When Sony gave in to the demands of the probably North Korean hackers that threatened 9/11-esque destruction at any movie theaters showing The Interview, scrapping plans to release the flick on Christmas Day, one Texas theater wasn’t having any of it.
Unable to show the controversial Seth Rogen–James Franco comedy, the Texas-based Alamo Drafthouse instead scheduled an impromptu 10-year anniversary screening of Team America: World Police. Trey Parker and Matt Stone’s 2004 action-packed puppet satire that, much like The Interview, featured a dramatized version of North Korea’s head of state as it primary antagonist.
FOR THE RECORD: We were still going to show #TheInterviewMovie…
— Alamo Drafthouse DFW (@AlamoDFW) December 17, 2014
…but now we'll be showing TEAM AMERICA in it's place…for FREE(DOM). Because AMERICA, F YEAH. http://t.co/7A7p6ApIIE pic.twitter.com/U3EEqQU1Px
— Alamo Drafthouse DFW (@AlamoDFW) December 17, 2014
Shortly after the theater announced the screening, Viacom subsidiary Paramount Pictures, rescinded Alamo Drafthouse’s rights to show the film.
Due to to circumstances beyond our control, the TEAM AMERICA 12/27 screening has been cancelled. We apologize & will provide refunds today.
— Alamo Drafthouse DFW (@AlamoDFW) December 18, 2014
The screening was to be a quote-along where the subtitled dialogue would be displayed on the screen so fans could yell out their favorite lines—a regular occurrence at the Drafthouse’s chain of theaters.
Other theaters across the country that had similar ideas to show Team America in lieu of The Interview also reported getting similar orders to Paramount.
Breaking Plaza news : Team America World Police pulled from all theatres as per Paramount Pictures .
— The Plaza Theatre (@PlazaAtlanta) December 18, 2014
Please note: Our Late Shift screening of Team America: World Police has been canceled by Paramount Pictures. pic.twitter.com/TlPVzIeICW
— Capitol Theatre (@CapitolW65th) December 18, 2014
The Verge reports that one cinema in Cleveland, Ohio that Paramount barred from screening Team America had its own 10th-anniversary event in October, well before the attacks on Sony were made public.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPBX47zSktc
ht Talking Points Memo | Screencap via Team America