The CEO of AMC Theaters slammed rumors that his movie theater chain was "suppressing" the release of the new film, Sound of Freedom, amidst stunning box office numbers.
The new movie, produced by and based on the life of anti-child sex traffic campaigner Tim Ballard, shockingly beat Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny at the box office on its day of release, July 4.
"Really bizarre [fear, uncertainty and doubt] floating around Twitter that we are suppressing attendance for Sound of Freedom," AMC's Adam Aron tweeted on Saturday. "Yesterday we showed that movie 3,000 times at our 570 U.S. theatres and more than 100,000 people watched it @AMCTheatres. Misinformation on Twitter is astonishing. Bots? Haters?"
Sound of Freedom is based on the true story of former Homeland Security Investigations agent Ballard (played by Jim Caviezel) as he sets up Operation Underground Railroad (O.U.R.), an anti-child trafficking organization. The film made $14,242,063 on its first day in theaters, while the new Indiana Jones movie made $11,698,989 domestically.
In the days since its release, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny has returned to the top spot, according to the box office revenue-tracking website Box Office Mojo.
Ballard recently appeared on Fox & Friends where he dismissed the alleged links between Sound of Freedom and QAnon. A 2020 Vice News investigation suggested that the success of O.U.R. was aided by the rise of the conspiracy theorist group. The film has been panned by several outlets that made the comparison, including Rolling Stone, which called Sound of Freedom a "superhero movie for dads with brainworms: The QAnon-tinged thriller."
"Where's the QAnon doctrine being spewed in the film and in the script? I have no idea because this is actually what it looks like," Ballard said on Fox News. "This is what happened. I was there, and several others were there to confirm so this is jut some other agenda."
Really bizarre FUD floating around Twitter that we are suppressing attendance for Sound of Freedom. Yesterday we showed that movie 3,000 times at our 570 U.S. theatres and more than 100,000 people watched it @AMCTheatres. Misinformation on Twitter is astonishing. Bots? Haters?
— Adam Aron (@CEOAdam) July 8, 2023
Newsweek reached out to Ballard for comment.
After Aron stated that AMC Theaters had welcomed thousands of visitors in to watch Sound of Freedom, Jeffrey Harmon, the co-founder of the production company behind the movie, Angel Studios, thanked him.
"I want to personally thank you for how amazing of a partner you have been," Harmon responded to Aron's tweet. "Many of your managers have reached out to me and personally told me they love what is happening and have worked so hard to bring a great experience to Sound of Freedom fans."
His brother and Angel Studios co-founder, Neal Harmon, responded to Aron in kind, tweeting: "We are so grateful that you stepped up to support this film. Thank you for your partnership," with Jordan Harmon calling AMC "supportive partners" in another tweet.
Aron tweeted again on Sunday to clarify some more stats about how Sound of Freedom performed over the weekend.
"Let's put this ridiculous conspiracy theory to bed. Fri/Sat more than 250,000 people watched Sound of Freedom at AMC in the U.S.," he tweeted. He went on to quote the Head of Distribution at Angel Studios, who apparently said that "no other theater chain in the world has shown more support for Sound of Freedom and Angel Studios than AMC."
Correction 7/12/2023, 5:45 a.m. ET: This article was updated as it incorrectly named the head of distribution at Angel Studios as Kim Kelleher.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Jamie Burton is a Newsweek Senior TV and Film Reporter (Interviews) based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on ... Read more
