Black Panther Pacing Towards Ticket Presale Records

Nearing its nation-wide opening on Feb. 16, Black Panther is now pacing to be the best ticket preseller in the history of Fandango for first quarter movies, as well as all superhero movies regardless of release date.

At the same point in the sales cycle the Marvel movie is currently ahead of presale record holders, The Hunger Games (2012) and Beauty and the Beast (2017) for January-through-March releases.

According to Erik Davis, the Fandango Managing Editor, the build for this movie has gone beyond the casual fans to a major, national phenomenon.

"It's not just a superhero movie, it's a ground-breaking cultural event," Davis said. "It is hands-down the first major movie event of 2018, and the ecstatic reviews are fueling even greater anticipation. We're also seeing increased interest from larger groups of ticket-buyers looking to celebrate next weekend's historic release."

Black Panther currently has a ComicBook.com User Anticipation Rating of 4.18 out of 5, making it the second most anticipated upcoming comic book movie among ComicBook.com Users, and is receiving critical acclaim from those privy to advance screenings.

Brandon Davis was among those in attendance for the junket (read his full review here) and said that the movie was everything that fans are hoping for -- and more, thanks to the strong female characters.

"If Black Panther had not included the Dora Milaje, especially Danai Gurira's General Okoye, it would be lesser," he said. "They help carry the throne and movie to royalty as director Ryan Coogler coaches these women toward profound achievement. The fighting skills on display and technology accompanying them thanks to Wright's brilliant and wildly fun Shuri offer some of Black Panther's most entertaining and jaw-dropping moments. One sequence in particular, involving Gurira, a spear, and a car chase, will leave moviegoers giddy in their seats."

The movie debuted to a perfect score on Rotten Tomatoes with its early reviews being overwhelmingly positive. However over the course of the next several weeks more reviews reviews of Black Panther will be added and, statistically speaking, it's highly unlikely that it will remain with its perfect score. Critically acclaimed films like Get Out and Lady Bird opened the window with perfect scores but did not see the course to the finish.

Fandango is offering limited edition Black Panther collectible movie character gift cards here. Fans buying Black Panther tickets on Fandango will receive a complimentary Black Panther movie poster from Fandango FanShop, while additional Black Panther merchandise at FanShop can be found here.