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September 26, 2012

Right on, Rosie!

By  Addie Morfoot / Variety


Producer Mark Johnson didn't make it to Sunday's premiere of his pic "Won't Back Down," but a mob of angry protesters did.

The vocal crowd made up of teachers and parents [including parents from Make the Road New York] stationed themselves just outside the Ziegfeld Theater to voice their objections to pic's portrayal of teachers' unions and parent-trigger laws, among other things.

Chants got personal when pic's Rosie Perez made her way down the outdoor red carpet, enclosed in black drapes.

"Rosie Perez -- do the right thing!" protesters yelled.

"I'm not surprised about the yelling and screaming," thesp said. "It was my main reason for doing this film."

The 20th Century Fox pic, which stars Maggie Gyllenhaal and Viola Davis as mothers trying to turn around their children's failing school, recently screened at both the Democratic and Republican conventions in order to stir the education reform debate.

At the New York Public Library afterparty, helmer Daniel Barnz expressed disappointment that Johnson missed the preem due to his "Breaking Bad" Emmy nom. "I think for him deciding between both events was like 'Sophie's Choice.' It was just awful," Barnz said.

To view the original article, click here.


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