Sony Pictures Entertainment announced an exclusive deal with Netflix in its letter to corporate shareholders.
The Interview continues to defy initial attempts to suppress it. Variety reports the movie will begin streaming on Netflix on Saturday January 24.
As most movie fans now know, Sony Pictures Entertainment became the victim of a massive hack starting in November that revealed private information such as employees’ private records and inflammatory emails from Sony executives. North Korea claimed responsibility for the cyber-attack and threatened terrorist activity if the studio released The Interview, a comedy in which characters played by Seth Rogen and James Franco attempt to assassinate Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un.
While the studio initially discarded its initial nationwide release of the film, public pressure led to a limited theatrical release and into a national digital release by distributers by Google Play, YouTube, and ITunes. Variety reports The Interview has generated more than $40 million through more than 5.8 million rentals and sales.
Despite those impressive numbers, Sony’s normal pay-TV partner, Starz, released its rights to the film in December. Netflix then entered into discussions to claim The Interview. Yesterday CEO Reed Hastings and CFO David Wells announced a deal had been made in their letter to company shareholders, revealing Netflix has earned exclusive streaming rights in both the United States and Canada.
Sony also announced the film will also have a “Freedom Edition” released via DVD and Blu-Ray on February 17.

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