• Economy
  • Editor’s Pick
Money Rise Today – Investing and Stock News
  • Investing
  • Stock
Stock

How crazy popcorn buckets became big business for movie theaters

by February 19, 2025
written by February 19, 2025

For decades, popcorn has been a staple of the movie theater experience and exhibitors’ bottom lines. Now, the receptacle it comes in is becoming just as important.

As recently as three years ago, AMC Entertainment didn’t sell any merchandise. Last year it hawked novelty popcorn buckets, drink sippers and T-shirts to the tune of about $65 million in revenue.

“It started with us in a big way with our own movie, ‘Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour,’ that we released in October of 2023 and we sold just an incredible number of popcorn buckets,” said AMC CEO Adam Aron. “That sparked us to do it almost all the time … just literally every month.”

Other theater chains like Cinemark, Marcus, Regal and B&B Theatres have also embraced popcorn buckets, using these specialty items to drive concession purchases, create a sense of urgency to see big movies on opening weekend and add value to the theatrical experience.

“Post-Covid, we realized that the eventizing of cinema has never really been as important as it is now,” said Paul Farnsworth, executive director of communication and content at B&B Theatres. “We recognized during that time that the greatest casualty for our industry was people just fell out of the habit of going to movies.”

Hollywood production issues led to fewer theatrical releases and smaller ticket sales in 2024, with box office receipts down 3.4% from 2023 to $8.74 billion. Farnsworth noted that unique popcorn buckets can add value to a customer’s trip to the movies and creates a memory of the trip that can be taken home, propped up on a display shelf or repurposed for movie nights in.

“It is very good for the bottom line,” he said. “The big value for us is that people come in and there’s these fun things they get to take home and they’re taking pictures with them in the theater. There’s immense value in that.”

For Cinemark, the proof of concept came with the release of “Scream VI” in 2023.

“We made a ‘Scream’ popcorn bucket and it completely caught us by surprise,” said Sean Gamble, CEO of Cinemark. “This thing just had this huge uptake. We sold out of the thing immediately and we were basically selling them to people online afterwards.”

Commemorative popcorn buckets have long been a part of theme park merchandising, driving revenue of the likes of Disney and Universal both domestically and internationally. However, U.S.-based movie theaters were late to adopt the trend.

Marketing and merchandise company Zinc has been designing and manufacturing branded popcorn buckets and drink sippers for over a decade internationally, but turned its attention stateside in 2016.

“Theaters were reticent because the cups didn’t fit in the holders,” said Rod Mason, vice president of business development at Zinc Group, one of the biggest players in the premium popcorn space.

A shift came in 2019 with an R2-D2 popcorn bucket created for “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker,” Mason said.

“AMC took a punt on it,” he explained. “They took multiple tens of thousands of pieces. They sold through it in about three or four days at an incredibly high price. Nothing like that had ever been done before, and it was like ‘OK, well, this works.’”

A revamped version of the droid popcorn bucket was re-released for the 25th anniversary screenings of “Star Wars: Episode 1 — A Phantom Menace.”

The popcorn bucket and drink cup combo sold for $49.99.

However, the true watershed moment for the niche market came nearly five years later with a now-infamous popcorn bucket in honor of “Dune: Part Two,” released in last March. The bucket was modeled after the sandworms featured in the film but inspired crude comparisons to an adult product.

“The beauty of the ‘Dune’ bucket was it just wasn’t intended to be viral,” Mason said.

The $24.99 bucket sold out and found momentum on secondary markets. Receipts from eBay show these popcorn buckets sold for between $50 and $210 apiece on the reseller site.

“The popularity of the popcorn buckets on social media combined with the perception of limited supply of the popcorn buckets leads to a feeling of ‘fear of missing out’ among consumers who are driven to buy the buckets when [they] see them available,” said Lindsay Brookshier, content director at online Disney guide MickeyVist.com.

The “Dune” bucket inspired “Deadpool & Wolverine” actor and producer Ryan Reynolds to design a cheeky popcorn bucket for the release of his film.

“Years from now they will look back at 2024 as when the War of the Popcorn Buckets began,” Reynolds wrote on X to promote the concession container, which was shaped like Wolverine’s head with its mouth wide open to house the popcorn.

The $29.99 bucket was exclusively available at AMC and was released the same weekend as San Diego Comic-Con and the “Deadpool & Wolverine” film release.

Studios and theaters have been more proactive about working with companies like Zinc to create unique popcorn buckets for moviegoers.

“It’s a very competitive business,” said Mason. “Everyone is trying to outdo, and not just the companies like us, but also the companies that are buying it. They’re trying to make sure that they have the coolest item … that competition has been magnified over the last 12 months because there’s so many eyes on this segment of the business.”

And the movie industry is about to have an influx of blockbuster titles now that production delays from the pandemic and dual Hollywood strikes are in the rearview mirror.

Following “Captain America: Brave New World,” which debuted Friday, the 2025 calendar has “Thunderbolts*,” ” Mission: Impossible: The Final Reckoning,” “How to Train Your Dragon,” “Jurassic World Rebirth,” “Superman,” “Fantastic Four: First Steps,” “Wicked: For Good,” “Zootopia 2,” and “Avatar: Fire and Ash.”

And 2026 has equally promising tie-ins for popcorn buckets with a “Super Mario Bros.” sequel, “Avengers: Doomsday,” “The Mandalorian and Grogu,” “Toy Story 5,” “Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow,” “Minions 3,” “Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping,” “Ice Age 6″ and “Shrek 5.”

“We’ve missed out on a couple,” B&B’s Farnsworth said. “We didn’t have that crazy ‘Dune’ one. But that was kind of one of the hinge points for us. It was like, ‘Alright, we really have to pay attention.’”

B&B, the fifth-largest cinema chain in America with 58 locations, still has to be very intentional about which products it offers and how many it purchases. Films like “Wicked,” with a massive built-in audience craving merchandise, are a safer bet. But theaters have a very short window to sell the specialty items.

“Unlike our normal popcorn bags, which are evergreen, if you don’t sell the [product], you’re probably not going to sell them a month after the movie,” Farnsworth said.

Meanwhile, AMC is investing more heavily.

“One of the big things that we’re doing in 2025 is we’re significantly increasing the quantities,” Aron said, noting that AMC was already placing orders for 100,000 units or more. “We’re buying, because there’s no need for us to sell out on opening day. There’s plenty of people coming to see that movie for weeks and weeks.”

Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC.

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS
0 comment
0
FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail

previous post
EU warns Trump against letting Putin divide the US and Europe: ‘Let’s not do him the favor’
next post
SEAN DUFFY: America’s air traffic systems need an urgent upgrade

related articles

JPMorgan marks 1,000th branch opening since 2018 expansion...

August 1, 2025

Apple crushes Wall Street expectations as iPhone sales...

August 1, 2025

Ontario cancels internet deal with Musk’s Starlink as...

July 31, 2025

Trump ends de minimis exemption for global low-cost...

July 31, 2025

Recall warns some Celsius energy drink cans accidentally...

July 31, 2025

Union Pacific to buy Norfolk in $85 billion...

July 29, 2025

Things are getting better at Boeing under CEO...

July 29, 2025

Elon Musk confirms Tesla has signed a $16.5...

July 28, 2025

Palantir joins list of 20 most valuable U.S....

July 26, 2025

FCC greenlights Paramount’s $8 billion merger with entertainment...

July 25, 2025
Enter Your Information Below To Receive Free Trading Ideas, Latest News, And Articles.


Your information is secure and your privacy is protected. By opting in you agree to receive emails from us. Remember that you can opt-out any time, we hate spam too!

Latest News

  • Trump and Harris poll in dead heat in NBC News survey as Election Day approaches

    October 14, 2024
  • Bitcoin Must Break $62K to Prevent Another ‘Black Monday’

    August 26, 2024
  • EURAUD and EURNZD: EURNZD drops to new August low

    August 13, 2024
  • Trump envoy visits injured Ukrainian soldiers to deliver message, gets asked simple question

    February 22, 2025
  • Putin thanks Trump for principles of ceasefire push, but does not say yes

    March 13, 2025

Popular Posts

  • 1

    Secret Service admits leaning on ‘state and local partners’ after claim it ignored Trump team’s past requests

    July 21, 2024
  • 2

    Five more House Democrats call on Biden to drop out, third US senator

    July 19, 2024
  • 3

    Elon and Vivek should tackle US funding for this boondoogle organization and score a multimillion dollar win

    December 4, 2024
  • 4

    Forex Profit Calculator: Maximize Your Trading Potential

    July 10, 2024
  • 5

    Biden calls to ‘lower the temperature’ then bashes Trump in NAACP speech

    July 17, 2024

Categories

  • Economy (829)
  • Editor's Pick (5,602)
  • Investing (634)
  • Stock (867)

Latest Posts

  • World leaders react as Trump re-enters the White House

    January 21, 2025
  • Regime-dominated Venezuelan Supreme Court rules Maduro election winner despite allegations of fraud

    August 23, 2024
  • Elon Musk’s X sues advertisers over alleged ‘massive advertiser boycott’ after Twitter takeover

    August 6, 2024

Recent Posts

  • Trump’s House GOP allies demand swift confirmation of Cabinet picks amid delays

    January 16, 2025
  • Harris finally adds policy page to campaign website, devotes several sections to Trump

    September 9, 2024
  • Nintendo Switch 2 retail preorder to begin April 24 following tariff delays

    April 20, 2025

Editor’s Pick

  • Dr. Oz bats back Democratic attempts to paint him as a ‘snake oil’ salesman in Senate hearing

    March 14, 2025
  • Former NY congressman lays out Dems’ years-long escalating rhetoric ahead of Trump assassination attempt

    July 17, 2024
  • House passes Trump’s $9.4B spending cuts package targeting NPR, PBS, USAID

    June 11, 2025
  • About us
  • Contacts
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions

Disclaimer: moneyrisetoday.com, its managers, its employees, and assigns (collectively “The Company”) do not make any guarantee or warranty about what is advertised above. Information provided by this website is for research purposes only and should not be considered as personalized financial advice. The Company is not affiliated with, nor does it receive compensation from, any specific security. The Company is not registered or licensed by any governing body in any jurisdiction to give investing advice or provide investment recommendation. Any investments recommended here should be taken into consideration only after consulting with your investment advisor and after reviewing the prospectus or financial statements of the company.

Copyright © 2025 moneyrisetoday.com | All Rights Reserved

Money Rise Today – Investing and Stock News
  • Economy
  • Editor’s Pick
Money Rise Today – Investing and Stock News
  • Investing
  • Stock