The Batman: IMAX Preview Screenings Sold Out Instantly
Tickets for an IMAX preview screening of The Batman sold out just moments after they went on sale. The Batman, which comes to theaters on March 4, is the latest blockbuster project to feature the famous caped crusader. While Robert Pattinson will be making his debut as the character, previous Batman performers Ben Affleck and Michael Keaton will also be reprisingtheir roles in The Flash, due later this year. Alongside Pattinson, The Batman stars Paul Dano as Riddler, Jeffrey Wright as James Gordon, Andy Serkis as Alfred, Colin Farrell as The Penguin, and Zoë Kravitz as Catwoman.
The Batman is turning back time and presenting Bruce Wayne at the very beginning of his crime-fighting career, just a couple of years into defending Gotham from its colorful supervillains. When The Riddler comes to town and begins murdering Gotham citizens, Bruce must make some surprising alliances to defend his city. Unfortunately, over the course of his investigation, he will unearth his family connection to some unsavory high-level crimes. This ties in with the dark tone of the film, which will ponder the question of whether Batman can ever become a hero in the eyes of Gotham.
Per Deadline, 350 participating theaters released tickets for a March 1 preview screening of The Batman in IMAX. This event is timed to coincide with the premiere of the film, which will be taking place in New York on that same day. Ticket sales went live on Tuesday morning and were sold out more or less instantly across the board.
The obvious eagerness to grab tickets to The Batman spells out good news for the film's box office prospects. It's currently looking at a projected opening weekend take above $100 million. This can't quite measure up to the opening weekends of previous Batman headliners Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice ($166 million) or The Dark Knight Rises ($160 million), but in the pandemic era, this is an extremely strong opening. It's already projecting higher numbers than the $93 million opening gross of the pre-pandemic Justice League, which also featured Batman.
Despite the fact that The Batman will take place outside of the already established DC Extended Universe, excitement is still obviously high. Although the character has been featured quite often in the DCEU, this will be the first time Batman is headlining a solo film in the decade since 2012's The Dark Knight Rises. That milestone is certainly helping boost the film into the phenomenon it is looking to become.
Source: Deadline