Stone explained to Reuters that he initially did not intend to pursue the project, as he was not seeking trouble. However, after meeting with Snowden in Russia, the renowned 70-year-old director famous for movies like "JFK", "Natural Born Killers", and "Wall Street" changed his mind. Stone admitted that he had concerns about the film being uninteresting, but ultimately decided to view it as a thrilling drama rather than a documentary. He believed that a documentary-style approach would not attract an audience. The film "Snowden", which will be released in theaters on Friday, follows Snowden's transformation from a conservative CIA agent to a disillusioned NSA operative, leading to his decision to flee the United States in 2013 and reveal the government's mass surveillance programs targeting ordinary citizens. He currently resides in Russia and is being sought by the US government for espionage. Amnesty International, along with two other organizations, have started a campaign to seek his pardon. Stone and Snowden met several times in Russia and decided that the film would be a dramatization. However, the film's progress halted when Stone sought financing from studios, although the director did not disclose which ones. "We are in a situation where self-censorship is prevalent," said Stone. "I don't think the NSA directly told anyone not to make this film, but the reality is that you either conform to the norms or you are marginalized." Open Road Films, a collaboration between Regal Entertainment Group and AMC Entertainment, which distributed "Spotlight", ultimately co-financed "Snowden" for $40 million. The movie, which features Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Snowden and Shailene Woodley as his girlfriend Lindsay Mills, was primarily filmed in Europe, with Germany offering production incentives and standing in for Maryland, Snowden's home state. One of the challenges was creating an engaging story about computer coding and programmers without traditional action elements like violence, chases, and guns. Director Stone addressed this by focusing on making the world of technology exciting and understandable. Additionally, key scenes were shot in Washington DC and Hawaii, including a date scene in front of the White House with Gordon-Levitt and Woodley. The director joked that if you're going to take a risk in the US, you might as well go all in.