Late December is a time for annual traditions, whether that’s making the seasonal pilgrimage to see family, various holiday celebrations, or the widening of the void’s gaping maw as we face yet another year stolen by that bitter hoarder Time. But one of the less-savory traditions to emerge in recent years is the late-in-the-year pirated leak of major motion pictures set for a Christmas release. Around this time last year, a huge leak from Sony resulted in Fury, Annie, Mr. Turner, Still Alice, and others all circulating around torrent sites in a high-quality download. Earlier this year, the fifth-season premiere of Game Of Thrones leaked onto major torrent sites before its airing, and before that, films such as The Expendables 3 and The Secret Life Of Walter Mitty also fell victim to the schemes of pirates.
The latest crop of films stolen has begun to course through the internet-tubes, with The Hateful Eight, The Revenant, and Creed registering the most downloads. As noted by Variety, the action-heavy pictures all attracted a massive number of users, with The Hateful Eight logging downloads from 739,580 unique IP addresses within a 24-hour period, The Revenant logging 569,153 addresses, and Creed landing just shy of a half-million with 499,082. What’s more, these three films are only the most popular of a huge wave of pirated films, including Joy, Steve Jobs, Carol, Room, Legend, In The Heart Of The Sea, and Brooklyn. All it takes to have an Oscar hopeful film fest in the comfort of your own home is a computer, a high-speed connection and a resolute lack of decorum!
