Fandango: ‘Turtles’ Challenges ‘Guardians’ in Weekend Ticket Sales

LOS ANGELES – August 7, 2014 – According to Fandango, the nation’s leading moviegoer destination, Michael Bay’s “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ (opening tonight) is shredding its way to the top of the company’s Fanticipation movie buzz indicator, scoring a powerful 89 out of 100 points, while “Guardians of the Galaxy” stands strong with 87 points in its second week.

Moviegoers are shelling out big time for “Turtles,” with the movie leaping to the top of Fandango’s weekend ticket pre-sales. Representing a major slice of tickets since Monday, “Turtles” shows no signs of slowing. It is outpacing both 2009’s “G.I. Joe: Rise of the Cobra” and 2013’s “G.I. Joe: Retaliation” at the same point in the Fandango sales cycle.

Fandango surveyed more than 1,000 “Turtles” ticket-buyers on its site and found that:
87% watched the cartoon series;
82% had seen one of the previous movies;
72% are fans of the film’s producer, Michael Bay;
57% are fans of the film’s star, Megan Fox;
56% picked Michelangelo as their favorite turtle.
“Like last week’s blockbuster, ‘Guardians,’ ‘Turtles’ is a family-oriented action movie appealing to tweens and teens as well as parents looking for a fantasy nostalgia trip,” says Fandango Chief Correspondent Dave Karger. “Throw in some giant action set-pieces courtesy of producer Michael Bay, and you’ve got the recipe for a late summer hit.”

Fandango is unveiling original artwork and videos inspired by “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,” including a unique time lapse video of Cleveland-based artist George Vlosich recreating the famous “Turtles” characters as an incredible Etch A Sketch portrait. Fandango is also debuting exclusive fan-created “Turtles” artwork (by Tracy Tubera) and an exclusive “Ninja Turtles” infographic by Kansas City artist Rachel Ignotofsky.

About Fandango’s Fanticipation
Known for having its finger on the pulse of moviegoers, Fandango’s movie buzz indicator, Fanticipation, provides statistical insight into the movies fans are planning to see in a given weekend. Fanticipation scores (based on a 1 to 100-point scale) are calculated via an algorithm of Fandango’s advance ticket sales, website and mobile traffic, and social media engagement. Fanticipation is not intended as a forecast of the weekend box office; it is a snapshot of movie fan sentiment.