Paramount: ‘Noah’ Survey Completely Inaccurate; Barna Research Offers the Truth

Are faith-based consumers disappointed in the upcoming Noah film or not? That depends on who you ask.

Paramount Pictures, distributor of Darren Aronofsky’s upcoming feature film Noah, strongly disputes the inaccurate media story from Variety, who reported on a religious survey from Faith Driven Consumer.

The question posed asked respondents if they were “satisfied with a biblically themed movie—designed to appeal to you—which replaces the Bible‘s core message with one created by Hollywood.”

The survey question that had the 98 percent response rate did not contain any reference to the film Noah, despite the fact that the Variety reporting implied that it did, and research from industry-leading firms about the upcoming epic paints a very different picture.

Nielsen’s National Research Group (NRG), the industry’s decades-long standard for measuring pre-release tracking of feature films (and other entertainment offerings), is tracking Noah and has gauged, with still six weeks to go before the film’s release and from self-defined “very religious” moviegoers, that 83 percent of those aware of Noah in the pre-release tracking have expressed interest in seeing film.

Others in the Christian research field, including the Barna Group, the 30-year-old research and resource company widely considered to be a leading research organization focused on the intersection of faith and culture, have had a similar response to NRG in their own pre-release research done on behalf of Noah, including the fact that 86 percent of Christian respondents who are aware of the film said they would recommend Noah to their friends.

Additionally, Barna Group’s president, David Kinnaman, notes, “On our survey conducted over February 13 through February 15, we found the majority of pastors would recommend that people see the film Noah.”

“Noah, from Paramount Pictures and Regency Enterprises, stars Academy Award-winner Russell Crowe in the title role in the film inspired by the epic story of courage, sacrifice and hope. The film is directed by visionary filmmaker Darren Aronofsky. Jennifer Connelly, Ray Winstone, Emma Watson, Anthony Hopkins and Logan Lerman also star. The film was written by Darren Aronofsky and Ari Handel and produced by Scott Franklin, Darren Aronofsky, Mary Parent and Arnon Milchan.