‘Sound of Freedom’ Filmmaker Says Negative Press Reaction to His Film Is “All Wrong” and “Heartbreaking”

The filmmaker behind surprise summer hit Sound of Freedom insists his controversial child trafficking thriller is not a religious, QAnon-inspired film, despite what critics have been saying. In a new interview with Variety, writer and director Alejandro Monteverde said he began working on his movie years ago in 2015, and called the backlash to his film “all wrong.”

Sound of Freedom — which was released July 4 and has since earned $173 million on a $14.5 million budget, per Variety — follows a Homeland Security agent (Jim Caviezel) who rescues children from human trafficking. The movie is based on the real story of Tim Ballard, the founder of anti-trafficking organization Operation Underground Railroad (OUR).

Caviezel has been linked to QAnon in the past, and Ballard’s group has been accused of making dangerous false claims; Sound of Freedom has also found a fervent fan base amongst QAnon and was screened by former president Donald Trump, who embraced QAnon in 2022. Still, Monteverde insisted to Variety that the wary mainstream media reception to his film is unearned and unfair.

When asked by Variety how he felt about the “negative press” lobbed at his film, he replied, “I was like really sick. I was like, ‘This is all wrong. That’s not true.’ It was heartbreaking when I saw all this polemic and all this controversy going on. My instinct was to run. I want to hide. I don’t want to give any more interviews.”

He continued,”Before the movie came out, I did a couple of interviews. Look, when you hire people, what they do on the free time, I can’t control. I was a director. I wrote the screenplay. I hired the actor I thought was the best for this film. The subject matter was very personal to him. [Caviezel] adopted three children from China. When we met and discussed the project, he broke down in tears. And I was like, ‘Wow, this guy’s gonna be willing to die on the set.’ And that’s what you want, you know? You want somebody who works for you. And he dove in.”

Monteverde also said his film was not a strictly religious release.

“I believe labels such as ‘faith-based’ exclude people, and my intention as a filmmaker is never to exclude but to include everyone, all audiences,” he said. “We made Sound of Freedom for people of faith, people without faith and everyone in between.”

His comments come after Sound of Freedom weathered another wave of bad press when Fabian Marta, one of the crowdfunders behind the film, was reportedly arrested in Missouri last month for felony kidnapping of a child.

A user with Marta’s name boasted on social media about his work helping to finance the film in a since-deleted Facebook post in which he referred to himself as an “angel investor” and “financial partner.”

Following Marta’s arrest, Sound of Freedom distributor Angel Studios released a statement clarifying its crowdfunding practices.

“Angel Studios adhered to the requirements of federal and state laws and regulations in allowing 6,678 people to invest an average of $501 each into the launch of Sound of Freedom.” they shared in an Aug. 4 statement. “Just as anyone can invest in the stock market, everyone who meets the legal criteria can invest in Angel Studios projects. One of the perks of investing was the ability to be listed in the credits.”