Sony's "The Interview," after causing a mild political panic between the US and North Korea (and nearly inciting World War III), has taken the streaming world by storm. But it's not done yet. The Seth Rogen and James Franco-starring comedy is headed to Netflix, where it'll presumably find an even larger audience than it's had before.
As reported by Engaget, the streaming service has just gotten its hands on "The Interview," and starting this Saturday, the film will be available on Netflix in both the United States and Canada. That'll no doubt help it's popularity- while "The Interview" has already made a decent buck in theaters and on streaming services, being available on Netflix will extend the film out to all those who might not pay to see it in theaters (or On Demand) but still might be interested in seeing it.
And on February 17th, the film will be available on Blu-Ray, which is sure to attract more viewers. Surely, the threat of North Korean retaliation is long gone.
As well, according to Reuters, the film has made more than $40 million and has been downloaded (legally, that is) 5.8 million times. That's huge- not just because of the film's cancellation and the threats against it, but because that kind of money is unheard of for films released primarily on streaming platforms.
But according to Perez Hilton, who spoke to Vice President of the National Association of Theater Owners Patrick Corcoran, Sony is still hurting badly over the film's release- which might be successful for On Demand, but pales in comparison to a wide theatrical release.
"In this simultaneous-release game, Sony is $30 million in the hole and almost out of cards. The only game changed here was just how much Sony left on the table."
Whether Sony can make up those millions or not, they've fared far better than anyone thought they would after the North Korean hacking scandal went wild. At least they come out of this one looking semi-successful.
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