'' Sully '' premiered at the 43rd Annual Telluride Film Festival on September 2 , 2016 , and was released in the United States in conventional and IMAX theaters on September 9 by Warner Bros . When deciding when to release the film , Warner Bros. executives had begun circling the first weekend after Labor Day , considering that most adult fall dramas do not begin opening until September or October . However , this meant that the release coincided with the 15th anniversary of the September 11 attacks , which made executives wary as the film contains a dream sequence in which the plane crashes into Manhattan skyscrapers . But Warner Bros. domestic distribution chief Jeff Goldstein and his team nevertheless decided to release at that time because " '' Sully '' is a story of hope and a real hero who did his job . " However , according to Komarnicki , the release date was coincidental rather than planned , and he attributed it to box-office logistics , principally the limited availability of IMAX screens during the summer and at Christmas time
September 11 attacks
September 11 attacks
Sully (film)