When I saw an in-theater ad last week for “Playmobil: The Movie”, I did a double take. Not because it was an ad for “Playmobil”, but for what appeared on screen at the end. Studio STX Films has announced that every ticket to the movie – for anyone of any age, at any theater, at any time of the day – will only be $5.
That’s right. Not $15. Just $5 a ticket to see “Playmobil”.
BOGO deals have been around for a while. WB even did $5 tickets to a special sneak preview of “The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part” held in January. (The Playmobil toys have always been the B-grade versions of LEGOs). But this “Playmobil” offer is one of the best I’ve ever heard.
Could STX be doing this because the film isn’t very good? Maybe. The first weekend of December is usually a dead time for new movies. But because “Playmobil” sits in between the releases of “Frozen II” and “Spies in Disguise”, STX is hoping to bring-in families who may pass on seeing “Frozen II” a second time – simply for this better deal. “Spies” also has a similar tone to “Playmobil”, so STX is getting a jump on those crowds a few weeks early.
“Playmobil” showtimes begin Thursday December 5th at 4pm in theaters nationwide. Daniel Radcliffe, Anya Taylor-Joy, Jim Gaffigan and Kenan Thompson lead the voice cast, joined by singers Adam Lambert and Meghan Trainor. It will be interesting to see what $5 tickets translates to when it comes to an opening weekend box office total.
But no matter what happens, you have to give STX some credit for coming-up with a creative way to entice people into seeing their movie. The studio is feeling a lot better after the much-needed success of “Hustlers”, which is already an Independent Spirit Awards nominee and Oscar frontrunner for Jennifer Lopez.