Popcorn Buckets Boost Theater Revenue – The Hollywood Reporter

Minutes after the premiere of the superhero movie Deadpool Wolverine After collapsing during the Super Bowl, Ryan Reynolds tweeted about popcorn, of all things. “Wait until you see the popcorn bucket in Deadpool,” he wrote. He’s an eternal clown, and was no doubt responding to the social media craze over what’s new Sand dunes A sandworm popcorn container inside the theater that is enhanced to look like a sex toy (it was even the subject). Saturday Night Live Comic play).

But Reynolds also sees dollar signs for struggling theater owners. With little fanfare, the elaborate popcorn containers — known as “ships” in industry speak — have become a lucrative side business for movie theaters, outside vendors and Hollywood studios, the latter of which receive licensing fees.

Its origins can be traced back to 2019 when AMC Theaters and Disney teamed up to make the R2-D2 popcorn and drink stand that coincided with the release of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. “It was that initial spark that ignited the flame that started the entire franchise collectible ship program,” says Nils Storm, vice president of food and beverage product strategy at AMC. The robot sold for $49.99, and a movement was born. AMC continues to dominate this space even as others follow.

“A lot of times, fans keep these things in the box and display them as collectibles,” says David Seiden, vice president of cinema partnerships at Disney. Fellow Vice President Susan Kotliar adds: “I think about my daughters a lot. They are Generation Z and have grown up with their phones. Tangible things have become very important to them.” The duo is working on dead pool And Inside out 2 Goods but no popcorn spoilers can be shared.

Exhibitors and studios won’t talk about how much they make from ships. But last summer, AMC president Adam Aron expected 25,000 special edition copies to be released Barbie Corvettes will retail by the end of the opening weekend for $34.99. He was right, that means roughly $875,000 in revenue.

Franchise prices for specialty merchandise, including cups or popcorn containers, tend to start around $20 but can go up from there for a more elaborate or unique creation. “Some things we want to make very special,” Storm explains. He cites the ship that repeats the iconography Ghostbusters Ecto-1 vehicle – which supported Sony’s 2021 revival of the franchise hereafter It carried a price of $34.99 – an early example of an attention-grabbing display. The popcorn-carrying ghost trap will be available next month’s follow-up time, Ghostbusters: The Frozen Empire. “It just depends on the movie and the cool factor, and how far we want to push the envelope.”

Aside from cultural giants like star Wars, the most successful merchandise drops are usually the ones that capitalize on rabid fan bases. for Universal’s last May release Fast x, theaters were instantly sold out of a popcorn-storing replica of a 1970 Dodge Charger owned by Vin Diesel’s Dominic Toretto. Earlier this year, 15 percent of I mean girls Attendees during the opening weekend cited merchandise incentives as a reason to purchase a ticket.

Storm says AMC wants to offer as many specials as possible, but it’s good to have limits. “We like to be expansive, but we also like to be measured by making sure we pay tribute to the film and the actors and the directors and everyone who puts their effort into these parts,” he says. “And then we also want to make sure that it’s going to resonate with our guests. There’s definitely a matrix that exists between cool and collectible that we like to think about. And so, in a year where we have a number of blockbuster films, we’re going to have a number of really cool ships that will play Along with those blockbuster movies.

Free advertising on Sand dunes The sandworm is invaluable in value. “It’s a fun moment that brought some attention to the movie,” says a source. “It falls under the old adage, ‘No publicity is bad publicity.’” Insiders point out that SNL The clip — which shows the high school students in love with Aquarius — was certainly unexpected: “ SNL The drawing was a pleasant surprise. This wasn’t something that was shown as a moment for the movie.

It remains to be seen whether the buzzing response to the sandworm element will lead to more outlandish designs, as the products could be in development for up to 18 months before the film’s release. “Exhibitors tend to want to outdo each other, but they really have to understand each of the titles,” says one rival studio executive about the potential impact of Sand dunes Moment.

When a product is sold – e.g Barbie Corvette or Bad girls box or R2-D2 – AMC and other cinema operators are out of luck because they can’t pull up Amazon and get overnight delivery. But the burden is much worse when the bidder is betting on a large amount of inventory, and the goods remain on the shelves.

Also, the bidder was only able to place an order two months ago. In the post-Covid-19 world, it could take six months. “So, it became difficult to gauge how big a movie was going to be that big and know how many movies I should order,” says Luis Oluki, CEO of the luxury movie theater chain Cinépolis USA. “So the studio needs to approve the design and sometimes we need to submit the application before we know the design has been approved.”

the Sand dunes The sandworm could cause some studios to take an extra beat when approaching design, some sources speculate. And again, sometimes it’s the studio that approaches the model with an idea.

A short exposure on the big screen can also impact sales or gourmet popcorn containers. “There’s also a problem with short-window films, because if you don’t sell in the first two weekends, you end up with leftovers,” Oluki says.

But it looks like the boom in popcorn bowls is just beginning.

“There are other ways to get people to go to movie theaters, and this is one of them. We love that,” says Seiden at Disney. “I don’t know how many people actually put popcorn in them.”

James Hibberd contributed to this report.