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Emotions have understandably been running at an all-time high in this country since the terrorist attacks Sept. 11, and Hollywood’s decisions in the wake of the tragedy were swift. Two films dealing with terrorism, Big Trouble and Collateral Damage, were yanked from the fall release schedule–particularly Damage which dealt directly with a building being blown up by terrorists. Then, studios began pulling images pertaining to terrorism and/or the World Trade Center in an effort to calm the America public.
Some of the scheduled fall TV premieres have also been affected. CBS’ The Agency, a drama centering around the CIA, had to scrap their pilot altogether since it starts with a terrorist threat from none other than Osama bin Laden himself to blow up London’s Harrods department store. That’s just too close to home.
Now, images of the WTC are being removed from many films and television shows as well. It’s been deemed that the sight of the once majestic twin towers, an icon of the New York City skyline, would be considered too upsetting.
Yet at the same time, the New York Times has reported that people are buying books about the WTC by the thousands, as well as books about Afghanistan, terrorism and the prophecies of Nostradamus. The trailer and movie poster for Spider-Man, pulled by Sony soon after the attacks, are reportedly being sold for hundreds of dollars. In the trailer, Spidey captures the bad guys in a web he weaves between the two towers, and the towers are reflected in Spider-Man’s eyes on the poster.
Is the entertainment industry taking things too far?
One studio executive told The Hollywood Reporter, “…we’ve always looked at movies about war and death, and it’s a part of life. Historically, this is no different. You don’t see movies about plane crashes on airplanes, you don’t see movies about earthquakes the day after earthquakes, and I don’t believe at the end of the day, this will be different. It would be insensitive to release such movies now, but, down the road, if movies are to reflect life, they have to reflect the life that’s out there.”
Cast your vote on whether you believe the World Trade Center should be removed from films and television programs, and email us to tell us why. Send us your feedback and we’ll post your comments.
