Jane Lerner

jlerner@lohud.com

Independent theaters began to make plans to show the film after Sony reversed decision to cancel release

YONKERS – A comedy that has enraged both North Korea's totalitarian regime and defenders of free speech in this country will be playing in the Lower Hudson Valley starting Thursday .

"The Interview" will be shown Christmas Day at the Alamo Drafthouse in Yonkers. The Pelham Picture House is also trying to book the movie.

Independent theaters nationwide began Tuesday to make plans to show the film after Sony reversed its earlier decision to cancel its release.

"This is the best Christmas gift anyone could give us," Tim League, chief of Alamo Drafthouse Cinema, said in a statement. "We, both distributors and exhibitors, have collectively stood firm to our principles and for the right to freedom of expression. Two days til Christmas, and I am proud to be an American."

The comedy about an assassination attempt by bumbling journalists against North Korean leader Kim Jong Un led to a cyber attack on Sony, with the North Korean regime as a prime suspect.

Hackers also threatened to attack theaters that showed the movie.

Major chains still haven't said they will show it, but smaller movie houses, such as Alamo, are taking the lead. Industry experts predict the larger theaters will follow.

The Pelham Picture House does not yet know if it will get the film, said program director Clayton Bushong.

"We want to play it to support film and as a protest against censorship," Bushong said. "Our members are asking for it so we can show that we will push back when corporations and countries put limits on what we can see."

The movie, described as a farce starring Seth Rogen, is not the type of film the Picture House normally shows.

There are no plans to show "The Interview" at the Jacob Burns Film Center in Pleasantville, said Abby Popper, who works in the marketing department.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

Twitter: @JaneLernerNY

Show times

"The Interview" will be screened at midnight Dec. 25- Jan. 1 and at 10:45 a.m. Jan. 1 at the Alamo Drafthouse, 2548 Central Park Ave., Yonkers