While Boots Riley’s movie debut Sorry To Bother You is doing well in the U.S., it isn't faring so well abroad. Riley took to Twitter on Friday night to vent his frustrations about the fact that his film isn’t getting any international distribution.
“re: the international distribution of #SorryToBotherYou: Even tho we'r outperforming a gang of other movies, distributors r claiming ‘Black movies’ dont do well internationally and r treating it as such. There'r films that bombed here, that theyr distributing. Let em know wsup”
Indeed, the film—which is a fusion of satire, horror, and sci-fi, as well as extremely conscious—largely revolves around commentary on corporate America, seen through a racial lens. The film is also a ‘black movie,’ featuring a strong roster that includes Lakeith Stanfield, Tessa Thompson, Omari Hardwick, Danny Glover, and others.
As Riley pointed out, Sorry To Bother You is also doing better than a lot of movies that do see global releases. It was the hope that Marvel’s Black Panther—which earned over half a billion dollars at the global box office—would have broken some barriers, but it doesn’t seem so. Still, Riley is hoping that fans will help Sorry To Bother You get the international look it deserves.
