Remember back in early 2014 when a number of analysts predicted that Guardians of the Galaxy would be the first box office bomb from Marvel Studios? After a decade of a proven track record, the question isn’t whether a Marvel Studios film will be a hit or a miss but rather how big a hit it will be.
Like Wonder Woman last summer, Marvel Studios is set to make history with its first major black-led superhero movie in its Marvel Cinematic Universe (dubbed MCU) with Black Panther hitting the screens next month. If audiences can fall in love with a talking raccoon and tree, I think it’s safe to say that a superhero African king isn’t that much harder to sell. I’m guessing those who boycotted Thor over Idris Elba’s casting as Heimdall aren’t the target market.
At a time when representation in media is at a critical point, Deadline is now reporting that not only is Black Panther one of the hottest selling advanced tickets but it’s “already outstripping Captain America: Civil War as Fandango’s best-selling MCU title in the first 24 hours of presales.”
I looked at the seat availability of one of my local theaters and the first Thursday night showing is nearly sold out.
UPDATE-
Apparently demand is so high that even actress Lupita Nyong’o, who plays bodyguard Nakia in the film, was unable to buy tickets for Thursday night with showtimes selling out in less than 15 minutes!
@THR says @theblackpanther is @MarvelStudios best-selling movie in terms of presales after JUST 24 HOURS! Don’t I know it: I even tried!!!! #Throwback to a video I made last night. pic.twitter.com/aoJcdaqfhi
— Lupita Nyong'o (@Lupita_Nyongo) January 10, 2018
Black Panther opens on February 16th as part of the Fourth Wave of the MCU.
