‘The Hunt,’ a Satire With Elites Killing ‘Deplorables,’ Is Revived

“The Hunt,” starring the Emmy-nominated Betty Gilpin (Netflix’s “Glow”) and the two-time Oscar winner Hilary Swank, was supposed to arrive in theaters in September. Trailers in July veiled the political aspect of the $15 million film and made it resemble an entry in the Universal’s dystopian “Purge” horror series. Universal had not yet screened “The Hunt” for film reporters or critics.

Then 31 people were killed in back-to-back shootings in Texas and Ohio. The Hollywood Reporter published an article saying Universal had pulled ads for “The Hunt” as a result. The article, based on a copy of the script, also disclosed that the movie revolved “around third-rail political themes” — notably elites stalking “deplorables.”

An outcry followed, with conservative pundits criticizing the film’s premise as “sick” and “awful.” Before long, President Trump alluded to “The Hunt” on Twitter, saying it was made by liberal Hollywood “to inflame and cause chaos.”

Caught in a maelstrom, Universal canceled the release, leading to accusations of censorship.

Universal, a division of NBCUniversal, which is owned by Comcast, said on Tuesday that it would give the film a wide release in theaters. It also invited a handful of reporters to its campus in the San Fernando Valley to watch “The Hunt” in the Alfred Hitchcock Building and discuss it afterward with Mr. Blum and Mr. Lindelof.

“We didn’t want to just pretend that nothing had ever happened,” Mr. Blum said.

Mr. Lindelof, who wrote the screenplay with Nick Cuse, said “The Hunt” had been inspired by “Get Out,” the blockbuster comedic mystery, social satire and horror film directed and written by Jordan Peele. (Mr. Blum was a producer.) It may be hard to believe, but Mr. Lindelof insisted that he had never expected “The Hunt” to prompt political blowback, certainly not on a presidential level.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/11/business/media/the-hunt-release-date.html?emc=rss&partner=rss