Seth Rogen-starrer becomes a runaway hit in US cinemas

The Interview, the Sony Pictures film about a fictional plot to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, opened in midnight screenings in a smattering of US cinemas on Christmas Day, drawing moviegoers who said they supported the studio's decision to stand up to efforts to censor the low-budget comedy. Seth Rogen, who co-stars in the film with James Franco, and co-director Evan Goldberg surprised patrons by appearing at the sold-out 12:30 am (0830 GMT) screening of the movie at a theatre in Los Angeles where they briefly thanked fans for their support.

The Sony Corp unit originally canceled the release after it became the target last month of the most destructive cyberattack ever on a U.S. company.

The United States blamed the attacks on North Korea.

The movie, which is playing in theaters in major metropolitan areas as well as in smaller cities ranging from Bangor, Maine, to Jasper, Indiana, features Rogen and Franco as journalists who get recruited by the CIA to assassinate the North Korean leader.

Major movie chains had refused to release the film after threats of attacks on theaters and audiences by hackers. The scheduled screenings in U.S. cinemas do not include major chains.

The entertainment giant backtracked after President Barack Obama, as well as such Hollywood luminaries as George Clooney and Republicans and Democrats in Washington, raised concerns that Hollywood was setting a precedent of self-censorship.

The film was due to open in some 320 small, independent movie theaters across the United States on Thursday, with many of the screenings having sold out the day before as the controversy over the film made it front-page news around the world.

"You know, this is a film I probably would not have come to see but because of the controversy I thought I would come out tonight to stand up for freedom of speech," said Tamsin Hollow, who showed up for the Los Angeles screening.

MOVIE FANS HAPPY
After watching the film, fans called "The Interview" a great, funny movie.

"It's a farce of the highest level," said Matt Orstein as he left the movie theater. "I would equate it to something like 'Airplane!' or 'Hot Shots!' you know. I mean it's funny but it's definitely nothing that could topple a monarchy." Fans hailed the appearance by Rogen and Goldberg at the theater.

"It was a great movie, it was really funny, they did a fantastic job. It was really great that Seth came out, Seth Rogen himself came out and greeted everybody. Hey, go America," said Tom Sopit.

The film is also available online in the United States on Google Inc's Multiple commenters on Googleblog said they believed the controversy over the film would drive much bigger audiences than it otherwise would have drawn.

"Thanks N.Korea so many more people will now see it because of what you did!" Gian Carlo Barretto, an IT professional at a Manhattan law firm, said in a posting on the blog.

Some movie theaters showing the film were taking security measures to protect against any possible attacks.

"We've been working really closely with local law enforcement officials, as have all of the other theaters in the Art House Convergence, a network of independent art house theaters," said Christian Parkes, chief branding officer for Alamo Drafthouse Cinema in Ashburn, Virginia.

Parkes said based on their feedback, he was confident all would be fine for the film opening on Christmas Day..

The documents were released as part of the cyber-attack on Sony over the movie "The Interview."

Katie Schroeder, a spokeswoman for Sony at Rubenstein Communications, declined to comment.

Shares of Sony surged 4 percent to 2,568.5 yen in Tokyo, extending this year's gain to 41 percent.

Publishing accounts for 14 percent of Sony's music revenue, the main part being recorded music. Sony Corp. (6758)'s Chief Financial Officer Kenichiro Yoshida raised questions about the future of music publishing in an Oct. 3 e-mail to his boss, CEO Kazuo Hirai, and Lynton, in a prelude to a meeting of the three, according to messages released by the hackers.

"I'd like to hear your thoughts on the Music Publishing business, which has a rather complex capital and governance structure and is impacted by the market shift to streaming," Yoshida wrote in the message.

Sony's deliberations on the publishing business were included in a planning document sent to at least half a dozen Sony executives, according to the Nov. 21 e-mail. That included a presentation that outlined they were considering the sale. "We are very surprised that the attached listing includes the comment about the sale of Sony/ATV," Kober wrote. "As you know quite well, this is a top-secret project that is being handled by me working directly with Michael and Nicole." The publishing division includes Sony/ATV Music Publishing and EMI Music Publishing.

Music mergers
Sony/ATV was established in 1995 as a joint venture between Sony and Jackson, who had acquired ATV 10 years earlier. Former Beatle Paul McCartney had also tried to purchase the catalog. In 2012, Sony paid $2.2 billion for the larger EMI Music Publishing, along with investors including Jackson's estate, Blackstone Group's GSO Capital Partners LP, Geffen and Mubadala Development Co. owned by the Abu Dhabi government. Sony/ATV administers EMI on behalf of the investors. Messages left for Geffen, Mubadala and Blackstone weren't returned.

Music publishers collect royalties from album sales, use on TV and other performances. The combined Sony publishing business represents stars from Bruce Springsteen to Lady Gaga and more than 2 million songs, including "New York, New York," "Jailhouse Rock" and "I Heard It Through the Grapevine."

The Japanese company and Jackson's estate each own half of Sony/ATV, which owns more than 750,000 songs, according to a press release from 2012. EMI Music Publishing, in which Sony holds a 30 percent stake, has 1.3 million songs in its catalog.

Together, Sony/ATV and EMI represent the world's biggest music publishing business, with Sony estimating a global market share of more than 30 percent.

The music publishing business generates about $500 million in annual revenue and $100 million in operating profit, according to a mid-range plan of Sony's music business in October that was released by the hackers.

Publishing Growth

Sony's music-publishing business will probably see sales rise 13 percent over three years to $617 million by fiscal year 2018, according to the mid-range plan circulated internally. Operating profit may rise 23 percent to $123 million during that period.

The e-mails were released as part of a devastating hack on Sony that the FBI said was committed by North Korea over the Hollywood studio's plan to release the satirical movie "The Interview," about an assassination plot against the nation's leader, Kim Jong Un.