“The Sound of Freedom,” an explosive film highlighting the horrific reality of child sex trafficking, took the box office by storm last week. The Angel Studios production premiered July 4th and recounts the true story of Tim Ballard, a former federal agent who carried out a daring rescue operation in South America in 2014.
In the film, Ballard, a devout Mormon, is played by Jim Caviezel, a devout Catholic best known for his portrayal of Jesus Christ in 2004’s “Passion of the Christ.” The religious motivations of both men are made clear throughout the film, with the tagline “God’s children are not for sale” featuring prominently in advertising.
As Valuetainment previously reported, “The Sound of Freedom” beat out competitors like Disney’s “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” and Pixar’s “Elemental,” grossing $18 million opening weekend and $40 million in the following week.
Most mainstream sources were initially silent about the film’s overnight success despite its 99% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with reports coming almost exclusively from right-wing sources and local media—but over the weekend, prominent media outlets finally established their main talking point about the movie.
“‘Sound of Freedom’ is a box office hit whose star embraces QAnon,” proclaimed The Washington Post.
“Sound of Freedom,” the low-budget film about child sex trafficking almost topped the box office on July 4.
But its star, Jim Caviezel, has linked it to the QAnon movement. https://t.co/4Je2YB3CBH
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) July 7, 2023
“‘Sound Of Freedom’ Is a Superhero Movie for Dads With Brainworms,” declared a headline from Rolling Stone. “The QAnon-tinged thriller about child-trafficking is designed to appeal to the conscience of a conspiracy-addled boomer.”
"To know thousands of adults will absorb Sound of Freedom, this vigilante fever dream, and come away thinking themselves better informed on a hidden civilizational crisis… well, it’s profoundly depressing. Worse still, they’ll want to spread the word." https://t.co/rVGgXtXMWM
— Rolling Stone (@RollingStone) July 10, 2023
USA Today writes: “The film has been popular among right-wing pundits and has appeared on QAnon message boards.
In a perfect summation of the media’s consensus on “The Sound of Freedom,” author Mike Rothschild made an appearance on CNN Tonight, during which he insisted that the film was “created out of moral panic,” “bogus statistics,” “fear,” and “QAnon concepts of child trafficking rings run by high-level elites.”
NEW: CNN vocally opposes the release of ‘Sound of Freedom’, a movie exposing the reality of child sex trafficking, calling it a ‘QAnon’ film.
Imagine being upset about a movie exposing child sex trafficking and thinking you’re the good guys.
“These films are created out of… pic.twitter.com/ED0zMyEwZQ
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) July 8, 2023
From these headlines and others like them, the media’s stance is clear: being anti-human trafficking is the behavior of a dangerous conspiracy theorist. What remains unclear is why these outlets—many of which have done their own exposés on the threat of child trafficking—are suddenly so opposed to the film.
Although it has come to function as a kind of catch-all term for right-wing conspiracy theories, “QAnon” originally referred to an internet group claiming to have evidence of a cabal of Satanic, cannibalistic pedophile elites controlling America’s government and media. This theory is controversial and unproven—and it is also not the inspiration for “The Sound of Freedom” given that the film is based on a true story.
“I can’t explain, and neither can they,” Tim Ballard told Fox News on Monday. “Every show I’ve seen, they just like to throw the word out, ‘QAnon.’ They make zero connection to the actual story. It’s very difficult to make that connection when it’s actually based on a true story.”
“This is just some other agenda,” he continued. “Who would want to get the backs or run interference for pedophiles and human traffickers? That’s the more important question in all this. Why would you want to lie to push an agenda whose goal is to have children be in captivity? It’s kind of sick.” But despite the negative coverage from mainstream sources, “The Sound of Freedom” remains both a critical and commercial success, and the film’s supporters say just as much about it as its critics.
Patrick Bet-David posted a video questioning the motives of the movie’s detractors and encouraging people to experience it for themselves:
Finally watched “Sound of Freedom”.
A must see movie. pic.twitter.com/ZRNqiuCGhM
— Patrick Bet-David (@patrickbetdavid) July 10, 2023
Jim Caviezel, star of the film, took to Twitter to thank those who have supported the movie so far.
We hit 2 million tickets for @SOFMovie2023! This is a representation of the children’s lives who will be saved. Thank you to @AngelStudiosInc for championing this film and to the audience. Please continue to share this message because God’s children are not for sale! pic.twitter.com/UBUi5pFXgU
— Jim Caviezel (@reallycaviezel) July 8, 2023
“I’ve always said do you want to be liked by many, the world, Hollywood, or do you want to be loved by one, which is God,” Caviezel said. “Because love [doesn’t] come from man; it comes from above.”
And given that “The Sound of Freedom” remains at a respectable third place in theaters a full week after its release, it’s clear that audiences are more than willing to love and support it even when establishment media won’t.
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