Fangirls: Sex & The City 2 Already Selling Out
By: Studios used to slavishly target young males, considered the holy grail of a blockbuster movie openings.
Now aspirational, stylish women have joined those ranks — they're already buying tickets to Sex & The City 2, which opens Thursday.
Movietickets.com just reported 305 sellouts for the film, which accounts for 80 percent of all of today's ticket sales.
The first "Sex & the City" grossed $405 million worldwide two years ago, a goldmine for Time Warner's New Line studio. A $57 million opening weekend redefined the rules of female-oriented movies — women don't just contribute a bit to male-oriented action films, they can create a hit. The first film in this franchise transformed women from 3rd class moviegoers, into a new kind of hit-maker.
And just as Twilight's sequel brought in $700 million worldwide after the first "Twilight" movie grossed $400 million, this Sex & The City Sequel is expected to far exceed its predecessor. This provides a great opportunity for theaters to tap into the fact that women will be traveling in packs and willing to spend a bit more for the Sex & the City event experience.
Gold Class Cinemas, an upscale multiplex, has pre-sold some 8,000 tickets in the two months leading up to the film's debut — nearly 3,000 of those tickets are for private events. The theater chain is creating a party atmosphere, at some locations serving Sex & the City themed cocktails and appetizers during the film. A popular upscale theater chain, the Arclight, is promoting 21-and-over party packages — two drinks and appetizers.
The success of the Sex & The City brand and the huge expectations for the sequel is a testament to the power of the female consumer. This film has the attention of a captive audience of eager, aspirational shoppers, which is a quite valuable thing for the brands included in the film.
Later this week I'll blog about the product placement in the film and how HP managed to replace Carrie's beloved Mac laptop.
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