Over the last three months, sexual harassment scandals have impacted nearly every corner of Hollywood. As men like Mr. Spacey, Harvey Weinstein and Louis C.K. have been accused of vile behavior, entertainment companies have mostly responded by shelving or delaying movies and TV shows associated with them. In wake of the allegations against Mr. Spacey — he apologized for one incident and has not responded to other claims — Netflix halted production on “House of Cards” and abandoned “Gore,” a completed film starring Mr. Spacey as Gore Vidal.

Release plans were canceled for Louis C.K.’s film “I Love You, Daddy” after women told The New York Times that he masturbated in front of them. He later confirmed the accounts and has been trying to buy back the film’s rights. Fighting to stay afloat in the aftermath of sexual harassment and rape allegations against Mr. Weinstein, the Weinstein Company was forced to sell distribution rights to “Paddington 2,” delay a period film called “The Current War” and watch as television networks terminated contracts for planned series. Through a spokeswoman, Mr. Weinstein has repeatedly denied “any allegations of nonconsensual sex.”

But “All the Money in the World” presented unique challenges. A trailer was already on heavy rotation in theaters. Awards prognosticators (nudged along by Sony publicists) had also been touting Mr. Spacey’s performance as Oscar worthy.

Sony and Imperative Entertainment, which produced and financed “All the Money in the World,” held a series of emergency meetings starting on Oct. 30, a day after Mr. Spacey apologized for making unwanted sexual advances toward the actor Anthony Rapp in 1986, when Mr. Rapp was 14. As more men came forward with similar allegations, outrage poured onto the internet, with some people vowing to organize a boycott of “All the Money in the World.” At that point, the movie’s scheduled premiere was two weeks away.

Hitting the pause button was the obvious move. But Thomas E. Rothman, Sony’s movie chief, said he was adamant that pushing back the release would tarnish the film even more. There was no better release window for a sophisticated drama than the Christmas holiday, the biggest ticket-selling period of the year. And they needed to stay ahead of a mini-series about the kidnapping in the works at FX.

It was decided that “All the Money in the World,” which also stars Michelle Williams as the kidnapped boy’s desperate mother and Mark Wahlberg as a Getty family fixer, would arrive on Dec. 22 as planned. (Sony eventually settled on Dec. 25.) “I didn’t think there was any solution,” Mr. Rothman said. “We would have to muddle through the best we could.”