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This is the first time the world's largest
online retailer has offered to sell tickets to Prime members for
an advanced movie showing. The film will screen at 7 p.m. local
time on Dec. 8 across the United States, nearly two weeks before
its release to the wider public.
The news underscores how Amazon is looking to add benefits to
Prime, the cornerstone of its business, which offers two-day
shipping, music and movie streaming online for $99 per year in
the United States. Prime members tend to buy more from the
online retailer.
For the unit of Sony Corp distributing the film, the deal with
Amazon offers a chance for buzz and a better box office. Its
last big hit was "Spider-Man: Homecoming" this summer.
The sequel to the 1995 adventure film starring Robin Williams
this time shows four teenagers transported into a Jumanji video
game as adult avatars and find themselves pursued by jungle
creatures and motorcycle assailants, jumping into waterfalls and
encountering perilous caves.
Amazon declined to comment on the financial details of the deal.
The company separately has sought to partner with venue owners
to enter the events ticketing business in the United States.
Amazon said it would roll out a Prime "blue carpet" at some
movie theaters and there would be Jumanji-themed photo booths
and giveaways.
"We can’t wait to welcome Prime members to the jungle before
anyone else," said Dwayne Johnson, one of the film's lead
actors, in a news release.
Amazon Studios, the company's video production and distribution
arm, is not affiliated with the film.
(Reporting by Jeffrey Dastin in San Francisco and Piya Sinha Roy
in Los Angeles; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
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