Thomas Vinterberg on the origins of The Hunt:
We  carried out an enormous amount of research before shooting the film. We  were inspired by a number of cases of sexual abuse that appeared in the  press. In a case like this, children are the victims - they also suffer  from having to lie to adults to make them satisfied. In Denmark, we  have a saying that only children and drunks always speak the truth. This  is false. Many doors are opened in this film. We leave the choice to  the viewer.

Mads Mikkelsen on the film and his character, Markus:
Markus's  character is stubborn. Yet paradoxically, he finds it hard to say no  and move forward in life. He loves children, but this love will lead him  to a feeling of fear. We are not disputing the fact that too many  children are victims of paedophilia. Markus is the innocent adult victim  of a witch hunt. It is this situation that we wanted to present.

Thomas Vinterberg describes the rumour theme:
The  film takes place in the microcosm of a village where information  spreads quickly, like a virus. Through the Internet, the world's become a  small village full of rumours. But what matters most in this film is  the love between the characters. They try to get close to one another  despite the misunderstandings.