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AMC has started teasing popcorn bucket designs for “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire”
No price has been confirmed, but it will likely be around $35
Resellers have flipped similar buckets for over $100 in the past
We’re only a few weeks away from the premiere of “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire”. Whether you’re a fan or not, we have an opportunity to make a little money off the film’s release. Special AMC-exclusive popcorn buckets are starting to surface online, and the fan reception is very positive. Collectable popcorn buckets have been some of the most lucrative flips over the last few months and resellers are always hunting for the next one. Here’s your chance to get in on the fun.
Alright, let’s talk Cinema. The latest entry in the Ghostbusters franchise is slated to hit theaters next month. You might remember 2016’s women-led reboot, and you might even remember the extremely smelly backlash from internet denizens mad about a primarily female cast.
Well, it turned out to not be a very good movie, and the studio elected to start producing sequels to the original films from the 80s.
“Ghostbusters: Afterlife” premiered in 2021, and now its sequel “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire” is almost here. We’ve got less women and more old farts around this time, so surely everyone will be happy. To promote the movie, AMC recently showed off their exclusive popcorn bucket design.
The “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire” popcorn bucket is based on the ghost trap gadget from the franchise. As far as popcorn buckets go, it’s pretty damn big. We don’t have any idea on pricing yet, but the popcorn alone will probably run you $20 or more.
If you’ve never bought a novelty popcorn bucket before, you might be wondering how to get a Ghostbusters popcorn bucket. The good news is it’s actually pretty easy. You don’t need to buy tickets, and you don’t even need to buy popcorn.
AMC locations will begin stocking these buckets ahead of the movie’s premiere. Given that “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire” is expected to release globally on March 22, these buckets could begin showing up at theaters any day now.
You’ll need to start calling around to your local AMC theaters and asking if they’re carrying the buckets, because not all of them will, and some locations will get them earlier. If you get a confirmation, all you need to is swing buy and pick up few.
And now for the obvious question. Are these a good flip? Generally, collectable popcorn buckets will retail for somewhere between $20 and $50, and judging by the design these buckets will be on the higher end of that range.
We’re pretty confident that these will be profitable to resell. AMC-exclusive popcorn buckets have been extremely lucrative for resellers over that past year. Let’s look at some examples:
So we all remember the Barbenheimer craze from last summer. While we never got our “Oppenheimer” popcorn buckets, AMC’s design for the Barbie movie made up for.
These buckets were made to look like Barbie’s pink Corvette from the film, and sold from AMC theaters for $25. At their peak, resellers were flipping them for more than $80 at a time.
This example is kind of cheating because of how insane the marketing around “Barbie” became, but it really put collectable popcorn buckets on the map for resellers.
Just before “Barbie” released, the Dungeons and Dragons movie hit theaters. While most people wrote it off as a low effort cash grab, it was actually a great film. AMC produced popcorn buckets designed like a D20 die to coincide with the film’s release for $35.
After the film popped off, collectors began shelling out upwards of $200 to get their hands on these buckets.
And here’s one more opportunity going on right now. While you’re calling around to AMC theaters asking if they have any Ghostbusters popcorn buckets, check if they’ve got any of Dune 2 designs as well.
Resellers have been flipping the “Duneussy” buckets (our article explains the nickname) for about $100 at a time after buying them from AMC for $30.
The verdict? Creatively designed popcorn buckets can be highly collectable items. It certainly helps if the movie is popular, but collectors are still willing to pay a premium if the film is part of an established franchise.
Even if “Frozen Empire” flops, the ghost trap design is iconic within the Ghostbusters Universe. It’s been featured heavily in both the original films and the sequels, and Hasbro has produced several pieces of merchandise based on it. A serious Ghostbusters collector would love to have one of these, and they might not be aware they exist yet.
We recommend that you buy these. People like Ghostbusters, and people like AMC popcorn buckets. If the movie does well, it will only boost the price further.
Subscribe to our newsletter if you want more tips like these. Reselling is pretty easy, and you’d be surprised at the kind of stuff that flips. Check out our writeup on Trump’s newest sneaker line for an example of how much people are willing to spend on dumb stuff.
Expect to see these blow up on TikTok
Start calling your local Cinemark
