The Little Shop of Horrors some distributors, including American International Pictures (AIP), felt that the film would be interpreted as anti-Semitic, citing the characters of Gravis Mushnick and Siddie Shiva. Welles, who is Jewish, stated that he gave his character a Turkish Jewish accent and mannerisms, and that he saw the humor of the film as playful, and felt there was no intent to defame any ethnic group. The film was finally released by its production company, The Filmgroup, nine months after it had been completed. "The Little Shop of Horrors" was screened out of competition at the 1960 Cannes Film Festival. A year later,
Horrors of the Black Museum gimmicks at that time." The film was given a wide release in the US on a double bill with "The Headless Ghost". It was very popular and earned over $1 million in profits. Cohen estimated 72% of the audience for this sort of film was aged between 12 and 26. Cohen says when the movie was released on television they had to take off the hypnotism prologue "because it does hypnotize some people." The film was later inducted into the Museum of Modern Art at the behest of Martin Scorsese. Horrors of the Black Museum Horrors of the Black Museum