A forehead-slapping blunder on the DVD and Blu-ray packaging for Atlas Shrugged: Part 1 — based on Ayn Rand's 1957 novel advocating "rational self-interest" — has resulted in a call for corrections to 100,000 copies.

While Rand argued in her book that "individualism" and the pursuit of one's own happiness should be society's motivating force, the marketing team behind the critically panned 2011 film adaptation were "mortified" when they discovered a misprinted synopsis stating the opposite.

The erroneous description reads: "Ayn Rand’s timeless novel of courage and self-sacrifice comes to life…"

In a release, the film's producer Harmon Kaslow said he was bracing for a much-deserved backlash from fans of Rand's original work.

"As we all well know, the ideas brought to life in Atlas Shrugged are entirely antithetical to the idea of 'self-sacrifice' as a virtue," Kaslow said. "Atlas is quite literally a story about the dangers of self-sacrifice. The error was an unfortunate one and fans of Ayn Rand and Atlas have every right to be upset."

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More than 100,000 new title cards will be offered to DVD and Blu-ray owners who wish to replace their flawed versions.

Scott DeSapio, Atlas Productions' COO and communications director, said: "You can imagine how mortified we all were when we saw the DVD, but it was simply too late. The product was already on shelves all over the country."

"The irony is inescapable," he added.

Helmed by Canadian-raised actor and director Paul Johansson (TV's One Tree Hill), Atlas Shrugged: Part 1 was released in April, scored an anemic 12 per cent at rating website RottenTomatoes and made a mere $4.6 million at the North American box office.