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by asdf21 2364 days ago
Did anyone else notice ProtonMail being used in the movie "Knives Out" to send the ransom note? Cracked me up..
3 comments

Yes I did! I thought I was alone. I love when movies do their best to have some sense on the tech side, it could have been an annoying "sending ransom note.." loader instead.
I also saw it, and got a chuckle. I noticed how they were using the mobile web-app version instead of dedicated app.

I think its a testament to ProtonMail's popularity, that they get some screentime in a film with such a high-profile cast. Perhaps a techie in the film crew suggested they use it.

It could also be a paid product placement.
The writers likely have a tech-consultant that checks these things. Can't have another NCIS moment.
I'm sure the film's budget could have afforded a consultant. However, if you watch the movie, you may notice that there was no need to show ProtonMail at all. It was a close-up, over-the-shoulder shot of the culprit using a phone to send an email. The whole shot lasted ~2 seconds, with narration. They could have simply chosen a front-facing shot of the culprit using a computer or phone to achieve the same affect.

In any case, there are still plently of TV series and movies that put less effort into a 5 minute 'hacker' scene than this movie did into a 2 second shot. They get my kudos.

I noticed it as well and just that little touch (along with the line "What is this, CSI:KFC?!") pushed me from "I will probably stream this a few times in the background because it's funny" to "I am preordering the 4K disc as soon as it is listed."
Not that surprising. It was also shown on mr. robot a few years ago.
I would say its more suprising that ProtonMail shows up in a movie like Knives Out (which has no technical content), than it is for it to appear in Mr. Robot (a purposefully technical series, and being underwritten by Michael Bazzel, who is an advocate of ProtonMail).
mr robot is uncommonly good about depicting technology and security practices. it also shows elliot booting into kali linux, despite most viewers having no idea what that is.