The scandal surrounding the film about the love affair of the heir to the throne of Nicholas II and the Mariinsky Theater ballerina Matilda Kshesinskaya flared up long before the release of the movie. The main opponents of the film are various Christian organizations in Russia and State Duma deputy Natalya Poklonskaya. They believe that this movie defames the honor of the Romanovs' house and is filmed by the detractors of the church. "Matilda" is slated for release on October 26, 2017, however, some cinemas have already refused to show the film after several incidents of arson of cinemas in other regions. Mikhail Shubin looks into the religious organization "Christian State Holy Russia," which is trying to prevent the distribution of the movie.