The mother of a murder victim whose alleged killer is the subject of new film Alpha Dog has attempted suicide three times in the wake of the movie’s release.
Susan Markowitz and her family are disgusted by the film, which stars Justin Timberlake, Sharon Stone and Bruce Willis, insisting it profits from their son’s horrific death.
Fifteen-year-old Nicholas Markowitz was kidnapped and killed by a drug gang in 2000, allegedly over a debt owed by his brother.
The victim’s father Jeff Markowitz says of his wife Susan, “She is so tortured by what happened that she has tried to take her own life. The last thing that either of us want is to see this picture.
“How would any loving parent feel about a Hollywood movie that glamorizes their son’s death and allows celebrities to cash in on a brutal, evil murder?”
Nicholas’ alleged killer, Jesse James Hollywood, 26, is currently in jail and awaiting trial in Los Angeles later this year. A federal court recently declined the accused killer’s request to block Alpha Dog‘s release in America on Jan. 12.
Director Nick Cassavetes insists his film was not made to cause offense or have any influence over the trial.
He says, “The last thing we would want to do is prejudice a trial or bring unnecessary suffering to anyone. I don’t believe this movie does that. Real life is way more important than movies.”
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