Lionsgate To Offer Exclusive ‘Moonfall’ NFT For IMAX Preview Showings

With tickets going on sale this morning for Roland Emmerich’s Moonfall, Lionsgate is announcing that folks attending the first IMAX showings on Thursday February 3 will receive unique limited-edition Moonfall NFTs with their purchase, created by Autograph. You buy a ticket to the first advance night IMAX showings via participating online ticketing brokers (Fandango, Atom, etc.), you get a chance to claim the NFTs.

Lionsgate also just announced the launch of the Moonfall Augmented Reality Experience, available beginning today. The game/application will allow moviegoers to use their phones to locate the position of the moon and explore its various hotspots. The AR experience will provide the usual marketing material (trailers, clips, in-world videos, etc.) along with two new sweepstakes. Someone will win a trip to the Lexus Performance Driving School, a “thrilling full-day experience designed to build driving skills and confidence.”

The second contest, less ritzy but frankly more practical, involves a chance to win your own private screening of Moonfall in theaters.

_{Marisa Liston, Lionsgate’s president of worldwide marketing, said, “For weeks now, everyone has been saying Don’t Look Up. Now you know why. The moon is falling and with the Moonfall AR Experience, moviegoers can explore the hidden wonders and dangers of the moon to get tickets to the film, watch exclusive content, and get the chance to win a private screening or an unforgettable Lexus Driving Experience. Sure, the moon is crashing to the Earth, but this is a great chance to play before it wipes us all out.”}

I offered up that full quote because I half-chuckled at the reference to a rival studio’s recent success, as Netflix’s Don’t Look Up may have passed Red Notice as of this past weekend as their most-watched movie in the same week their stock continued to drop due to missing quarterly subscriber forecasts.

Anyway, we are just over a week out from the domestic debut of Roland Emmerich’s Moonfall. The film will open March 4 (not counting previews) right alongside Paramount’s Jackass Forever. While the latter was supposed to open this past October, this $140 million-budgeted disaster epic (Lionsgate is merely on the hook for domestic distribution). I discussed last summer the notion that the pandemic had created a skewed scenario where films that were either entirely commercial in nature or would otherwise be considered crass or cynical IP expansions were now being viewed as industry-wide underdogs.

The notion of Matrix 4, Space Jam 2 or Scream 5 not only existing but being seen as a must-win prospect for the long-term survival of theatrical moviegoing still feels like a kind of cosmic joke. I have no strong feelings about the Jackass saga (my son wants to see it so I’ll probably attend an opening night showing), but there is something beyond bizarre about the upcoming commercial reception to Johnny Knoxville’s latest prank-filled “documentary” being viewed as a must-succeed prospect for those who want a theatrical future for more than just Marvel films and franchise-centric horror movies.

Likewise, in a different era, a star-driven Roland Emmerich-helmed disaster flick would be a surefire A-level theatrical attraction. Independence Day ($817 million in 1996) stands alongside Terminator 2, Jurassic Park and Titanic as the definitive 90’s era global blockbuster. The Day After Tomorrow ($552 million in 2004) and 2012 ($769 million in 2009) were two of the four biggest-grossing live-action originals of the 2000’s alongside Avatar ($2.8 billion in 2009) and Will Smith’s Hancock ($624 million in 2008). Yet now, those invested in its success and anyone just hoping for another “proof of life” for movie theaters is hoping that the Halle Berry/Patrick Wilson-led Moonfall merely makes a halfway decent showing.

The tongue-in-cheek marketing reminds me of The Meg ($530 million in 2018), and we’ve seen a few examples of films that arguably performed better amid Covid than they would have in non-pandemic circumstances. Think, offhand, Godzilla Vs. Kong, Free Guy and Dune. The online film bubble seems to be of the opinion that Moonfall is just the smart kind of stupid we need right now, so we’ll see if general audiences agree. Come what may, Moonfall tickets are now on sale, and those attending the first Thursday night IMAX showings can buy an NFT. Here’s hoping that Moonfall and Jackass Forever can, uh, help save cinema on February 4.

_{TICKETS TO LIONSGATE’S SCI-FI EPIC ADVENTURE “MOONFALL” FROM DIRECTOR ROLAND EMMERICH ON SALE TODAY}

_{THURSDAY NIGHT PREVIEW MOVIEGOERS IN IMAX® TO RECEIVE LIMITED EDITION NFTs FROM AUTOGRAPH} 

_{MOONFALL AR EXPERIENCE ALSO LAUNCHES TODAY WITH TWO SWEEPSTAKES}

_{SANTA MONICA, Calif., January 25, 2022 – As tickets go on sale today for the February 4, 2022 release of Lionsgate’s highly anticipated sci-fi epic Moonfall, from internationally renowned director Roland Emmerich, the studio announced that moviegoers who purchase tickets to Thursday night preview presentations in IMAX will receive unique limited-edition Moonfall NFTs with their purchase, created by Autograph, the brand pioneering the new era of digital collectibles with icons across sports and entertainment. The studio also announced the launch of the Moonfall Augmented Reality Experience, which is available beginning today.} 

_{Tickets are now on sale everywhere movie tickets are sold. Moviegoers can purchase tickets by going to   The Moonfall NFTs will be available to U.S. moviegoers who purchase tickets online to see the film in IMAX during its Thursday night previews (February 3, 2022). For the first time in movie history, the NFTs will be available to top Moonfall fans across multiple circuits and ticketing platforms, including Fandango, Atom Tickets, AMC, Regal, Cinemark, as well as participating regional chains, exclusively to the Thursday night IMAX presentations.} 

_{The promotion is part of Autograph’s broader exclusive partnership with Lionsgate, which is designed to bring fans closer to the world’s most legendary blockbusters and television franchises. Autograph recently teamed with Lionsgate to debut the Saw Chapter One Collection, a curated compilation of 10,000 NFTs from the iconic horror franchise. In the months to come, Autograph and Lionsgate have plans to drop exclusive content from iconic franchises, films and television series.}

_{The Moonfall NFTs will be limited-edition commemorative sections of the moon’s lunar crust inspired by the film, with a unique identifier for each moviegoer. “As a filmmaker, I’m always excited by ways to surprise the audience and to get closer to the audience,” said Emmerich. “That’s what makes these NFTs so special – there’s nothing like these collectibles, especially made for the fans who are most excited for the movie. They’re a piece of Moonfall history.”}

_{“We’re thrilled to work with Roland and Lionsgate to bring this thrilling adventure to our theatres worldwide,” said Denny Tu, Chief Marketing Officer of IMAX. “By offering a special collectible exclusively to IMAX ticket holders, audiences will also be able to expand their fandom in an exciting way beyond the traditional experience.”} 

_{The studio is also giving fans a fun way to play with the moon with the Moonfall Augmented Reality Experience, which fans can access by visiting bit.ly/MoonfallAR. Moviegoers can use their phones to locate the position of the moon and explore its various hotspots. Moon hotspots provide a chance to purchase tickets, learn more about the IMAX NFT promotion, and watch exclusive film content, including trailers, clips, featurettes, and in-world videos.}

_{Through the AR experience, Lionsgate is also offering moviegoers chances to win prizes through two new sweepstakes. In the first, the studio is teaming up with Lexus, the official automotive partner of the movie, with the all-new Lexus NX luxury crossover appearing as the hero car in the film. The sweepstakes winner will attend the Lexus Performance Driving School, a thrilling full-day experience designed to build driving skills and confidence—on and off the track. In the second sweepstakes, moviegoers have the chance to win their own private screening in theaters. No Purchase Necessary. Enter by 2/4/22. Official rules at bit.ly/MoonfallDrivingExperience and bit.ly/MoonfallPrizeScreenings.}

_{Marisa Liston, Lionsgate’s president of worldwide marketing, said, “For weeks now, everyone has been saying Don’t Look Up. Now you know why. The moon is falling and with the Moonfall AR Experience, moviegoers can explore the hidden wonders and dangers of the moon to get tickets to the film, watch exclusive content, and get the chance to win a private screening or an unforgettable Lexus Driving Experience. Sure, the moon is crashing to the Earth, but this is a great chance to play before it wipes us all out.”}