Director Kevin Smith didn’t receive well-wishes after “Dogma” was released in 1999.
Smith told Entertainment Weekly on Friday that he recalled receiving “400,000 pieces of hate mail and three bona fide death threats” after the film debuted. The comedy starred Ben Affleck and Matt Damon as two fallen angels who attempt to get from New Jersey back to heaven.
“The movie had a rubber poop monster in it,” Smith told the outlet. “Can you imagine getting that irate over a movie with a rubber poop monster?”
KEVIN SMITH DESCRIBES HIS ‘COMPLETE BREAK FROM REALITY’: ‘IT WAS SCARY’
Director Kevin Smith received death threats over “Dogma.” (Getty Images)
Smith recalled a lot of the hateful messages he received focused on his take on religion. One message he vividly remembers said: “You Jews better take that money you stole from us and start investing in flak jackets, because we’re coming in there with shotguns.”
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“I hope whoever wrote that, that missive, found peace,” Smith told the outlet.
Matt Damon and Ben Affleck starred in “Dogma.” (Getty Images)
“Dogma” is currently not on streaming services. Smith told The Wrap in 2022 that producer Harvey Weinstein was “holding it hostage.”
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Kevin Smith received three death threats after the 1999 comedy debuted. (Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images)
“My movie about angels is owned by the devil himself,” he told the outlet at the time.
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Weinstein was sentenced to 23 years in prison after being convicted in February 2020 of forcing oral sex on TV and film production assistant Mimi Haley in 2006 and third-degree rape of hairstylist Jessica Mann in 2013.
He was acquitted of first-degree rape and two counts of predatory sexual assault from actress Annabella Sciorra’s allegations of rape in the 1990s. Weinstein has denied ever engaging in non-consensual sex.
Harvey Weinstein and his brother Bob own the rights to “Dogma.” (Getty Images)
Ultimately, the appeals court found that the trial judge should have only allowed witnesses to testify about the sexual assault encounters that Weinstein’s charges stemmed from. During his trial, multiple women testified about sexual assaults allegedly performed by Weinstein, even though it wasn’t what he faced charges for.
Weinstein’s retrial is scheduled to begin in November. Earlier this month, he was indicted on additional sex crimes charges. He is set to be arraigned for those charges on Sept. 18.
Fox News Digital’s Lauryn Overhultz contributed to this report.
Janelle Ash is an entertainment writer for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to [email protected].
