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‘I want to believe there was not a bad intent’: The director of the box office behemoth ditched by Disney to sit on the shelf for 5 years sees the positives

You wouldn't, either, with those profit margins.

sound of freedom
Image via Angel Studios

The curious case of Sound of Freedom is one of its, buts, and maybes, with the unsung thriller emerging from half a decade sitting on the shelf to become the single biggest box office sensation of 2023.

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The producers have admitted that after being dropped by Disney following the Mouse House’s acquisition of 20th Century Fox, advances to every major studio and streaming service in Hollywood were rebuffed before Angel Studios stepped in and took a chance on the contentious hot-button story.

Image via Angel Studios

As a result, Sound of Freedom has hauled in upwards of $170 million from domestic screens, and there’s no guarantee it would have proven to be anywhere near as popular had the dominoes fallen in any other order. There’s been no shortage of controversies and conspiracies, too, but director Alejandro Gómez Monteverde was feeling in a more reflective mood when he spoke to MovieWeb about Disney opting against its release.

“I think what happened was the following. You know, when Disney bought Fox, imagine all the content that there was to go through. I think we got lost in translation. We were a little movie. Also, we were with Fox International, which is even a step farther from domestic Fox. So I just think that, when the merge happened, our film got lost. I don’t think it was intentional to be like, ‘Oh, we don’t want anyone to see you.’ I just think it was the nature of when one company gets bought.

So, I want to believe there was not a bad intent. I just think that the circumstances didn’t help our film. But looking back retrospectively, I think also right now people are more familiar with the theme. If we had come out earlier or another year, I don’t know if we’d get the box office success that we have had. I think the timing just happened to come together perfectly, and the universe kind of aligned to launch this kind of film.”

Disney’s loss proved to be Angel Studios’ gain to put it lightly, even if Sound of Freedom has been making money hand over fist while still batting back against accusations it’s got an entirely different agenda to push.

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