The release of a Hollywood action-comedy movie about the assassination of North Koreans leader Kim Jong-un scheduled for October has been delayed to December, the Voice of America (VOA) reported Wednesday.



Columbia Picture's movie, "The Interview," will premier around Christmas Day, VOA quoted the company as saying.



Emphasizing the holidays in the United States are a busy season for the movie industry, Columbia expects the production to attract a larger audience. Also, previews of the film were well-received, prompting the change to a December release.



The film, directed by Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen, is the story of two American TV journalists who are commissioned to kill the North's leader on the orders of the Central Intelligence Agency once they secure an exclusive interview with Kim.



The North Korean government has expressed anger about the production, calling it a form of terrorism. The country filed a protest with the United Nations to ban the release of the movie, and the North's foreign ministry sent a letter of complaint to the U.S. in July.



