Looks like there might be a bit of a wait in Mr. Grey’s reception area, as Fandango reports that the Fifty Shades of Grey movie is now the fastest-selling R-rated title in the ticket seller’s 15-year history, already outpacing several major hits.
The film, which opens February 13, is clearly ready to tie up the Valentine’s Day weekend box office, and fans of the E L James books can assume the position by buying tickets on the film page HERE.
Fandango’s top-5 R-rated advance ticketers, in first week of sales (as of Friday, January 16, 2015):
1. “Fifty Shades of Grey” (2014)
2. “Sex and the City 2” (2010)
3. “The Hangover Part II” (2011)
4. “The Hangover Part III” (2013)
5. “Gone Girl” (2014)
“It’s tracking to be Fandango’s fastest-selling R-rated movie of all time,” says Fandango Chief Correspondent Dave Karger. “Very few books can claim true national phenomenon status – and ‘Fifty Shades’ ranks with ‘Twilight,’ ‘The Hunger Games’ and ‘Gone Girl’ as novels that entered the zeitgeist from coast to coast. Fans of the book have been waiting for years to see their favorite sexy characters come to life on the big screen, and they are clearly fueling our sensational advance sales.”
Fifty Shades of Grey is also having the biggest first week of ticket sales on Fandango for a non-sequel film, since the first Hunger Games movie in 2012, which still holds the record. Theater owners are posting new showtimes each day on Fandango to meet the hot fan demand in all the fifty states.
At the end of December 2014, Fandango surveyed more than 1,000 ticket-buyers, asking them which 2015 films they’re most excited to see on the big screen. Fifty Shades ranked among the top four films, along with Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Avengers: Age of Ultron, and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2, while Fifty Shades star Jamie Dornan was voted “Biggest Male Breakout Movie Star of 2015.”
