Well, if controversy sells movie tickets I think Seth Rogen and James Franco have hit the jackpot as North Korean dictator and Dennis Rodman‘s best friend, Kim Jong-un, has threatened “merciless” retaliation on the USA if the comedic duo’s The Interview is not banned.
The film, described as an action-comedy features James Franco as tabloid journalist Dave Skylark, who, along with his “Skylark Tonight” producer Aaron Rapoport (Rogen), have landed an interview with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un (Randall Park), a self-proclaimed fan of the show, in an attempt to legitimize themselves as journalists. As Dave and Aaron prepare to travel to Pyongyang, their plans change when the CIA recruits them, perhaps the two least-qualified men imaginable, to assassinate Kim Jong-un.
The latest statement from North Korea was issued by state-run KCNA news agency, in which the foreign ministry spokesperson said: “The act of making and screening such a movie that portrays an attack on our top leadership… is a most wanton act of terror and act of war, and is absolutely intolerable.”
This comes on the heels of a previous statement from unofficial North Korean spokesperson Kim Myong-chol:
“There is a special irony in this storyline as it shows the desperation of the US government and American society… A film about the assassination of a foreign leader mirrors what the US has done in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and Ukraine, and let us not forget who killed [President John F.] Kennedy – Americans… In fact, President [Barack] Obama should be careful in case the US military wants to kill him as well.”
Kim Jong-un’s father, Kim Jong-il, was similarly made fun of in Team America: World Police and while the state has made no statement on that film that I know of, they do refer to the James Bond film Die Another Day as “dirty and cursed” while Myong-chol did say in his previous statement, “James Bond is a good character and those films are much more enjoyable.” Well which one is it? You can’t have it both ways!
I expect the release date for The Interview will remain October 10, but it was interesting going to the Sony press site before publishing this article and seeing the film is no longer among those listed as coming out this year. Coincidence? Probably.
People don't usually wanna kill me for one of my movies until after they've paid 12 bucks for it. Hiyooooo!!!
— Seth Rogen (@Sethrogen) June 25, 2014
