Entertainment

Netflix says it wants The Interview

Netflix's chief content officer says the streaming service wants to make Sony's The Interview available to its 53 million worldwide subscribers.

Chief content officer wants the controversial film for its 53 million subscribers

The Interview, starring James Franco and Seth Rogen, made $15 million in the first four days it was made available for rent online. It's enjoyed success in limited theatre releases in the U.S. and in Canada. (Columbia Pictures/Sony/Ed Araquel/Associated Press)

Netflix's chief content officer says the streaming service wants to make Sony's The Interview available to its 53 million worldwide subscribers.

Ted Sarandos of Netflix would not comment Wednesday on efforts to make that possible, however. The movie starring Seth Rogen and James Franco is available on some other video services and in some independent theatres, after its wide release was cancelled due to the Sony hacking scandal.

Sarandos told reporters at a television conference that "people want to see the movie and we want to be able to deliver" it.

Sony had no immediate comment on that possibility.

Rogen and Franco play journalists involved in a CIA plot to kill North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Before the movie could be released, the Sony studio's computer system was hacked by unknown assailants linked to North Korea.

Even without Netflix, Sony Pictures Entertainment said this week that The Interview has been rented or purchased online more than 4.3 million times, totalling over $37 million US in consumer sales.

Sony says that has made it the company's top online film ever; it has made $5 million in theatre box office.

The Interview has been available through Google Play, YouTube Movies, Microsoft's Xbox Video and various video on demand services.