‘Unplanned’ finally coming to Canada after de facto ban of pro-life film
The pro-life movie “Unplanned” will be debuting in Canada this summer, after major distributors refused to release the film in the country.
Independent distributor Cinedicom will be pitching the film to theaters, with the filmmakers estimating that between 100 and 200 theaters will feature the movie, beginning July 12.
“The response is excellent so far; there is a good demand for the movie,” said Cinedicom President BJ McKelvie, as reported by the Catholic publication Grandin Media.
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“Can we just keep saying this?” posted the movie’s official Twitter handle on Sunday. “We're beyond excited that Canadians pushed until they #broketheban on #unplanned. July 12th. We're there!”
The movie “Unplanned” is based off of the life of Abby Johnson, a former Planned Parenthood clinic worker who later became a pro-life activist.
Released by the Christian film company Pure Flix, the film made approximately $6.1 million at the box office for its opening weekend, which was double the expected ticket sales.
Earlier this year, it was reported that Landmark and Cineplex, two of the largest film distributors in Canada, refused to distribute the movie, which had grossed approximately $18 million since late March.
Chuck Konzelman, who wrote and directed the film, told LifeSiteNews that the Cineplex rejection in particular was harmful.
“In Canada, Cineplex basically has monopolistic power ... the National Post mentions them as controlling nearly 80 percent of all movie screens, and from our limited experience, they seem to have many of the most desirable locations, in and near the major metropolitan areas,” said Konzelman. “So rejection by Cineplex basically means we're not playing in Canada.”
The rejection of “Unplanned” garnered widespread outrage, with calls to boycott the major distributors as well as an online petition demanding that the film be released in Canada that was signed by more than 212,000 people.
“I want to show my support for the blockbuster movie 'Unplanned'. This film was debuted on March 29th in the US, and I think it should be screened in theatres across Canada and around the world. I want to see this new movie, and I am willing to pay to do so,” read the petition.
