14 DAY TRIAL // When “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” was leaked a couple of weeks ago in what was definitely the most cruel and costly April Fool’s Day joke, 20th Century Fox immediately went into damaged control mode. Initially, it pled with the fans not to download the illegal copy and to wait patiently until the theatrical release. Then, it said that the final version would be 10 minutes longer – a claim that was completely unfounded, as The Huffington Post says.
The day after the historic leak, Fox chairman Tom Rothman stood up and spoke against piracy, saying that the unfinished workprint of the film that was making the rounds was literally ruining the work of many people over more than a year. However, in order to convince fans that they should still pay for a ticket when the movie hit theaters, Rothman also said that the finished version would be longer and would include key scenes. This might have been just a little white lie meant to talk fans into paying for the movie, the Post is now stating.
“Remember when Tom Rothman swore up and down that the final version of the film would be ten minutes longer?” film critic for the Huffington Post Scott Mendelson asks. “Apparently that was a lie. The bootleg apparently ran 107 minutes with credits. The official running time listed in the AMC and Arclight websites lists the film as running... drum roll... 107 minutes. While Tom Rothman had no choice but to convince moviegoers that the free version would be vastly different from the completed picture, it’ll be interesting to see the reaction should that not turn out to be the case. Because, at this point, it would seem to not be the case.” Mendelson further explains.
However, some changes are to be expected when “Wolverine” premieres next week. As those who have seen the bootleg version must know, many scenes were not yet finished and still needed special effects, while the music score was just a temporary one. According to Mendelson, there might be even more than just that – just not 10 more minutes. “Aside from unfinished effects work and several minutes of extra Ryan Reynolds Deadpool footage that apparently comprised the majority of the reshoots (due to an alleged scheduling conflict), it’s becoming increasingly likely that the bootleg that went out three weeks ago was in fact a rough version of the final film.” the film critic says for the aforementioned publication.
If Rothman did lie when he said that the “unfinished” version was a “misrepresentation of the film” because it omitted key scenes and elements, fans will only see when the movie premieres on May 1. However, despite the leak and the great number of people who have downloaded and seen it, hype for “Wolverine” is on the rise, which could only mean that the leak might still prove to be the best kind of publicity that not even money can buy.