Sony Pictures streams 'The Interview' online
- By Zhang Rui
0 Comment(s)
Print
E-mail China.org.cn, December 25, 2014
Sony Pictures Entertainment is making the controversial comedy "The Interview" available online through YouTube, Google Play, the Microsoft Xbox video game console, and a special Web site SeeTheInterview.com, which makes Hollywood history.
 |
|
Poster of "The Interview" [Photo/Mtime.com] |
The movie, which started streaming online around 1 p.m. ET, costs US$5.99 to rent and US$14.99 to buy. It is having historic simultaneous release in both living rooms and, come Christmas Day, about 300 independently-owned theaters across the United States, CNN reported.
"It has always been Sony's intention to have a national platform on which to release this film," Sony Pictures chair and CEO Michael Lynton said in a statement on Wednesday. "We chose the path of digital distribution first so as to reach as many people as possible on opening day, and we continue to seek other partners and platforms to further expand the release."
"We never stopped pursuing as wide a release as possible for 'The Interview,'" Lynton added. "It was essential for our studio to release this movie, especially given the assault upon our business and our employees by those who wanted to stop free speech." "You wanna watch The Interview?? You can RIGHT ... NOW!! ... Thanks Sony for making it happen. Booyah," Seth Rogen, the co-director and actor of "The Interview" said on Twitter moments after the film became available.
"I need to say that a comedy is best viewed in a theater full of people, so if you can, I'd watch it like that. Or call some friends over," Rogen added.
There was a plan at one point to allow rentals through Apple's iTunes store, but it fell apart, according to two sources with knowledge of the matter. An iTunes release could re-materialize sometime after Christmas.
Sony could also cut a deal with a subscription streaming site like Netflix, enabling wider access to the movie sometime after Christmas.
As for the physical release on Thursday, the studio's list of participating theaters includes about 300 that will start showing it on Christmas and dozens of others that will start showing it on January 1 or January 2. Some of the Christmas Day screenings are already sold out.
Kim Song, a North Korean diplomat to the United Nations, condemned the release, calling the movie an "unpardonable mockery of our sovereignty and dignity of our supreme leader." But Kim said North Korea will likely limit its response to condemnation, with no "physical reaction."
The White House also responded to reporters' inquiries with a statement: "The President welcomes the news that people will be able to decide for themselves whether or not to see this film, and appreciates Sony's work on this effort over the past few weeks."
"With today's announcements, people can now make their own choices about the film, and that's how it should be," The statement added.
Sony Pictures Entertainment has captured much media attention recently for being the object of a destructive hack attack. Starring Seth Rogen and James Franco, "The Interview" tells the story of an assassination attempt on DPRK leader Kim Jong-un.
Sony cancelled the film's release after hackers threatened violence against moviegoers last Week. But the decision drew widespread criticism.
On Monday, North Korea suffered sweeping Internet outages, following a vow from U.S. President Barack Obama of a response to the "cyber vandalism."
Experts suggest the U.S. may have been behind the breakdown, but the White House and State Department declined to comment.
State Department Spokeswoman Marie Harf said "Ask the North Koreans if their internet wasn't working. I can't speculate on why that was if it wasn't. I can't confirm the reports that it actually wasn't."
Meanwhile, China denied its involvement in cutting off North Korea's Internet.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said "I've noted the reports you've mentioned. They speculate that China is possibly involved. Recently, lots of reports have used words like 'possibly' and 'estimate'. I think this kind of speculative reporting, which is full of assumption and has no basis in reality, really can't be trusted. The reports themselves are extremely irresponsible, unprofessional, and misleading."
Internet access was restored in North Korea on Tuesday.
The North Korean Internet administration blamed an overload of the nation-wide system for the interruption, but denied suggestions it was hacked.
Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)