Pursuits

Hollywood’s Golden Age of North Korean Bad Guys Is Over

A scene from Team America: World PolicePhotographer: Everett Collection
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Say goodbye, moviegoers, to North Korean villains. You won’t be seeing them on the big screen anytime soon.

On Thursday, when Sony Pictures Entertainment finally canceled the release of The Interview in the face of a growing theatrical blackout, it brought an end not only to the star-crossed comedy but also to a distinct era of Hollywood typecasting. The days of Hollywood sourcing its bad guys to North Korea are likely now kaput. Like Kim Jong Un in The Interview, this particular moviemaking cliché has been suddenly and fatally wounded.