Marvel is currently gearing up for the release of Captain America: Civil War in the U.S., which is only days away at the time of this writing, and officially launching Phase 3 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe - the massive shared superhero universe that spans almost a dozen films, and a number of television series on ABC and Netflix. Though it is ostensibly the third installment of the Captain America (Chris Evans) trilogy, Civil War also includes a number of characters introduced elsewhere in the MCU, such as Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen), and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner).
Captain America: Civil War is also set to introduce new superheroes to the MCU, Spider-Man (Tom Holland) and Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman), before they go on to star in their own standalone films. Now, in addition to helping Civil War earn more than $200 million at the international box office and set a social media milestone, the hype for the film has helped it set a pre-sale ticket record at Fandango.
According to Fandango, Captain America: Civil War is now the top pre-selling superhero movie of all time, surpassing Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice (which previously held the record), Avengers: Age of Ultron, and The Avengers. The pre-sales account for more than 90 percent of Fandago’s ticket sales for this weekend. Additionally, Civil War scored a “rare” 100 out of 100 points on Fandango’s Fanticipation movie buzz indicator.
Fandango Managing Editor Erik Davis explained the possible reasoning behind Captain America: Civil War’s successful ticket pre-sales:
Of course, as Davis points out, there are a number of reasons moviegoers are especially excited for Captain America: Civil War, including the large cast of characters fans already enjoy compounded with the new superheroes set to join the MCU. Additionally, the positive reviews for Civil War - both from critics and those oversees who have already seen it - have certainly helped to build anticipation for the Phase 3 launchpad. So, given the buzz surrounding Captain America: Civil War prior to its release, the film’s Fandango pre-sale record makes sense.
With an Avengers-sized ensemble cast, stellar advance reviews, the introduction of a new Spider-Man and new characters like Black Panther, the widespread anticipation for Thursday night’s debut of Captain America: Civil War is massive. Already hailed as Marvel’s best movie yet, Cap and ‘friends’ can add a new notch in their belts with more advance tickets sold for Civil War than for any other superhero movie in Fandango’s 16-year history.
That being said, Civil War did open at the international box somewhat lower than Avengers: Age of Ultron, and it remains to be seen if the Captain America threequel meets the opening weekend expectations in the U.S. However, this newest Fandango pre-sale report adds even more hype to the release of Captain America: Civil War, perhaps winning over some fans that were still on the fence.
Next: Black Widow Tops Fandango Poll For Next Avengers Solo Film
Captain America: Civil War opens in theaters May 6, 2016, followed by Doctor Strange – November 4, 2016; Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 – May 5, 2017; Spider-Man: Homecoming – July 7, 2017; Thor: Ragnarok – November 3, 2017; Black Panther – February 16, 2018; Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 – May 4, 2018; Ant-Man and the Wasp – July 6, 2018; Captain Marvel – March 8, 2019; Avengers: Infinity War Part 2 – May 3, 2019; and as-yet untitled Marvel movies on July 12, 2019, and on May 1, July 10, and November 6 in 2020.
Source: Fandango
