,” which they deemed a threat to world peace, they will make the studio regret it.
Sony did nothing, which infuriated #GOP even more, so they started releasing stuff they’d stolen, in batches. They also continued leaving threats to Sony, saying that they would deliver a “Christmas gift” to them if they stuck to the plan to release the comedy on Christmas day.
The tipping point came yesterday, when a new threat sent to Sony warned them that they, #GOP, would bomb all theaters screening the film, 9/11-style. The studio felt like it ultimately had no choice but to cancel the premiere.
Obviously, Alamo believes Sony should have stood up to the “terrorists” and not give in to their demands. And while they can’t run “The Interview,” they will at least do whatever they can to show the hackers that they are not afraid.
FOR THE RECORD: We were still going to show #TheInterviewMovie…
— Alamo Drafthouse DFW (@AlamoDFW) December 17, 2014
…but now we'll be showing TEAM AMERICA in it's place…for FREE(DOM). Because AMERICA, F YEAH. http://t.co/7A7p6ApIIE pic.twitter.com/U3EEqQU1Px
— Alamo Drafthouse DFW (@AlamoDFW) December 17, 2014
