LOS ANGELES — “The Interview,” the raucous comedy that became the center of a dispute over cybersecurity between the United States and North Korea, will be released in a small number of theaters on Christmas Day after all, Sony Pictures said on Tuesday. The development gave new life to a film that Sony had pulled from distribution last week, after hackers threatened violence against any theater that played it.

Sony also left open the door to video-on-demand availability of the movie, either simultaneously with its debut in theaters, or nearly so. In announcing the new plan on Tuesday, Michael Lynton, Sony Pictures’ chairman, said his studio was continuing efforts “to secure more platforms and more theaters so that this movie reaches the largest possible audience.”

“Freedom has prevailed! Sony didn’t give up!” Seth Rogen, who co-directed, co-wrote and co-stars in “The Interview,” wrote on Twitter.

A comedy about the assassination of North Korea’s ruler, Kim Jong-un, “The Interview” was withdrawn by Sony last week after theater chains refused to play it in the face of a terror threat. Though Sony was privately searching for new outlets, the aborted release led to a chorus of protest, as irate Hollywood stars, free-speech advocates and even President Obama complained that Sony had capitulated to extortionist demands to cancel the release.