CEBU, Philippines - “The Interview” lead stars Seth Rogen and James Franco have canceled all upcoming media appearances following the latest threats made against theaters showing the movie, Variety has confirmed.
The duo has withdrawn from previously scheduled press appearances, including Rogen’s appearance on “Late Night with Seth Meyers” and an interview with both of them on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” leading up to the comedy’s Christmas Day release. They were also booked for an appearance on Buzzfeed Brews in New York on Tuesday.
According to insiders, Rogen and Franco are still scheduled to appear at Thursday’s New York special screening of “The Interview.” The two were at the Los Angeles premiere last week, but didn’t do press interviews.
The Sony cyber attack, which has been ongoing since November 24, escalated to new levels on Tuesday, when a hacker group calling itself The Guardians of Peace threatened a 9/11-like attack on theaters showing “The Interview.”
“The world will be full of fear,” the message from hackers reads. “Remember the 11th of September 2001. We recommend you to keep yourself distant from the places at that time. (If your house is nearby, you’d better leave.) Whatever comes in the coming days is called by the greed of Sony Pictures Entertainment.”
There’s been suspicions that North Korea is behind the attack because of the nature of the plot of “The Interview,” in which Rogen and Franco play characters embarking on a mission to assassinate Kim Jong-un. North Korea has denied involvement in the attacks, but called the hack a “righteous deed.”