By Jocelyn Noveck, AP National Writer
NEW YORK (AP) --Universal Pictures has canceled the planned September release of its controversial social satire "The Hunt," in the wake of recent mass shootings and amid criticism from President Donald Trump.
The move came several days after the studio suspended the ad campaign for the film, a gory, R-rated thriller that tells a tale of liberal "elites" hunting people in red states for sport.
In a statement Saturday, Universal said it had decided to take the further step of canceling the film's Sept. 27 release, saying "We understand that now is not the right time to release this film."
Left open was the possibility that the movie could be released in theaters or on streaming at a later date.
Trump criticized the planned movie on Twitter Friday, without mentioning its name, saying it was intended "to inflame and cause chaos."
The president also had harsh words for Hollywood in the tweet, saying "Liberal Hollywood is Racist at the highest level."
Asked if the decision to scrap the release had been impacted by Trump's comments, a person familiar with the decision process, speaking on condition of anonymity to describe internal deliberations, said the cancellation had been under discussion by the studio and filmmaking team well before the comments were made.
The studio paused the ad campaign in the middle of last week in light of the tragic mass shootings in Texas, Ohio and California.
"The Hunt," produced by Jason Blum's Blumhouse, stars Oscar winner Hilary Swank and Betty Gilpin, and is directed by Craig Zobel.
SMPTE elects board officers, regional governors
SMPTE®,the home of media professionals, technologists, and engineers, has revealed the board officers and regional governors who will serve terms beginning in January 2025.
Three new officers--Richard Welsh as SMPTE president, Eric Gsell as SMPTE executive VP, and Polly Hickling as SMPTE Education VP--have been elected for a two-year term from Jan. 1, 2025, to Dec. 31, 2026. One SMPTE officer, Lisa Hobbs, will be continuing her service as SMPTE secretary and treasurer for another two-year term. Additionally, Raymond Yeung will be stepping into the role of standards VP on Jan. 1, 2025.
“SMPTE’s membership has spoken,” said SMPTE interim executive director Sally-Ann D’Amato. “These officers have been tasked with an important responsibility, one each of them is prepared to tackle head-on. These next two years are looking bright for SMPTE!”
In addition to the officers, 10 regional governors were elected by the Society to serve two-year 2025-2026 terms.
These include the following regional governors, re-elected to continue their service:
Asia-Pacific Region Governor
Tony Ngai, Society of Motion Imaging Ltd.
EMEA - Central & South America Region Governor
Fernando Bittencourt, FB Consultant
United Kingdom Region Governor
Chris Johns, Sky UK.
USA - Central Region Governor
William T. Hayes, Consultant
USA - Eastern Region Governor
Dover Jeanne Mundt, Riedel Communications
USA - Western Region Governor
Jeffrey F. Way, Open Drives
Also elected were four newcomers to the SMPTE Board:
Canada Region Governor
Jonathan Jobin, Grass Valley
USA - Hollywood Region Governor
Allan Schollnick, Voxx... Read More