UPDATE: Sorkin has since apologized for his comments. “I think that Tim Cook and I probably both went a little too far,” he told E! News. “And I apologize to Tim Cook. I hope when he sees the movie, he enjoys it as much as I enjoy his products.”
Original story below.
As you’re probably aware, there’s a new Steve Jobs movie on the way. Michael Fassbender stars, Danny Boyle is directing, and Aaron Sorkin (of The West Wing and The Social Network fame) wrote the screenplay. The movie is scheduled to hit theaters on Oct. 9.
Not everyone is looking forward to the premiere though: Apple CEO Tim Cook, who succeeded Steve Jobs in 2011, has said that he thinks the movie is “opportunistic” and essentially a cash-in on the memory of Jobs. The comments were made during the Apple chief’s appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert a few days ago.
Writer Aaron Sorkin isn’t taking Cook’s comments lying down though. During a press event to promote the film yesterday, Sorkin had a few responses to that “opportunistic” jibe.
“Nobody did this movie to get rich,” Sorkin told The Hollywood Reporter in an interview. “Secondly, Tim Cook should really see the movie before he decides what it is. Third, if you’ve got a factory full of children in China assembling phones for 17 cents an hour you’ve got a lot of nerve calling someone else opportunistic.”
Ouch. The mild-mannered Cook isn’t one to get into a slanging match so that may well be the last we hear on the topic. It’s worth pointing out that Cook was referring to recent books, movies and other unauthorized takes on the life of Steve Jobs, not this Universal Pictures project in particular.
Still, the media loves a war of words, and Sorkin is often happy to oblige. The movie is the second film in recent years to attempt to depict the rise of Jobs and Apple: Ashton Kutcher starred in a 2013 project that wasn’t particularly well-received by critics or audiences.
Are you with Cook or Sorkin on the Jobs movie? Are you planning to go and see the film in cinemas? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
