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Edwin Davies: The idealistic part of my brain is very angry at this since it's tantamount to censorship enforced through fear and intimidation. A film that was going to be released is now unlikely to see the (legal) light of day because the people distributing it are afraid that they will suffer dire consequences for doing so. Capitulating as they did seems pretty cowardly, and sets a dangerous precedent that could make Hollywood - a place that is already getting more and more risk averse by the day - even less likely to take a chance on potentially contentious topics.

The pragmatic side, meanwhile, realizes that Sony had very few options. Theaters didn't want to be liable for endangering the lives of consumers by screening the film and (presumably) pressured Sony to let them drop it, then once they put that option on the table, the chains started running away in droves. They could still put it out on VOD or, as John McCain suggested, release it online for free, which seems like a great way of thumbing your nose at the hackers while guaranteeing that even more confidential secrets will leak online.

Basically, I think that Sony made the wrong the decision in cancelling the release of The Interview, but given everything that's happened I can understand why the people in charge blanched and took what they hoped would be the easy way out.

David Mumpower: I like that everyone here sees and appreciates both sides of this discussion. There is nuance to the conversation that exists beyond the free speech debate. When I first read of the threats made toward theater attendees, my mind raced somewhere dark. Americans are so indoctrinated to the idea of shootings, that The Dark Knight Rises incident has been pushed down in our memories. Only 27 months ago, 12 people were killed while 70 others were injured. The opinions of those 70 survivors are the ones that interest me the most.

We can all say that Sony should not have capitulated. That's the obvious direction for the conversation to head. In execution, we should understand it was the theater chains who determined that the legal ramifications alone justified cancelling the screenings. I am resisting the temptation to be glib about the quality of The Interview as a determining factor here, but the impending box office disappointment of the movie also could have played a factor.

If, say, The Hobbit Ever After had been the title threatened (I guess Smaug would be the North Korean dictator in this scenario), I wonder if the choice would have been the same. Thinking out loud about the numbers here, only about one out of every six to eight people attending movies at the cineplex would have been there for The Interview. Erring on the side of caution protects the rest in the extremely unlikely scenario that somebody tries something stupid/unconscionable. Upon reflection, I have decided that I stand behind the decision of the people involved with the project not to release the movie in theaters.

Where I diverge is in shutting down the film completely. I understand that Sony's CEO has stated that there is no way for them to exhibit the film on the internet right now. He claims that no company is willing to risk the ire of hackers in order to show the film. I find that extremely difficult to believe. In debating the situation, I've decided it's more likely that Sony either has an insurance clause they believe they can trigger to collect the cost of financing the film, something I've been assured by people who would know isn't possible, or they are waiting for a better deal in 2015. I believe that would be a mistake.

There will never be a time when The Interview is hotter than it is today. Having said that, it has received as much free news as any film since The Passion of the Christ. Even POTUS is weighing in on the topic. Maybe they think they can still recoup their investment without giving away the milk virtually for free on Netflix, Hulu or the like.

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