The absurd reason a single bucket of popcorn will hit $80 on your next trip to the movies
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Popcorn markups have long been a gripe for movie theatre goers, but the latest hit to their wallets will be the container it is served in.
Over the last few years a new phenomenon has taken over cinemas across America: specially designed popcorn buckets to accompany blockbuster releases.
The bucket due to be released alongside Marvel’s ‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ is set to cost $80, the Wall Street Journal reported.
It will feature a replica of the head of the film’s villain Galactus, complete with glowing LED eyes and removable purple horns.
It may also need its own seat at the movie theatre, as the enormous bowl is able to hold up to 361 ounces of popcorn, more than twice that of a typical large popcorn serving.
Other recent custom popcorn buckets include a Daily Planet newspaper box for ‘Superman,’ a martial art board bucket top for ‘Karate Kid: Legends’ and a vault with a special key for the latest ‘Mission: Impossible.’
These popcorn buckets have tended to cost in the region of $25 to $50.
Both film producers and cinema chains are eager to produce a bucket they hope will help generate revenue and excitement about an upcoming film.
‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ popcorn bucket is set to cost $80
‘It’s very accretive and complementary to what we’re doing at the box office and concession sales,’ John Curry, senior vice president of commercial at Regal, told the Journal.
In 2023, Swifties went wild for the Eras Tour film bucket with the popstar blazoned on the side.
The craze took off even more after the release of the popcorn holder for ‘Dune: Part Two’ last year.
The custom container from AMC was designed to resemble one of the giant sandworms from the film.
However, fans soon suggested the mouth was sexually suggestive and turned the buckets into a viral sensation.
‘Saturday Night Live’ even created a skit about a teenager losing their virginity to the bucket.
The bucket was designed by Zinc Group, who said sexual innuendo ‘was definitely not the intent.’
However, the publicity led to more demand and ‘now everybody wants to do a popcorn bucket and everyone wants to make it into something that will be iconic,’ Rod Mason, vice president of business development at Zinc, told the Journal.
A custom popcorn container for upcoming release ‘Jurassic World: Rebirth’
In 2023 Swifties went wild for the Eras Tour film bucket with the popstar blazoned on the side
The martial art board bucket top for ‘Karate Kid: Legends’
Zinc licenses the rights to make its collectible buckets from studios and then movie theatres order them to sell to consumers.
Chains such as AMC and Cinemark tend to order between 20,000 and 100,000 of each bucket design.
Sometimes the buckets are an instant hit and sell out before being resold by consumers on eBay for hundreds of dollars.
Other designs that flop, often along with the films themselves, end up being sold by the movie theatres at a discount online.
