Damage to Sony continues to mount, with a number of theatres declining to screen the film “The Interview” following a threat from hackers who cracked the entertainment giant’s systems.
The group has threatened theatres that screen the film, and some have decided to opt for safety – although Sony doesn’t want to appear to be capitulating to threats and will release the film as planned.
Theatres, however, are mindful of the attack on the audience of “The Dark Knight Rises” in 2012.
“The Interview” was scheduled to open in 3 000 theatres, with a marketing budget of about $50-million. The film cost about $44-million to make.
The threat to moviegoers is the latest in a campaign against Sony that has seen financial information and personal correspondence compromised and divulged to the public.
The information was allegedly stolen by a hacking group called Guardians of Peace, which claims to have retrieved 100Tb of data, which it is slowly leaking to the public.
Among the information that has been leaked so far is detailed financial figures on all of Sony’s recent movies, including how well they performed plus projection for movies not yet released.
Invoices and bank account details have also been compromised, as well as information on Sony promotional activities. Personal data about celebrities was also leaked, including aliases that were used by movie stars, as well as personal phone numbers and e-mail addresses.
