Google’s YouTube is reportedly in talks with Sony to stream The Interview, the film starring Seth Rogen and James Franco that the studio had once pulled from release.
The talks were first reported by CNN Money, whose sources said that the deal could still crumble. CNN reported that Sony has also been talking with over online streaming sites, so the YouTube deal wouldn’t be exclusive.
While the major theater chains in the U.S. still will not show The Interview tomorrow, independent theaters across the country have all said that they will show it, now that Sony has backed off its previous decision to not show the film anywhere. The total theater count has jumped to 300.
If The Interview is released on Video On Demand tomorrow, it will be the first time a major studio film has been released on VOD and in theaters on the same day. While indie distributors have been doing this for awhile, none of the major studios have done it yet.
CNN reports that there was also talks between Sony and Apple to make the film available to rent in iTunes, but those talks ended. Sources for the site did say that these talks could start up again after christmas.
The Interview could also be the biggest title YouTube has ever made available for renting there. The site isn’t known for its rental system, but it has one, which offers mostly catalog titles.
The Interview centers on a fictional plot to assassinate North Korea’s Kim Jong-Un. U.S. officials have officially linked North Korea to the group of hackers who threatened theaters and Sony over the film.
image courtesy of INFphoto.com
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