Crass timing from Hollywood or are people over-reacting? A trailer for new action film London Has Fallen has not gone down entirely well just before the July 7 bombings 10th anniversary.
In the sequel to 2013′s Olympus Has Fallen, Gerard Butler reprises his role as Secret Service agent Mike Banning.
This time he is fighting off a terrorist attack in our capital rather than Washington.
A new trailer showing parts of London being bombed and destroyed has caused a storm, coming just a few days ahead of commemorations for the real-life atrocities in 2005.
Gerard Butler stars in London Has Fallen
The trailer’s release also comes days after 30 Britons were killed in the Tunisia beach massacre.
Philip Nelson, chairman of The Tavistock Square Memorial Trust, an organisation set up to remember the victims of 7/7, said the timing of the trailer was wrong.
He told the Daily Mirror: “This is not the first time that Hollywood has been insensitive. If the story is about terrorism then this is extremely insensitive. People have also recently died of a terrorist attack in Tunisia.
“I have seen an image of Big Ben with the clock face blown out, that’s also insensitive. [Our trust] has had lots of help from America, so I just think that these are the wrong images to portray.”
He added: “Is the summer the best time to be promoting this film anyway?”
London Has Fallen is scheduled to be released in 2016.
Film fans expressed their upset on Twitter.
30 British dead in Tunisia. 10th Anniversary of 7/7 next week. Today: trailer for #LondonHasFallen released. What bloody idiotic timing
— Guy Lambert (@SohoGuy) July 1, 2015
surely releasing the trailer for 'london has fallen' just under a week before the 10th anniversary of 7/7 is a touch insensitive?
— michael devlin (@mdvln) July 1, 2015
Probably not the best idea to release the trailer for a film called "London Has Fallen" a week before the 10 year anniversary of 7/7…
— Ryan Williams (@Ryan_TWilliams) July 1, 2015
Anyone finding the promotion of #LondonHasFallen a toooouuuuucchhhh insensitive with the 7/7 10th anniversary coming up?
— devillefilm (@devillefilm) July 1, 2015
Seriously… What were they THINKING?! #LondonHasFallen #badtiming #inpoortaste https://t.co/C1YUcLavrm
— Venetia Sarll (@VenetiaSarll) July 2, 2015
Releasing the trailer of London Has Fallen a week before the 10th Anniversary of 7/7 is crass. Bad timing people. pic.twitter.com/onobt8tuYq
— Jannine Saunders (@neensaunders) July 2, 2015
The released of the #LondonHasFallen trailer a week before 10th anniversary of the 7/7 incident is a touch insensitive.. Wrong timing.
— اليف (@alyph_jr) July 2, 2015
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