Sound of Freedom director slaps down major misconception about movie

❘ Published: 2023-08-14T11:28:56

Jim Caviezel as Tim Ballard in Sound of Freedom

Angel Studios

Alejandro Monteverde, the director behind the surprise indie hit Sound of Freedom, has slapped down a major misconception about the movie.

Monteverde is one of many people who didn’t expect Sound of Freedom to become such a huge global success. So far, the movie – about the real-life Tim Ballard and his quest to rescue children from child sex trafficking – has earned nearly $173 million at the box office since its July 4 release. And that’s before hitting international theaters.

Much of the film’s success has been word of mouth, with distributor Angel Studios launching a ‘Pay It Forward’ scheme, which enables people to purchase tickets for others who may not be able to see it.

All that being said, there’s been much speculation and controversy attached to Sound of Freedom, with claims ranging from astroturfing to anti-Christian bias. So, what does Monteverde think of the furor?

Sound of Freedom director slaps down major misconception about movie

In an in-depth new interview with Forbes, Monteverde set the record straight on the ongoing debate about Sound of Freedom, saying there’s a major misconception circulating in the media: the movie is only for conservative audiences.

One side of the debate has argued that christian Republicans are the main target for the film, with ABC News writing last month: “Sound of Freedom is a faith-based film, and evangelicals are one of its main audiences.”

But Monteverde said: “That is not true. We have the numbers. We have the polls… there was an article, I think they were putting us around 40% of the audience, the movie goers, were Democrats.”

Earlier on in the interview, the filmmaker expressed his concern over Sound of Freedom’s “faith-based” label, saying that this was never the intention. In fact, he wanted to make a movie to raise awareness about the issue of child sex trafficking before ever speaking to Tim Ballard.

When asked about his thoughts on the film’s associations with QAnon and white supremacy, Monteverde said he found these labels “so ridiculous,” adding: “I didn’t give any attention to them.”

He went on to say: “I wanted to make a movie about child exploitation in the sexual industry and unfortunately things got a little south, but in the end, the audience are continuing to see the film.”

Monteverde is now feeling excited for the movie’s upcoming international release and is hoping the “labels will be broken,” as the circulation of conspiracy theories is not the same elsewhere as it is in the US.

You can read more about Sound of Freedom’s international release dates here, and check out our other coverage below: