Angelina Jolie and the actors from In the Land of Blood and Honey have received death threats as a result of the film's content, regarding the Bosnian war which took place 20 years ago. According to The Guardian, the film received a peace award on Monday at the Berlin film festival and premiered in front of 5,000 people in Sarajevo. Jolie (writer and director) and several of the cast members are reported to have been the target of death threats.
Jolie told the newspaper's reporters in Sarajevo "There were things sent to me, there were things posted online. The cast . have never complained to me about these threats but I've heard through other people it was happening . one of them did have their windows smashed in on their cars and someone else had an issue when their phone was hacked and emails were sent out saying they were from them and saying they had been hurt." Angelina decided to withdraw her intention of attending the film's premier in the Serbian capital of Belgrade, saying that she did not want the film to be used as a political tool in their year of election.
The Guardian article goes on to say that the film is notable for its stark representation of the events of the war, in which as many as 50,000 women are thought to have been raped. The film has divided opinion in the region, having received a standing ovation in Sarajevo's Olympic stadium, but struggling to find an audience in Serbia. Undeterred by this, Jolie explains that many people are seeking to view the film independently in Serbia, saying "Many people have written to me. People are speaking up and not allowing someone to tell them how they should feel about the film, about each other, about history, and I think this is the extraordinary thing."