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‘Argo’ a runaway hit in Iran

Hundreds of thousands of bootleg DVDs of film on the 1979 Iran hostage crisis reportedly circulating in the Islamic Republic

By Gabe Fisher 4 February 2013, 2:23 pm

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Ben Affleck and the cast of hostages of 'Argo' (Courtesy Warner Bros.)

Ben Affleck’s hit 2012 film “Argo,” which is based on a true account of a CIA operation in Tehran during the 1979 Iran hostage crisis, is reportedly a huge underground hit in Iran.

“Several hundreds thousand” bootleg DVD copies of “Argo” (with Persian subtitles) have been sold over the last few months, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The film, which garnered seven Oscar nominations, was not released in theaters in Iran.

“Argo” has been seen by Iranians from all walks of life, according to the report, and has spawned a renewed, informal national conversation on the 1979 hostage crisis, which saw 52 Americans held for 444 days in the US Embassy in Tehran.

The film depicts a CIA team’s successful operation to extricate six US diplomats who had found refuge in the Canadian Embassy during the crisis.