Murdoch’s Fox Opts Not to Air Ads for Scandal Flick ‘Bombshell’

(Bloomberg) -- Rupert Murdoch’s Fox Corp. declined to run advertisements for “Bombshell,” a film about the sexual-harassment scandal at Fox News, according to people familiar with the matter.

The Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. movie -- debuting nationally on Friday -- is based on the accounts of female Fox News journalists who took on the network’s late chairman, Roger Ailes, after he allegedly sexual harassed them.

Lions Gate sought to advertise the movie on the Fox network, including live sports events, but didn’t attempt to advertise directly on Fox News, said the people, who asked not to be named because the matter is private.

Fox didn’t have an immediate comment.

Lions Gate has spent about $7 million marketing the film on television, airing about 1,500 advertisements, according to data from ISpot.tv.

“Bombshell” stars Nicole Kidman, Charlize Theron and Margot Robbie as real and fictional Fox News employees. In 2016, Ailes was accused of firing Kidman’s character, journalist Gretchen Carlson, because she spurned his sexual advances. Ailes left the company in 2016 and died the following year.

The movie is up against some big competition at the box office. It’s expected to generate as much as $10 million in ticket sales in the first three days after its national release. That compares with a projected $12 million for “Cats,” and $200 million for “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker,” which also open this weekend, according to Box Office Pro.

To contact the reporters on this story: Kelly Gilblom in Los Angeles at kgilblom@bloomberg.net;Christopher Palmeri in Los Angeles at cpalmeri1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Nick Turner at nturner7@bloomberg.net, Rob Golum

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