Sony Grosses $15 Million from Online Weekend Debut of 'The Interview'

[[Coi] Mr.CLuBBeR]

The movie North Korea supposedly didn't want you to see

Despite the efforts of hackers who were apparently ticked off with Sony Pictures Entertainment over The Interview, a far-fetched comedy in which the CIA enlists the help of TV personalities played by Seth Rogan and James Francos to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, millions of Americans watched the movie since its Christmas Eve debut. More precisely, The Interview grossed $15 million in total consumer spending after just four days of being released online, Sony said in a release.
"Through Saturday, December 27, including all of its online distribution platforms, The Interview has been rented or purchased online more than 2 million times," Sony said. "In addition to the strong turnout for its limited theatrical release over the holiday weekend, after only four days, The Interview already ranks as Sony Pictures' No. 1 online film of all time."
Sony released The Interview on Christmas Eve to rent and purchase in HD on Google Play, YouTube Movies, Microsoft's Xbox Video, and through www.seetheinterview.com. It costs $5.99 to rent and $14.99 to buy.
Prior to the film's release, Sony Pictures Entertainment suffered a massive cyberattack in which more than 10TB of data was stolen. Hackers made off with social security numbers of actors, internal emails, movie scripts, and more. After initially failing to find a link to North Korea, the FBI a short while later concluded that Kim Jong-un's regime was in fact responsible for the cyberattack.
North Korea has denied involvement, and there are several security researchers who question the FBI's evidence. Wherever the attack originated, some have speculated that the culprits had assistance from people on the inside, given how easily the hackers were able to infiltrate Sony's network and move around.
The hackers sent a message to Sony prior to The Interview's release threatening 9/11-like violence if the movie played in theaters. This prompted several cinema chains to pull the film. Sony followed suit by initially cancelling the movie's Christmas Day debut before deciding on a limited theatrical run and online release.
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