By Jun Ji-hye

“The Interview,” a U.S. comedy lampooning North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, will not be screened here any time soon, the government confirmed Friday.

A request must be made before an imported film is screened, a Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism official told The Korea Times. “No such request has been made,” she said, adding that she does not know if any distributor is planning to bring it to local screens.

The movie will be screened in 63 countries during the upcoming Christmas season, according to Voice of America (VOA), citing distributor Sony Pictures.

“The Interview,” which stars Seth Rogen and James Franco, will be screened in the U.S. and Canada on Dec. 25 before hitting screens in European, Middle Eastern and African countries early next year, the VOA report said.

Since the distributor released a trailer for the movie on YouTube in June, North Korea has fiercely been blasting the film, calling it “undisguised terrorism” and a “despicable move to hurt the dignity of the supreme leadership” in Pyongyang.

South Korean government officials refused to comment on the film.

“It is improper to argue about a foreign film. The government does not have any position about that,” said an official from the Ministry of Unification on the condition of anonymity.

The North previously sent protest letters to the United Nations and the U.S. government about the movie.

Yoon Hee-woong, the head of Min Consulting, a public opinion research firm, said, “For the North, the film considerably challenges the highest dignity of its leader. It is similar to Pyongyang’s protest against the campaign of releasing balloons with leaflets criticizing its leadership.”