Sony will send 'The Interview' into limited release

LOS ANGELES -- Sony Pictures said Tuesday that it had secured a limited theatrical release for its film The Interview on Christmas Day.

"We have never given up on releasing The Interview," Michael Lynton, chief executive of Sony Entertainment, said in a statement. "We are continuing our efforts to secure more platforms and more theaters so that this movie reaches the largest possible audience."

Last week, about 80 percent of the theaters in the United States and Canada refused to show The Interview in the face of a terrorism threat from a group of hackers that targeted Sony. But on Tuesday, Sony reached out to theater owners again, asking if they would re-book the film.

The movie will show on Christmas Day at four theaters in Arkansas: Riverdale 10 in Little Rock, Cabot Silver Screen 8 in Cabot, Searcy Cinema 8 in Searcy and the Hot Springs Mall Cinema.

Matt Smith, who owns the four theaters, said Tuesday that he originally had the film booked in all of his theaters. When the controversy began last week, Smith said he called his representative at Sony, saying he still intended to play the movie. At first, Smith said, the Sony representative allowed the four Arkansas theaters to screen the movie, but the company backed out later that day.

Two days before Christmas, Smith heard back from the representative, who gave the OK for the movie's release. Smith was scrambling Tuesday to change his websites and newspaper advertisements to show that he would screen the movie after all.

"I'm glad to get it played today," he said. "I'm an independent operator -- the largest in the state. As far as Riverdale 10, I've always played films at my Little Rock location that were only available at that location and nowhere else in Arkansas."

Smith added that he was never concerned about the terrorist threats, which he said he felt were targeting bigger theaters in bigger cities.

"I'm in a small town," he said. "These are red-blooded Americans. My customers hunt, fish. They've got shotguns. They're not worried about North Korea. They're going to the movies. That's my customer base."

Some other independent theaters in the U.S., like the Alamo Drafthouse chain based in Austin, Texas, said they will show the film.

"It's much larger than just The Interview. It's about setting a precedent and freedom of expression," Alamo Drafthouse founder Tim League said. "To not show this movie would be a serious problem in my book."

James Wallace, creative manager for the Alamo Drafthouse location in Richardson, Texas, said the theater will offer a patriotic menu featuring burgers, "freedom fries" and apple pie.

"You better believe it's going to be all-American," Wallace said.

One person briefed on Sony's efforts said Tuesday that the company was likely to patch together distribution for the film in 200 to 300 smaller theaters, but it appeared unlikely that big chains like Regal or AMC would get on board.

The person, and others familiar with the company's efforts, spoke on condition of anonymity because the negotiations over the film's release were continuing.

Representatives of the four largest theater chains in the United States either declined to comment Tuesday or had no immediate comment.

A 300-theater run would be largely symbolic in financial terms. Sony had planned to release The Interview on 2,000 to 3,000 screens in North America.

A new facet of Sony's discussions with theater owners is the possibility of a simultaneous video-on-demand effort.

Sony at first said it was shelving The Interview but quickly decided to look for a mainstream cable, satellite or online movie distributor to adopt the film. Worried about the repercussions of allowing a foreign power to censor American artistic expression, a wide range of people -- including President Barack Obama, Salman Rushdie and numerous Hollywood stars -- had publicly pressured Sony to find an alternative.

But finding a new delivery route has been complicated.

Satellite operators, cable systems and online platforms worried that they would become hacking targets if they picked up The Interview.

One option for Sony was BitTorrent, an online file-sharing service that has in the past been criticized by Hollywood for providing software that is misused by digital pirates. BitTorrent also offers a pay-based sharing mechanism that makes legitimate entertainment sales.

OwnZones, a 3-year-old paid-distribution platform, also offered Sony the use of its service. Sony rejected those offers in favor of a partnership with an established hub.

Sony had particularly hoped for a partnership with Apple, the people briefed on the matter said.

The studio early on ruled out its own video site, Crackle. That streaming service is free, and Sony had a contractual financial obligation to various profit participants in The Interview to exhaust all paid options, according to a person briefed on the matter.

A spokesman for LStar Capital, which helped finance The Interview, which cost $44 million to make, declined to comment.

Theaters, worried about the possible effect on ticket sales, have remained adamant about refusing to open their doors to any film that is showing or about to show elsewhere, according to people briefed on the discussions. Studios typically give theaters a months-long exclusive window to play new movies.

But it remained unclear Tuesday whether any on-demand service would take The Interview. According to people briefed on the matter, Sony had in recent days asked the White House for help in lining up a particular technology partner but no deal had materialized.

The hacker group that digitally ransacked Sony beginning late last month and that threatened theaters with violence if they played The Interview also warned that the assault would continue if alternate distribution plans were made.

The Interview, which stars Seth Rogen and James Franco, is an R-rated comedy about the plan to assassinate North Korean ruler Kim Jong Un. The FBI has publicly identified North Korea as "centrally involved" with the attack on Sony.

The Interview originally had been scheduled for release on Christmas Day, until hackers on Dec. 16 warned of violence on the scale of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks if the film was shown. Multiplex owners then canceled their bookings in the face of pressure from their lawyers, shopping mall landlords and Sony competitors, which were worried about their own films.

Theater owners and government officials have been trying to assess the threat's credibility. One person briefed on the exhibitors' deliberations said law enforcement officials had become less inclined over the past few days to see the threat as serious.

Still, people briefed on the deliberations said some theaters showing the film might take unusual security measures, perhaps by banning backpacks or packages or posting signs advising customers of added risk.

The Austin Police Department said it hadn't received any information regarding the screenings at Alamo Drafthouse locations and had no plans to provide special security.

The Atlanta Police Department said it was aware of a theater's plans to show the movie, "and we will be monitoring the location for potential threats. At this time, we are not going to be discussing specifics."

Despite the continuing fears over the terrorism threat, the president hailed Sony's reversal Tuesday.

"The president applauds Sony's decision to authorize screenings of the film," Obama spokesman Eric Schultz said. "As the president made clear, we are a country that believes in free speech and the right of artistic expression. The decision made by Sony and participating theaters allows people to make their own choices about the film, and we welcome that outcome."

Rogen, who stars in the film he co-directed with Evan Goldberg, made his first public comments on the ordeal Tuesday.

"The people have spoken! Freedom has prevailed! Sony didn't give up!" he said on Twitter.

Information for this article was contributed by Brooks Barnes and Michael Cieply of The New York Times; by Aziza Musa of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette; by Jake Coyle, Nedra Pickler, Josh Lederman, Kathleen Foody and Nomaan Merchant of The Associated Press; by Steven Zeitchik and Richard Verrier of the Los Angeles Times; by Lucas Shaw and Lauren Etter of Bloomberg News.

A Section on 12/24/2014