See ‘Sing’ For Free Thanksgiving Weekend: Universal Pictures’ Biggest Advance-Screening Program Ever
Universal Pictures, Illumination Entertainment, and AMC Theatres announced today that a free advanced screening of the animated movie Sing has been planned for the Saturday after Thanksgiving. Dubbed “Sing Saturday,” tickets for the film Sing will be given free to the first 200 moviegoers in line at 200 AMC Theatres nationwide on Saturday, November 26 at 10:00 a.m. The tickets will be given on a first come, first served basis at participating AMC Theatres, but all moviegoers will need to be present in line to receive a ticket.
“We are so proud that ‘Sing Saturday’ marks the biggest advance-screening program in the history of Universal Pictures and are honored to join AMC as we kick off the holiday season with Illumination’s gift for moviegoers of every generation,” said Nick Carpou, President of Distribution, Universal.
For six years now, Illumination has created a string of hit movies including Despicable Me, Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax, Despicable Me 2, Minions (which is the second-highest-grossing animated movie in history), and last summer’s huge hit, The Secret Life of Pets (which had the largest opening of any original movie, live action or animated, and has already been given the green light for a sequel). “I think it’s a tribute to the appeal of the characters, the idea, and also just phenomenal marketing from our partners at Universal,” Meledandri told Yahoo recently.
“For the past several years, Sing has been a labor of love for everyone at Illumination, as well as the tireless performers who have poured their hearts into this movie,” said Chris Meledandri, Founder and CEO of Illumination.
“We know audiences of all ages will embrace the heart and the humor of this extraordinary film and can’t wait for movie lovers to experience Sing over Thanksgiving weekend, throughout the holiday season and beyond.”
Sing is the first partnership between writer and directed Garth Jennings (who was responsible for Son of Rambow and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy) and Chris Meledandri. Featuring more than 65 hit songs, Sing is about a huge music competition set in a world of animals to help raise funds for Buster Moon’s (a koala voiced by Matthew McConaughey) theater. Among those competing for the top prize are the following.
- Mike: A con artist mouse voiced by Seth MacFarlane
- Meena: A shy teenage elephant (Tori Kelly) who has stage fright bigger than herself.
- Rosita: An overworked and under-appreciated mother of 25 piglets (Reese Witherspoon) who has a dream to become something more.
- Johnny: A gangster gorilla (Taron Egerton) who wants to escape his life of crime.
- Ash: A punk-rock porcupine (Scarlett Johansson) who would like to do a solo act without her arrogant boyfriend.
In some ways, the making of Sing was as quirky as the characters represented in it. Even Garth Jennings got into the act of voicing the role of Miss Crawly, the lizard who works as Buster’s assistant, for the movie. Though this is a musical animated movie, only one character’s voice is a professional singer (which was Kelly). Yahoo compares Sing to Damien Chazelle’s La La Land saying that it “is a beautiful, entertaining and engaging tip of the hat to the entertainment industry and those artists who delight us with their visions.”
“I can tell you this, the overall music budget is three to four times larger than the largest music budget I’ve ever had previously,” says Meledandri.
RELATED REPORTS FROM INQUISTR:
Illumination’s ‘Sing’ Releases New Artwork Featuring The Characters And The Actors Who Portray Them
Disney To Bring Back Older Animated Favorites For New Cartoon Series Including ‘Big Hero 6’ And ‘Ducktales’
‘Stranger Things’ Producer, Shawn Levy, Is Working On ‘Sesame Street’ Movie
To find an AMC Theatre that is participating in the free “Sing Saturday” movie screening, visit www.SingSaturday.com. Sing opens in theaters nationwide on December 21.
[Featured Image by Illumination]
