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Larry Miller's Megaplex is the only theater in the nation to cancel “Brokeback Mountain” By Matt "Chris" Christensen January 2006 According to a story in The Salt Lake Tribune, Megaplex Theatres' cancellation of a scheduled engagement of the gay romance "Brokeback Mountain" in Sandy is provoking comment as far away as Australia, where Heath Ledger, one of the movie's stars, called the cancellation "immature." "It's all just really unnecessary," Ledger, in Melbourne for the film's Australian premiere, told Australia's Nine National News. "Personally I don't think the movie is [controversial], but I think maybe the Mormons in Utah do. I think it's hilarious and very immature of a society." Ledger's comments were the latest in a flurry of reactions, both in Utah and around the world, since the Larry H. Miller-owned theater yanked the movie from its schedule on Thursday. Articles about the snub have made international headlines. NBC's Jay Leno and MSNBC's Keith Olbermann joked about it on the air Monday night. An Ohio movie critic wrote that he could "sniff bigotry from approximately 2,000 miles away." According to Jack Foley, head of distribution for Focus Features, the Megaplex at Jordan Commons is the only theater in the nation to cancel a run of Brokeback Mountain. "We were taken by surprise," Foley said of the Jordan Commons episode. Focus received no explanation from Megaplex Theatres for the film's cancellation, he said. Asked whether he might agree to book Brokeback Mountain at one of Miller's other theaters, Foley said no. "You can't do business with people who break their word," he said. Foley added that Focus Features, which distributes art films such as Brokeback and the current Pride and Prejudice, might reconsider whether to book its films at Miller's Megaplex theaters in the future. 
See also:Mormon Mogul Cancels "Brokeback Mountain" Screening Miller Also Accused of Censoring Transgender Film GLBT Leader Calls for Boycott of Larry Miller's Business Gay Mormon Cowboys Touched by "Brokeback Mountain" |
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