Those who were looking forward to seeing Blumhouse satirical thriller The Hunt will be disappointed to learn that distributors Universal have decided to shelve the movie entirely. It's not something we see done often - especially after so much effort has been put into marketing a film - but the decision is said to have come from a place of empathy, following the two mass shootings in America earlier this month (August 2019).
A mass shooting in El Paso, Texas saw 22 people killed and 24 injured on August 4th, whilst the lives of 10 people was taken in Dayton, Ohio just 13 hours later, with a further 27 people injured, in acts of domestic terrorism. The FBI concluded that white nationalism and anti-immigrant sentiment was central to the massacre in Texas, leading to an outcry of support for more gun control and regulations once more.
Despite this, Republicans who want to keep the gun laws as they are, or perhaps even want them loosened up in the future, pointed the finger of blame at violent video games. This opinion is something that has never been backed up by any scientific study, but conservative figures, including the current President of the United States, Donald Trump, insist that they have some bearing when it comes to violent crimes.
He even alluded to the movie The Hunt in an attack on "Liberal Hollywood", writing on social media that the film and others like it are to blame for causing such chaos: "Liberal Hollywood is Racist at the highest level, and with great Anger and Hate! They like to call themselves “Elite,” but they are not Elite. In fact, it is often the people that they so strongly oppose that are actually the Elite. The movie coming out is made in order to inflame and cause chaos. They create their own violence, and then try to blame others. They are the true Racists, and are very bad for our Country!"
As can be seen in the trailer up top (removed from official Universal channels), The Hunt was an R-rated thriller about 12 strangers who had to fight for their lives, after waking up in a clearing and realising that they were to be hunted down by rich elites. Those being hunted were referred to as "deplorables" - language used by Hillary Clinton during her Presidential campaign - in a flick that was clearly aiming to give a social commentary on the world we currently live in.
Announcing the cancellation, Universal said in a statement: "While Universal Pictures had already paused the marketing campaign for The Hunt, after thoughtful consideration, the studio has decided to cancel our plans to release the film. We stand by our filmmakers and will continue to distribute films in partnership with bold and visionary creators, like those associated with this satirical social thriller, but we understand that now is not the right time to release this film."
From a personal standpoint, I believe this could be an extremely dangerous step that Universal have taken. Whilst their move comes from the best place, and they simply want to respect those who have lost their lives due to violent crime, it's something that could put Hollywood in general at risk of being censored. This could then leak out to other forms of media, including video games, television, books and more, meaning that the state may eventually be able to dictate what forms of entertainment we're able to consume. Not a place any first world country should be in.
For those who have read George Orwell's dystopian novel Nineteen Eighty-Four, it's an even scarier prospect still. Government overreach and a repressive regimentation is at the forefront of the story, in which totalitarianism rules, and the government decide what can and cannot be watched, read, and even thought.
Released all the way back in 1949, the world still seems to, at points, be moving further towards a society similar to that in the novel. If pop culture can be blamed for psychotic, criminal outbursts; and if a world leader can have an impact on the media we're able to consume, then the future could be very bleak indeed.
Let's hope that The Hunt eventually makes its way to audiences on some sort of platform, whether that be in cinema, or on a streaming service, or something similar.