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| Sony cancels premiere showings of ‘The Interview’ | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Sony Pictures Entertainment has cancelled the Christmas-day release of “The Interview,” bowing to threats of a wide-scale attack from the hackers who have tormented the movie studio for weeks. | |
| Sony said in a statement Wednesday it is “deeply saddened at [the hackers’] brazen effort” to suppress the movie, and opted “not to move forward” with the Dec. 25 release. | Sony said in a statement Wednesday it is “deeply saddened at [the hackers’] brazen effort” to suppress the movie, and opted “not to move forward” with the Dec. 25 release. |
| Before that, the nation’s largest five theater circuits — Regal Entertainment, AMC Entertainment, Cinemark, Carmike Cinemas and Cineplex Entertainment — said they would delay the $44 million film. It’s unclear when the film will premiere. | |
| Regal, the nation’s largest, said it would delay the screening “due to the wavering support of the film” by Sony, “as well as the ambiguous nature” of the threats. Cineplex said it “takes seriously its commitment to the freedom of artistic expression,” but added that safety was paramount due to the “unprecedented and complex situation.” | |
| That a anonymous hacking squad could derail the plans for one of the world’s biggest entertainment firms, experts said, marks a worrying new precedent for cyberterror that could encourage even more attacks. With one inexpensive hack, a team of cybercriminals can generate the kinds of international fear once only achievable through bomb or terror threats. | That a anonymous hacking squad could derail the plans for one of the world’s biggest entertainment firms, experts said, marks a worrying new precedent for cyberterror that could encourage even more attacks. With one inexpensive hack, a team of cybercriminals can generate the kinds of international fear once only achievable through bomb or terror threats. |
| “This is the real danger to corporate America in the cyber domain,” said Alec Ross, a senior fellow at Columbia University’s School of International & Public Affairs. “The cost to build powerful malignant weapons is shockingly low. There are very well-developed communities of hackers for hire all over the world that can develop very powerful cyberweapons for exceedingly low costs.” | “This is the real danger to corporate America in the cyber domain,” said Alec Ross, a senior fellow at Columbia University’s School of International & Public Affairs. “The cost to build powerful malignant weapons is shockingly low. There are very well-developed communities of hackers for hire all over the world that can develop very powerful cyberweapons for exceedingly low costs.” |
| Guardians of Peace, the group claiming responsibility for the Sony hack, issued a sharp warning this week promising a “bitter fate” for viewers of the movie and warning others “to keep yourself distant from the places at that time.” | Guardians of Peace, the group claiming responsibility for the Sony hack, issued a sharp warning this week promising a “bitter fate” for viewers of the movie and warning others “to keep yourself distant from the places at that time.” |
| “The world will be full of fear,” they said in an anonymous online posting. “Remember the 11th of September 2001.” | “The world will be full of fear,” they said in an anonymous online posting. “Remember the 11th of September 2001.” |
| Though some U.S. investigators have blamed North Korea for the hack, the nation has denied involvement. The reclusive government, however, has called it “a righteous deed” and threatened to undertake “a merciless countermeasure” due to the film’s premiere. | Though some U.S. investigators have blamed North Korea for the hack, the nation has denied involvement. The reclusive government, however, has called it “a righteous deed” and threatened to undertake “a merciless countermeasure” due to the film’s premiere. |
| The North Korean government has called the Seth Rogen and James Franco comedy, which ends with the assassination of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, a “most blatant act of terrorism and war.” | The North Korean government has called the Seth Rogen and James Franco comedy, which ends with the assassination of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, a “most blatant act of terrorism and war.” |
| The Department of Homeland Security said Tuesday there is no credible evidence suggesting an active plot against American movie theaters in connection with the hack. A State Department official said Wednesday the agency has no specific information that lends credence to the threat. | |
| Still, Bow Tie Cinemas, a smaller chain that runs 55 theaters across six states, said in a statement Wednesday it was “saddened and angered by recent threats of terrorism” and, “given that the source and credibility of these threats is unknown,” the chain would cancel the movie’s Christmas premiere. | Still, Bow Tie Cinemas, a smaller chain that runs 55 theaters across six states, said in a statement Wednesday it was “saddened and angered by recent threats of terrorism” and, “given that the source and credibility of these threats is unknown,” the chain would cancel the movie’s Christmas premiere. |
| That decision brought its own backlash, as people took to Facebook to call the chain “cowards” for “kowtowing” to the threats. Bow Tie spokesman Joe Masher said in response, “The safety of our patrons and staff are our number one priority. Period. It was a difficult decision for us to make.” | That decision brought its own backlash, as people took to Facebook to call the chain “cowards” for “kowtowing” to the threats. Bow Tie spokesman Joe Masher said in response, “The safety of our patrons and staff are our number one priority. Period. It was a difficult decision for us to make.” |
| Neither Sony nor theaters would say how long that delay could last. The National Association of Theatre Owners said in a statement that its member theaters “may decide to delay exhibition” until “the responsible criminals are apprehended.” | Neither Sony nor theaters would say how long that delay could last. The National Association of Theatre Owners said in a statement that its member theaters “may decide to delay exhibition” until “the responsible criminals are apprehended.” |
| With the premiere scuttled, Sony could choose to unveil the film later in theaters or elect to skip the big screen altogether, by releasing via video-on-demand. That would upend a longtime agreement between theaters and film studios, traditionally demanding months-long delays between big-screen premieres and at-home viewing. | With the premiere scuttled, Sony could choose to unveil the film later in theaters or elect to skip the big screen altogether, by releasing via video-on-demand. That would upend a longtime agreement between theaters and film studios, traditionally demanding months-long delays between big-screen premieres and at-home viewing. |
| Rogen declined to comment, and messages left with Franco were not returned. The duo has cancelled talk-show appearances and other media interviews in the wake of the threats. | |
| The hacker group has released several years’ worth of sensitive internal Sony documents, including employee salary data, health information and Social Security numbers. The hacker group promised an upcoming “Christmas gift,” likely another dump of stolen internal secrets. | |
| Sony executives have held town-hall meetings to apologize to employees whose personal data was leaked, and it has hired crisis specialists in an attempt to deal with insensitive e-mails that have embarrassed the firm’s top brass. | |
| But the firm has also gone on the offensive, partnering with companies like Entura, a London privacy firm, to attempt to block sharing of the files and cap further leaks. It has also hired lawyer David Boies, who has threatened legal action against media that report details pulled from the Sony leaks. | |
| The delay could prove financially devastating to Sony during the holidays, one of Hollywood’s most lucrative box-office seasons. | |
| Though some theater executives worried that a cancellation could accelerate the trend of viewers turning away from the big screen in favor of watching movies from home, attorneys argued that Sony could have been held legally liable in case of an attack. | |
| The hacker group gave no details of the extent of its threat. It comes two years after 12 people were killed at a theater premiere in Aurora, Colo. | |
| The hack’s effects are also rippling further through Hollywood. A movie set in North Korea and planned to star Steve Carell has been cancelled by its production company, New Regency, said a person close to the studio who declined to be named because the decision hadn’t been announced publicly. | |
| Some experts said the disastrous hack should push Fortune 500 companies like Sony even further toward investing in and mounting their own corporate measures of cyberdefense. | |
| “Historically, companies have viewed cyber-security as a subset of the IT function,” Ross said. “But it’s time to take cyber-defense out of the org-chart ghetto and elevate it.” |