A group that claims it hacked Sony Pictures has posted a public threat against potential moviegoers.
On a website called Pastebin, which allows for anonymous posts, hackers claiming to be the “Guardians of Peace” said people who see Sony’s “The Interview” would suffer a “bitter fate.”
“We will clearly show it to you at the very time and places ‘The Interview’ be shown, including the premiere, how bitter fate those who seek fun in terror should be doomed to,” the hacking group said. “The world will be full of fear. Remember the 11th of September 2001.”
The Guardians of Peace told people who live close to movie theaters to keep their distance. “The Interview” is set to be released to theaters on Christmas. Its New York premiere is scheduled for Thursday at the Sunshine Cinema in lower Manhattan.
The Sony hackers also released emails from Sony Entertainment Chairman Michael Lynton.
A source directly involved in Sony’s hacking response said the company would not comment immediately on the news, because the FBI is investigating the hack.
A U.S. law enforcement official said the FBI is aware of the threat and is assessing its seriousness.
The group has been systematically exposing documents that they hacked from Sony’s servers, including personal information about celebrities, embarrassing emails from executives, internal memos and leaked movie scripts.
It apparently can all be traced to North Korea being unhappy about Sony Pictures’ upcoming release of “The Interview,” a comedy about a plot to kill the country’s leader Kim Jong-Un. The movie is set to open on Christmas Day.
– Pamela Brown and Brian Stelter contributed reporting to this story.