The final film starring Hollywood great Roy Scheider will finally be released 15 years after the actor’s 2008 death. But even with that hook, advertising for Beautiful Blue Eyes will be a bit tricky, as Facebook has banned any advertising for the movie.
Apparently, the issue stems from the film’s title, Beautiful Blue Eyes, as it “includes direct or indirect assertions or implications about a person’s race,” thus violating Facebook policies. In the movie, Roy Scheider plays a Holocaust survivor who travels to Nuremberg and inadvertently comes across the former Nazi officer responsible for his family’s deaths.
Following news that advertising for Beautiful Blue Eyes would be “permanently restricted” on the social media site, director Joshua Newton said, “This is the action of haters – and there are sadly many in our society – who seek to damage the film in order to trivialize the Holocaust.”
Beautiful Blue Eyes has a storied history that itself is worth exploring. After shooting a crucial scene with Roy Scheider, director Newton noticed the camera had been having issues, thus requiring reshoots. Before filming could be fully wrapped, Scheider succumbed to an illness and died on February 10, 2008. Newton tried using technology from Steven Spielberg and George Lucas but found it inefficient. During the pandemic lockdown, director Newton had an epiphany: “The AI technology was now finally available to restore the damage…it now looks like a brand-new movie. It is like magic.”
The movie did have a short run like Iron Cross. But now, audiences can see the Roy Scheider film as Beautiful Blue Eyes. They just won’t hear about it through Facebook. It’s possible that the filmmakers could go back to using Iron Cross, but they have also recorded a title song for the movie. Also, why let Facebook’s clearly muddled rule win out?
Newton attacked Mark Zuckerberg himself, saying, “Instead of focussing on virtual reality, Zuckerberg should take note of what is happening in the real world.”
What do you think about Facebook’s policy and its use in marketing? Are you looking forward to seeing Roy Scheider’s final performance in Beautiful Blue Eyes?