Even with all the odds stacked against him, Jason Blum is refusing to give up hope. Despite the abrupt cancellation of the theatrical release of The Hunt, the producer says there’s still “definitely a chance” that the movie will see the light of day. Universal Pictures would likely have to be out as distributor for this to happen, as well as someone else stepping up to release the controversial film, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible. If Blum really wants to see this through, then it could only be a matter of time before someone agrees to take on the project.
The overtly political movie starring Betty Gilpin, Ike Barinholtz, and two-time Academy Award winner Hilary Swank seemed to be in hot water from the get-go. Many perceived the flick as an inflammatory story revolving around liberal elites who hunt “deplorables” for fun. President Trump’s supporters often call themselves that derogatory term in reference to a statement made by then-candidate Hillary Clinton back in 2016. Even though this isn’t what The Hunt is really about, Fox News decided it was and ran a story that prompted the commander-in-chief to tweet disparaging remarks about the movie.
This, as well as the tragic mass shootings in Ohio and Texas, resulted in Universal nixing the theatrical release. They felt that cinematic depictions of Americans gunning down each other wouldn’t sit right with audiences. Given that there seems to be a shooting nearly every day in the United States though, it probably never would’ve been an “appropriate time” to release the flick by Universal’s standards.
The Hunt is produced by Blumhouse, which also cranked out modern horror classics like Get Out and the Purge franchise. Both of the aforementioned productions are heavily political, with the latter series touching on the exact same topics as the recently cancelled movie. Why this film stirred up so much debate while the others haven’t is unclear.
Regardless, fans should hope that Amazon, Netflix, Hulu or one of the many other streaming platforms agrees to release the movie soon. In the meantime, keep checking We Got This Covered for more news about The Hunt as it continues to break.