Sniper film release postponed as fear grips US
A Hollywood studio is postponing the release of a new sniper thriller starring Irish actor Colin Farrell while a real-life gunman terrorises Americans.
Phone Booth centres around a character, played by Farrell, who answers a ringing pay phone only to discover he is in the sights of a deadly sniper who threatens to kill him if he hangs up.
The film was due to be released in the US on November 15 but Twentieth Century Fox has decided to delay it indefinitely given its similarities to the recent shootings around Washington DC.
A spokeswoman for the studio, Flo Grace, said: “In light of recent events, we are delaying the release of Phone Booth.”
Screenwriter Larry Cohen, who wrote the film, has said he would not mind if the studio delayed its release.
He said recently: “I’d hate to inflict pain on any of the family and friends of the victims and bring the pain back to them.
“A movie is meaningless compared to the reality of what’s going on.”
A new release date for the movie, which was shown at the Toronto Film Festival last month, has not yet been set.
Phone Booth, which stars Kiefer Sutherland as the gunman and was directed by Joel Schumacher, is due to open in the UK next March.
The Washington sniper has killed nine people and injured two others in a wide area around the capital since launching a shooting spree earlier this month.
