MovieTickets.com Poll Ranks 'Harry Potter' Sequel Most Anticipated Movie of the Upcoming Year

MovieTickets.com Poll Ranks 'Harry Potter' Sequel Most Anticipated Movie of the Upcoming Year

Post-Ticketing Survey Asks Movie-Going Consumers to Select 'Most Anticipated' Movies through Summer 2009; 'X-Men' and 'Transformers' Sequels Round Out Top Three

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Nine months in advance of its box office debut, "Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince" is already casting a spell over moviegoers, according to a just-released poll from MovieTickets.com.

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In a survey conducted between Aug. 8 and Oct. 5, nearly 4,000 movie fans who had just purchased tickets at MovieTickets.com weighed in with their picks for the "most anticipated" films over the next 12 months. Rounding out the top three films generating the most interest over the next year were sequels "X- Men Origins: Wolverine" and "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen."

   The MovieTickets.com Top-10 Most Anticipated Films    1.  "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince"   2.  "X-Men Origins: Wolverine"   3.  "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen"   4.  "Public Enemies"   5.  "Angels & Demons"   6.  "Night at the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian"   7.  "The Informant"   8.  "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs"   9.  "The Day the Earth Stood Still"   10. "The Taking of Pelham 123"    

MovieTickets.com consumers were asked to rank a list of upcoming films slated for release within the next year on a scale of 1-to-5, with 1 signifying they had little-to-no interest in seeing the film and a 5 meaning they had significant interest in seeing the film.

Among the key findings of the "most anticipated" poll:

-- Respondents ages 24 and under indicated that "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" was the film they were most interested in seeing

-- Among 25- to 39-year-olds, "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" topped the list

-- In the 40- to 59 and the 60-and-over category, "Angels & Demons" was No. 1

The above-mentioned films also drew interest from both males and females. The top three films by gender are:

   Top Three Films Among Males:   1. "X-Men Origins: Wolverine"   2. "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen"   3. "Night at the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian"     Top Three Films Among Females:   1. "Angels & Demons"   2. "Public Enemies"   3. "Night at the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian"    

"These polling results provide very early, valuable insight into comparative long-lead moviegoer awareness and interest levels," said Gary Hiller, president of MovieTickets.com's Research and Analytics Division. "Marketing professionals, in particular, may find this data quite useful as it relates to the competitive release landscape over the next 12 months."

In a 2007 MovieTickets.com poll on the same topic, consumers indicated their top-three most anticipated films to be: "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," "The Dark Knight," and "National Treasure: Book of Secrets." Each of the three films grossed over $450 million worldwide.

For more information, poll results or additional data, or to speak with a MovieTickets.com representative, contact Formula at (310) 578-7050 or via e- mail at marek@formulapr.com.

MovieTickets.com exhibitors include: Academy 8 Theaters (P & G Theaters), Access Digital Theatres, Alco Theaters, All Star Entertainment, AMC Theatres, Amherst Cinema Art Center, Arena Grand Theatre (Columbus Hospitality), Ashbrie Cinemas, Atlantic Theaters (Movies at Midway), Atlas Cinemas, B&B Theaters, Bank Street Theatre, Back Seat Conceptions (941 Theater), Bowtie Cinemas, Brooklyn Academy of Music, Bryn Mawr Movie Theatre Co., Camera Cinemas, Carolina Cinemas, Celebrity Theatres, Channelside Cinemas, Cinema Centers, Cinema Four-Quad (Quad Cinema), Cinemagic Movies, Cinemagic Theatres (MN), Cinemall, Cineplex Odeon, Classic Cinemas, Clearview Cinemas, Cleveland Cinemas, Cornelius Cinemas, Dickinson Theatres, Dipson Theatres, Discovery Theater, Drexel Theatres, Eastern Shores (O'Neil Theaters NE), Emagine Entertainment (Cinema Hollywood), Entertainment Retail (Hollywood Hits), Elvis Cinemas, Eveningstar Cinema, Famous Players, Film Forum, Fine Arts Theatre - Beverly Hills, Fox Bay Cinema Grill, Foxmoor Movies, Frank Theaters, Funasia Theaters, Galaxy Cinemas (Canada), Galaxy Cinemas (GA), Galaxy Cinemas (NC), Greater Huntington Theatres, Greenville Cinemas (Camelot Cinemas), Hallett Cinemas, Harkins Theatres, Harrisonville Cinema, HLB Entertainment (Palace 9, Majestic 10), Hollywood Cinemas (UK), Hollywood Cinema 9, Hollywood Premier Cinemas, Howell Theater, IFC Center, Island Cinemas, Jane Pickens Theater and Event Center, Jarvis Conservatory, Kew Gardens (and Cobble Hill), K&G Theaters (Bloomfield 8), Krikorian Premiere Theatres, Landmark Theatres (and Ritz Theatres), M Park 4, Maiden Alley Cinema, Main Street Cinemas, Mall of America 14, Malco Theatres, Mann Theatres , Marcus Theatres, Marquee Cinemas, Metropolitan Theatres, Mission Grove Theaters, Missouri Cinema 6, MJR Theatres, MnM Theatres, Moore Family Theaters, Movie Tavern, MovieMax Theatres, NAOS Entertainment, EPIC Cinemas, Narberth Theatre, National Amusements, Nelsonville Movies 10, North American Cinema, Oasis Cinema, Omniplex Theatre Group, O'Neil Theatres (Louisiana), Pacific Theatres, Paris Theater, Penn Cinema, Phoenix Theatres (MI), Phoenix Theatres (TN), Pickwick Theatres, Premiere Cinemas, Quarry Cinemas, Rail Road Square Cinema, Rave Motion Pictures, Regency 8 Cinema, Republic Theater Group, Rheem Theater, Rio Entertainment, Riviera Cinemas, Roxy Theatres, Safari Cinema, Sayville Theatre, Scotiabank Theatres, Sea Turtle Cinemas, ShowBiz Cinemas, Showplace Cinemas, Showtime Cinema, Silver Screen Cinemas, Silver Screen Partners, Southern Theatres, Spotlight Theatres, Starplex Cinemas, Startime Entertainment, Studio Movie Grill, Sunrise Cinemas, Syracuse Stadium 6, Tango Theaters, Tower Theaters, Trans-Lux Cinemas, United Entertainment Corp., UltraStar Cinemas, Village Theaters, Warren Theatres, Watson Theatre, Wellfleet Cinemas, and Westates Theatres.

About MovieTickets.com

MovieTickets.com (www.movietickets.com), the world's most powerful Internet movie ticketing service, offers moviegoers a convenient way to buy movie tickets in advance. MovieTickets.com enables consumers to buy tickets online for movie screens across the United States, as well as in Canada at MovieTickets.ca; in the U.K. at MovieTickets.co.uk; in Ireland at MovieTickets.ie; from any Internet-enabled wireless device at mobile.movietickets.com; and from any phone at 877-789-MOVIE. Formed in 2000, MovieTickets.com is a joint venture between AMC Entertainment, Hollywood Media Corp. (NASDAQ:HOLL) , National Amusements, Famous Players, Marcus Theatres (NYSE:MCS) , Viacom (NYSE:VIA) and America Online, and leverages the collective theater chain expertise to deliver consumers a premium movie ticketing experience. Its elite collection of partner theaters consistently represents over 60 percent of the top 50 and over 60 percent of the top 100 grossing theaters in North America on any given weekend. The MovieTickets.com theater chain group, which includes 140 theater chains, is about seven times the number of chains of its nearest competitor.

Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20010622/MTLOGO
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com

Source: MovieTickets.com

CONTACT: Grant Marek, of Formula for MovieTickets.com, +1-310-578-7050,
marek@formulapr.com

Web site: http://www.movietickets.com/

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Profile: International Entertainment