On December 15 , 2012 , Paramount Pictures announced it was indefinitely postponing the film 's premiere screening in Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania , out of respect for the families of the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting , which had occurred the day before . The opening scene shows a sniper shooting at people including a woman holding a small child , and one point aiming the cross-hairs directly at her . Writer-director McQuarrie endorsed the decision , saying he and Cruise insisted upon it . Nobody should be celebrating anything 24 hours after a tragic event like that . We thought long and hard about it . This was not a snap judgment , because we wanted to give back to the city of Pittsburgh by having the premiere there , because they were so great to us . The film held its United Kingdom premiere on December 10 , 2012 at London 's Odeon Leicester Square . It was released in the U.K. on December 26 , 2012
Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting
Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting
Jack Reacher (film)