Disney used to own the distribution rights to hit indie movie Sound of Freedom

Sound of Freedom has been the buzz movie of the summer. This independent movie that tackles the serious subject of child-trafficking has done amazingly well at the box office. The movie released at the same time as Disney’s Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, and it outperformed the heavily funded Disney movie.

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

While Sound of Freedom took it to Indy at the box office, the relationship between this seemingly out of nowhere movie and Disney is closer than you think. The movie, starring Jim Caviezel, was in development in 2015 under 20th Century Fox. Back in 2017, Disney made its move to purchase 21st Century Fox, which includes 20th Century Fox Studios, and in doing so, purchased the rights to Sound of Freedom.

Jim Caviezel, stars in Sound of Freedom

The film was completed in 2018, but Disney shelved it. There have been no reasons given as to why it was shelved, but most agree that the subject of the film was most of the reason. Sound of Freedom producer Eduardo Verastegui then hooked up with Angel Studios, who ended up getting the distribution rights to the movie. Verastegui has said he had gone to Netflix and Amazon, but no one wanted to touch the film, afraid they would lose money on it.

Now, the film, which cost $14.5 million to make, has made more than $40 million at the box office, and still climbing. That’s a bit of a kick to Mickey and friends, knowing they could have made that and more if they held on to those distribution rights.


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