Sony announces The Interview will play in select theaters Christmas day
It's actually happening! Jake Smith / iDownloadBlog.com : NYT: Sony wanted Apple to stream “The Interview” - Apple reportedly said no Lee Hutchinson / Ars Technica : Sony Pictures' The Interview will get a Christmas release after all [Updated] Fidel Martinez / Fusion : Sony Pictures will release ‘The Interview’ after all Richard Padilla / MacRumors : Apple Said to Have Declined Offer From Sony to Host ‘The Interview’ on iTunes Aldrin Calimlim / App Advice : Apple reportedly declined to stream Sony's controversial ‘The Interview’ Ryan Cormier / delawareonline : Three Delaware theaters to screen ‘The Interview’ Helen A.S. Popkin / ReadWrite : It's A Free Speech Christmas! Sony To Give “The Interview” A Limited Release Dave McNary / Variety : ‘The Interview’ Release to Deepen Rift Between Sony, Major Exhibitors Zara Kessler / Bloomberg View : Will ‘The Interview’ End Up Enriching Sony? Peter Kafka / Re/code : Sony's “The Interview” Is Coming to a Few Theaters, After All Shawn Knight / TechSpot : ‘The Interview’ to show on Christmas Day in theaters, now available on Google Play and YouTube Dan Savage / The Stranger, Seattle's Only Newspaper : Sony to Release The Interview On Christmas Day BBC : The Interview: US cinemas to screen Sony film on Christmas Day Scott Mendelson / Forbes : ‘The Interview’: Why We Still “Lost” Meghan Keneally / ABC News : Sony Hacking: Select Movie Theaters Will Show ‘The Interview’ Starting Christmas Day Erich Schwartzel / Wall Street Journal : Sony to Show ‘The Interview’ in Theaters Adam Rosenberg / Digital Trends : The Interview to premiere on Christmas Day, thanks to indie theaters [updated] Tracybloomktla / KTLA : Sony Plans Limited Release of ‘The Interview’; Movie's Stars Celebrate on Twitter Tweets: Seth Rogen / @sethrogen : The people have spoken! Freedom has prevailed! Sony didn't give up! The Interview will be shown at theaters willing to play it on Xmas day! Plaza Atlanta / @plazaatlanta : Breaking Plaza News: The Interview will open Exclusive on 12/25 . The Plaza will be one of the few theaters in the nation to open the film . Tim League / @timalamo : Breaking news: Sony has authorized screenings of THE INTERVIEW on Christmas Day. We are making shows available within the hour. #Victory Chris Sacca / @sacca : This is a perfect opportunity for @YouTube to stream #TheInterview. North Korea can't begin to hack Google's systems. Darth Vader / @depresseddarth : The Interview will now be shown in theaters. In related news, North Korea unaware because their internet is still down. Daniel Alter / @dalter007 : I would like to thank Sony (and the major theater chains) for inadvertently ushering in the era of simultaneous day & date VOD releases. Derek Mead / @derektmead : We got @drafthouse's Tim League on the line about why they pushed to screen The Interview: http://motherboard.vice.com/ ... pic.twitter.com/HncOFApRVS Brian Stelter / @brianstelter : .@MKosinskiCNN reporting on CNN that the WH has just weighed in: “The president applauds Sony's decision...” Wonder if he'll see it? Kenneth Li / @kenli729 : For a company that desperately needs good PR, how does Sony just let some random dude let the world know they are showing The Interview? See also Mediagazer
Context & Ripple Effects
Four days after Sony Entertainment's CEO publicly blamed theater chains for pulling the film, the company has reversed course: a limited Christmas Day theatrical run in independent houses, paired with an expected on-demand release. The turnaround follows YouTube tentatively agreeing to stream the film, which gave Sony a digital outlet even as major chains held out.
The platform split matters here: while Google's YouTube said yes, Apple reportedly declined Sony's offer to host The Interview on iTunes — so the release is shaping up as a test of which platforms will carry politically charged content and what a studio can earn without its traditional theatrical partners.
First-order effects
- Independent theaters that stayed in — including locations in Delaware and Atlanta — get an exclusive-ish theatrical window over the holiday weekend, while Sony regains control of a film it had already written off.
- Apple's refusal leaves the iTunes audience out of the launch lineup, concentrating early digital demand on YouTube, Google Play, and Xbox Video at the announced $5.99 rental price.
Second-order effects
- A same-week digital release undercuts the standard theatrical-exclusive window, forcing exhibitors who boycotted the film to watch whether day-and-date distribution cannibalizes ticket sales or expands the total audience.
- Torrent trackers logged over 1.5 million downloads in the first two days once the file was available, giving studios a live case study in how quickly controversy-driven demand leaks outside paid channels.
Third-order effects
- If streaming revenues keep climbing — they had already reached $31M within two weeks, making The Interview Sony's top online film — studios gain evidence that a controversial title can be profitable without wide theatrical support, weakening exhibitors' leverage over release strategy going forward.
The trend: Studio distribution is shifting toward platform-by-platform deals negotiated under pressure, where a single streamer's yes or no can determine whether a film reaches audiences at all.