YOUR FAVORITE MTV SHOWS ARE ON PARAMOUNT+

Why Celebrity Hacking May Change How You See Elijah Wood's New Movie

'Open Windows' is eerily relevant.

On the surface, Elijah Wood's new movie, "Open Windows," is just a thriller with a clever framing device. Director Nacho Vigalondo set the entire film on a computer desktop with the action filmed through various webcams in different windows that pop up in front of the viewer.

But there's something very current about the madman forcing the main character to participate in a sexually charged hack of an actress's phone and laptop and then giving him driving directions in order to escape the police.

The past few weeks have seen two online controversies that directly address the treatment of women in our culture. It may not have been the intention of "Open Windows" to mirror elements of both the celebrity photo hacking and #GamerGate, but the film deals with ideas close to the two.

And Wood agrees. Though he hadn't originally seen the parallels in the movie to video games, he did admit there was something to it.

"We're obviously speaking about a movie that deals with the lack of morality and the choices that we make in the online space, and the consequences that they can have in life, which is certainly not the movie that Nacho had any intention of making a statement [with]. It's a vehicle for telling a thriller, but it does address these real things that we are currently seeing play out in the online space," he said. "That whole #GamerGate situation was so shameful and showcased a really ugly side of humanity when humanity feels it can rear its ugly head without any consequences."

The connection that Wood did make more easily was to the recent theft of hundreds of private photos from celebrities, and ultimately, he's glad that the crime has started a discussion about how we all behave online.

"We're a step removed from the action, morally. I think we can all relate to that," he said. "I think what we're seeing now is the worst sides of where that can go and the genuine consequences, affecting people in real life of what some of those actions can be. I think it's good because hopefully, we can move toward a conversation about changing the way we behave."

"Opens Windows" will be available on VOD on October 2 and hits theaters on November 7.

Latest News