Universal Pictures is reportedly offering to help theaters pay for extra security at this weekend’s screenings of the N.W.A. biopic Straight Outta Compton. The decision follows the Louisiana shooting during a screening of the studio’s Trainwreck and due to the new film’s content.
The Wall Street Journal, citing theater executives, reports that Universal will reimburse theaters that want to add extra security guards. Several theaters have been taking up the offer.
“The studio has not solicited enhanced security for theaters who will begin showing it this weekend, but has partnered with those exhibitors who have requested support for their locations,” a Universal spokesperson told The Hollywood Reporter. Universal did add that the film has been shown throughout the country already in pre-release screenings without any incidents. However, the film’s Monday premiere did include increased security.
Straight Outta Compton is about the rap group N.W.A., who famously recorded the track “F*** tha Police” and rapped about gang life. Directed by F. Gary Gray, the film also includes scenes of gang violence.
The extra security comes after last month’s Louisiana shooting, in which a man killed two women and injured nine others. There was also an incident at a Tennessee theater last week, when a man brought a pellet gun and pepper spray to a Mad Max: Fury Road screening.
Straight Outta Compton is being released in over 2,700 theaters and is expected to gross anywhere between $30 million and $40 million.
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