The Wolverine Movie Leak: Truth And Consequences
Apr 2, 2009 by Bruce SimmonsThink there are no consequences to downloading movies illegally? Think again.
Just in case you had’nt heard, on the eve of April Fools Day a workprint of X-Men Origins: Wolverine found its way to the internet and hundreds of thousands of downloads occurred before 20th Century Fox could stop it. Though at first one might think “So what?” – there’s more at stake than just having a flick run free on the internet prior to its official release date.
When I first saw this, I held back. It was April Fool’s day. But as the hours passed, so did the proof that this was indeed real.
I shook my head in disbelief.
How Can A Movie Get Leaked?
Does that really matter? There are so many different people that handle a DVD of a movie in post-production before it hits the theaters, it’s amazing we don’t see this more often.
With the number of folk who have access to a post-production version of a movie, when do the necessary additional security measures kick in that studios may have to take? Will those measures cost us, the fan, more in the end?
Sure we might grumble at the studios, but who is really to blame?
Have You Thought About the Little Guy?
I suppose that for some, the idea of seeing a movie before it’s actually released to the public is some sort of thrill (or something). While these folks gloat about having seen a film early (and illegally), I’m sure they don’t think about the impact their cumulative actions have on others.
The “others” are those people who put in 10 to 14 hour days over the course of a couple of years creating a movie. The “others” are also the second tier people who depend on a film to be released for their livelihoods… Movie theater owners/employees, for example.
For all these people, an advance pirate copy that makes it online dilutes the hard work they’ve put into something, and takes away from the “event” status of a big blockbuster release date. A release date that has had many countless hours of effort put towards deciding how to best present the culmination of all that hard work.
As this travesty went viral, Twitter.com was aflame with people stating that the Wolverine movie had found its way to the internet.
Some cheered at the travesty thrust upon Fox. I get where you’re coming from. Fox sure doesn’t have the best track record in how they’ve handled some franchises or other matters. But if you think this through, it’s just not Fox that gets hurt. It’s shameful to ponder the idea that we might really wish harm on a person’s livelihood.
So the buzz lit up big time.
Shortly thereafter folks were out there boasting about having grabbed some popcorn and sitting down to watch their newly stolen digital media.
Yes… I Said Stolen
If you go to the trouble of hunting down what you know is an illegal copy of the film, you knowingly stole it. And don’t tell me you didn’t know. To add insult to thievery, some of you were stupid enough to brag about it on various social networking sites. Good for you! Now at least if Fox and the FBI decide to pursue this legal issue to that level, you’ve made it very easy for them to find you. Even if you didn’t brag about it, you left a digital trail to the torrent files and subsequent activity is clear as day to the packet sniffers.
As it stands, the copy of the film that made its way online did not have the majority of its visual effects complete, had missing scenes and a temporary audio/music track. So I’m sure that made for an AWESOME viewing experience.
Some Actually Posted Reviews
To further implicate yourselves, you then thought you would be super cool and leave your reviews and opinions on what you saw on various bulletin boards and websites. Most website admins removed your misbegotten opinions, choosing instead to take the high road regarding this scenario. Good for them.
Fox stated in a press release on April 1st that the FBI and the MPAA are actively investigating this crime and that:
“The source of the initial leak and any subsequent postings will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
Oh yes. This little stunt can lead to some jail time. I have a feeling someone may find themselves with some new best friends fairly soon.
When All Is Said And Done
It seems that it may be pretty easy to track down who did this. Maybe instead of firing him or her, the studio should garnish their wages for all eternity for profits lost.
If you think it really doesn’t hurt studios, think of this: Eli Roth didn’t release Hostel: Part II in Mexico because it was already leaked there and you could buy it for twenty-five cents. What was the point of opening there then?
You think that if you alone “stole” a movie, who would it hurt? It adds up. One of my favorite examples of adding up is an article I wrote about saving electricity. If every light switch wielding person (estimated 211 million – it’s just a ball park for this example) in the U.S. left a light bulb burning in an empty room for only 5 minutes, as a collective, that adds up to around 2,000 years of wasted energy. It all adds up and we can make a difference.
In closing, Fox said this:
“We are encouraged by the support of fansites condemning piracy and this illegal posting and pointing out that such theft undermines the enormous efforts of the filmmakers and actors and, above all, hurts fans of the film”
We at Screen Rant will never support this kind of behavior and we will not tolerate anyone posting their own review or experience in the comments.
‘Nuff said?
Source: BBC News
Around the web:
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@Josh R
Actually, I haven’t used the option, but I’ve purchased DVD/Blu-ray movies recently that DID have some sort of digital download included.
Vic
@ Frank, ummmm no the studio sold a legal copy to your friend making it his property, then you borrowed it from him with permission. So it’s not stealing. If you would have taken it from him without permission then it would be stealing
So you think enjoying other people’s property without paying and watching it by borrowing from a friend (who paid) is the same thing?
I know the studios game is not fair, specially because a 2 minute trailer (which is what most movies give away before opening) can be very deceiving for the customer. I do condemn the ones that don’t give enough information to form an opinion but I also am able to (more or less) choose and antecipate which ones will make me say ‘Money well spent’. And I think anyone with little effort can make those choices. So I do not think that downloading 10 movies and buying 2 of those is right.. What about the ones which you might have given a shot?
Also, on the point of the borrowing, the studios make the rules about that form of entertainment and we should not break them. We should bend them. That’s borrowing and lending. Even if 5 friends share 1 legal copy, that is still one copy sold. Nothing ilegal, it’s their problem if they didn’t make it available in other ways. Or their problem if they didn’t made it good enough for your tastes.
On another note, all the comments that I read about people who downloaded and then supported the industry, I found none saying something about watching it in a theater. I guess it is just anxiety then, no? You could have the same experience (maybe better, considering DVD/BR quality) just a few months down the line.. And without doing anything ilegal. I mean, you are bound to either know someone who has it or even be able to rent it..
you have a good point but there’s no need to be a dick about it… Its not going to stop anything from happening the movie will still be releases and will probably make a ass of money and if they don’t its their own fault…if movie tickets and concession items weren’t sky high i’m sure people would go to the movies
I can’t believe I actually took the time to read through all these posts and it seems that there are people who feel that the studios “owe” them so they will take whatever they want and it hurts no one. That’s a bunch of BS and they know it. Stealing is stealing. Now these same people, is going into Target and stealing the DVD ok? It’s the same thing right?? Intellectual property is just as valuable as physical property. That is why there are copyright laws! The studios spend ALOT of money making these movies and are ENTITLED to release the movie WHEN they want and in what format they want. If you don’t want to pony up the cash to go to the theater, then wait 4-6 months and you can LEGALLY get the movie for a $1 from Redbox or from Netflix. No matter HOW you justify it, it’s wrong. Just like PTP downloading of music was wrong.
I hope FOX catches the SOB’s and prosecutes them to the fullest extent they are allowed. I, for one, want the studios to keep making new films and keeping me entertained for a reasonable fee. I also don’t know where everyone is coming up with $12, because it’s $9 where I live. So for $30 my GF and I can go out for a couple of hours, watch a movie and snack on popcorn and junk. Pretty inexpensive date to me.
I don’t know exactly which part of my comment offended you, but if it did I’m sorry. That was really not my intention.
I was just expressing my opinion. But yes, I agree with you when you say that they still will make a lot of money. Most of the time and sometimes not truly deserved.
There’s a lot of print up there..valid points for both sides…
My take is that if you invest your own time and money into a product you deserve to be paid if that is the outcome you wish to reach..regardless of how many ways people can get your product for free without your permission. Piracy in todays world in concomitant with the internet and there will always be those people whose sense of entitlement lets them believe that it is acceptable. I believe these people are annoyingly priggish in their beliefs that this behavior is okay.It is blatantly obvious that these “pirates” are not the bon vivant of society and would never pay anything to see a movie in any form. The only concept they understand is free. Is there any way to stop it? Probably not as it would be impossible to codify, let alone enforce! Does that make it right? Definitely not!! The technology is still too nascent as nothing is really in place to prevent this type of thing from happening on a small or large scale.I guess it is just too overwhelmingly naive for me to wish in my feeble mind that people should do what is right. The milieu has been decent on this thread considering how obviously passionate people are with their opinions on this topic which is a reason why SCREEN RANT IS MY SITE OF CHOICE FOR THIS TYPE OF DISCUSSION!! That being said there have also been a lot of histrionics.
Fantastic article Bruce!!
Vic…dude..you need to control that temper of yours
Cheers
@greenknight333
Dude, I had to reach for the dictionary like three times while I was reading your post.. (Half joking)
But I do agree with you
@David…
You still HAVE a dictionary? I’d figure everyone would be using Google. LOL. j/k man.
I have to agree with Greenknight. This is the ONLY movie website I frequent. Vic does a great job here, along with the other contributors. We’re all entitled to our own opinions, and for the most part it is kept very civil on here. But Vic, I am ALWAYS going to disagree with you about American Gangster…
“Vic…dude..you need to control that temper of yours”
No argument there, whatsoever.
Vic
@Andy S
Ok.. I confess, you got me. =$
The only thing I have a gripe about is how theaters don’t let me bring in my own food. Lol. But oh well, it’s their rules, but I do know which theaters care more than others. They all have that rule, but some don’t seem to enforce it, so my soda and candies are good to go! lol
It makes the theater experience much better since all I have to pay for is my ticket. And while it’s much higher than the $2.50 I remember paying back in the day, it’s $8 after my discount, not the $12 I keep hearing, so it’s not THAT bad… But I do reserve the theater to the movies I’m really anticipating, not any of these movies where I see a trailer and go “hm, that looks interesting.” Most of those end up to be rentals unless I hear a lot of good buzz. And I also generally reserve theater visits to action movies since a comedy on the big screen and surround sound will be just as funny on my tv with stereo…
Bounds through the door Kozmo Kramer style…
OKAY, WHAT DID I MISS?
@nowhereman
Lol, priceless
Priceless? Is this turning into a Visa ad?
GREENKNIGHT333:
Thanks man!
DAVID:
You said you were half joking about reaching for the dictionary… that would be accurate! I found I needed it 6x to digest the literary expression that Greenknight333 did put upon us!
@Bruce
Nah, it’s just getting late here in Portugal (00:25 AM), so I’m not exactly functional..
Movie Ticker: $8
Large Popcorn: $4.50
Large Soda: $3.50
DVD: $15
Getting Caught pirating movies: $10,000
Finding out that “free” isn’t free?: Priceless
NOW it’s turned into a mastercard ad, lol.
@David
Are you in Portugal? My mom lives there (seriously).
Vic
@ Nowhereman….LMAO!!! Seriously!! Giddy-up Bro!!
@ David & Bruce
the only pirates me like is Mr Christie’s cookies and maybe a little Cap’n Jack.If you can’t dazzle them with your brilliance, baffle them with your bull$h*!…
Wow, perfect example, my coworker just walked in and asked me “hey, you seen Wolverine yet?” lol, what a coincidence, he said he saw it already. Another example that goes against Daniel’s theory, he said since he found those websites that shows the movies for free, he hasn’t gone to the theater once, and he used to. And the only movies he has now are bootlegs.
wow talk about ruining the experience for me. I was hoping to hear some good debate on this topic but you guys have just taken it to extremes and annoyed the heck out of my inbox. gj
Hey new to the site and just wanted to post my opinion.
I do download movies and music and i’ll admit it. I do it for a number of reasons. The first of which is the price is vastly more than what it should be. I know many of you feel that downloading is not justifiable, conversely, i feel that $.99 a song is unjustifiable. If songs were $.05 or $.10 a song, that would be better, but $.99 for a song with DRM all over it is unacceptable.
Secondly, I don’t want to wait six months for movies to come out in a physical format. If DVDs came out at the same time as the theatrical release, it would be much better. Again, the price of a DVD is another factor as they are far more expensive than their cost, and it’s highway robbery on the consumer.
Thirdly, it’s about a changing medium. The movie companies model of business is a decade old, and they show no signs of adopting to a new, more effective and efficient medium. The companies are constantly working to destroy filesharing as it poses a threat to their decades old business model. In today’s day and age with the new technology, you either adapt or die, why should these companies be an exception to this rule.
Finally, it’s about rights. I know many of you will feel that us downloaders are destroying your rights, but in reality we are fighting for your rights. With many of these companies being the ones that determine what laws get passed, we fight for the public and for our rights. Many of you don’t realize it, but these companies are paying off the government to get their draconian laws passed and make it where spying on customers is legal. We fight to show these people that what they’re doing is illegal and imoral and we won’t stand for it.
Now, many of you will say that what we do
is just as illegal as what these people are doing, and yes that may be true, but we’re doing it for change. Copyright and IP laws are becoming immoral to an extent that is unacceptable. Life plus 75 years is unacceptable and needs to change. I’m all for the artists making money (contradictory to my downloading i know), however i feel that a copyright law of 10 or 15 years would be more acceptable. The artist can make their money off the product, then the product can become public domain, its a win win.
Finally to counter your argument that piracy hurt movie sales, Hostel II didn’t make money for the simple fact that it was a terrible movie, not because of piracy. Look at the Dark Knight, the most pirated film of last year, however it made over $500 million domestically and broke Blu-Ray sales records upon it’s release. Another movie that did well was taken. Taken was available for download for months before its theatrical release and still made a respectable amount at the box office. Those two examples just go to show that if a movie is worthwhile, people will still go see it and it will still make money. Hollywood is just making terrible movies these days and the public won’t accept it anymore. On a final note, last year was one of the best years for piracy, and the movie industry also made $28 billion dollars. Just some food for thought.
Oh and on a side note, love this site. Never visited it before and i definitely like it. One of my new favorite movie news sites. Oh and a correction i’d like to add, i don’t download movies or music anymore.
Hey Jeff,
Thanks very much – you’re probably in the 1% of new visitors today that will actually return to the site.
Welcome!
Vic
@Vic
lol.
I lied about my last post being my last … or something like that.
I had to different guys at work today ask me if I wanted a copy of the movie.
I politely declined.
I hope to come back, i enjoy visiting sites like this and Aint in cool and slashfilm. I must say, i love anything film. Infact i will mention, i picked up the casino royale special edition 3 disc for 10 bucks the other day. A solid purchase i must say. I’m excited to watch it soon.
@ Jeff… WTH?!!
“Finally, it’s about rights. I know many of you will feel that us downloaders are destroying your rights, but in reality we are fighting for your rights. With many of these companies being the ones that determine what laws get passed, we fight for the public and for our rights. Many of you don’t realize it, but these companies are paying off the government to get their draconian laws passed and make it where spying on customers is legal. We fight to show these people that what they’re doing is illegal and imoral and we won’t stand for it.”
Please…..do not justify what you are doing by stating you are fighting for my rights..That is as antiquated an argument your comment on the Draconian copyright laws. Explain to me how expecting to be paid for work performed and product designed is all about me and my rights.. If you go to work everyday and provide a service to a buisness you expect to be paid, not to have someone tell you that hey after 15 years the service you provide will be free to your employer.Hell after three days on the job how would you like to be informed of that..you work for free from now on…just show up, continue doing the same work and you’ll get nothing..Hmmm that sounds like a great idea to me…keep on fighting for my rights if that is what you are going to win for me in the end**note sarcasm**
People deserve to be paid, if you don’t agree with the cost then don’t purchase the product, don’t copy it, don’t illegally download it, just leave it alone if it’s not worth your money. Who are you to decide how much a song should be worth. If a song is catchy and melodic enough and I can walk around all day humming it because it’s stuck in my head then I think it’s worth the dollar. I think this is more about being CHEAP and taking the low road and because it is a faceless crime people like you think it’s okay to do this. You wouldn’t walk into a store and pilfer a copy of TDK because that is STEALING..Not wanting to wait six months for the title to come out on DVD is a poor excuse too.If they were released at the same time as the theatrical version then you could just copy a good version right away and not have to wait at all for someone to place a good pirated copy out there. If you are not willing to pay when it is in theaters then in all likelihood you are just too cheap to pay for the product..Why wait six months to copy it for free when you can go online and copy it today for free..I do agree with you that these companies need to adjust to the changing landscape of their buisness and figure out a way to better protect their products and if they catch someone pirating throw the book at them. Make them really pay. I spend my hard earned money on DVD’s and music CD’s(yes they still make those) because I feel these are worthy of my money and I get enjoyment from them. repeatedly I might add which sounds like great entertainment VALUE to me. By all means if studios and artist’s are making too much then why not just take it for free. Sounds amoral to me and not self-righteous and self-sacrifical as you are claiming to be.
And whether or not it hurts box office sales or DVD sales is moot..you are taking a product you did not pay for without providing compensation to those who worked hard to provide that product. Ergo you are stealing..
Welcome to Screen Rant Dude!!