It looks like the film Alpha Dog may cause some disorder in the court. According to Hollywood.com, the latest Justin Timberlake project, which scored accolades at Sundance Film Festival, may be caught in the middle of a legal frenzy.
The story is based on the vicious kidnapping and murder of a California teenager (Nicholas Markowitz) in August 2000, presumably by fugitive Jesse James Hollywood. The problem is that 26-year-old suspect is currently awaiting trial for the murder, and if found guilty, he could face the death penalty. Needless to say, he doesn’t want a slanted film that points a finger at him, to interfere with the verdict; he feels it will "irreparably harm" his chances for a fair trial. And the truth is, he is probably right.
If you keep in mind that many people still believe that movies state a holy truth (if an actor plays someone gay, he is clearly gay…actors must be really having sex during those steamy love scenes, etc) it’s safe to assume that some of these same people could be on the jury. Would you want people prosecuting you because they just saw in the latest Bruce Willis movie that you committed the crime? I sure wouldn’t.
The other sketchy thing is that County Deputy District Attorney Ron Zonen was a consultant on the film, and he just so happens to be a former prosecutor on the case. Not exactly an unbiased source.
Hollywood is suing Universal Studios, claiming he is inaccurately portrayed in the movie, and asking that the release date be bumped until after his trial. The film—unless the lawyers work their magic—is set to come out in January.
