The Sony Pictures hack saga is far from over, as Sony appears to be interested into fighting back, CNET reports. The company may release The Interview — the controversial comedy whose entire plot is around assassinating North Korean leader Kim Jong-un — even though last week it pulled the movie from theaters.
FROM EARLIER: Obama, Hollywood stars and more react to the cancellation of The Interview
“It is still our hope that anyone who wants to see this movie will get the opportunity to do so,” Sony Pictures said in a statement, without revealing when, and how, it’ll launch the movie. “Free expression should never be suppressed by threats and extortion,” the studio added.
Rumors suggest Sony may even release the movie for free on its streaming service “Crackle.”
The Interview was supposed to hit theaters on December 25th, but Sony decided to pull it after receiving threats from the hackers believed to be responsible for the attack it suffered a month ago. The massive cyber heist is also believed to have been triggered by the same movie.
The studio was heavily criticized following the decision to cancel the movie launch, with President Obama addressing the matter in a speech on Friday, and saying that Sony has basically made a “mistake” caving to threats.
“We cannot have a society in which some dictators some place can start imposing censorship here in the United States,” Obama said. “If somebody is able to intimidate folks out of releasing a satirical movie, imagine what they start doing once they see a documentary that they don’t like or news reports that they don’t like.”
