Amazon Prime members are set for an early call of Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle. Sony’s reboot of the 1995 classic will screen for Prime customers at 7PM local time on December 8, 12 days before the Dwayne Johnson-starrer is released domestically on December 20. The promotion allows members to buy up to 10 tickets for the one-time showing at over 1,000 theaters across the U.S., including Regal, ArcLight Cinemas and National Amusements theaters. AMC theaters will be added soon.
In select theaters, Amazon says it will roll out the Prime blue carpet to surprise members with a unique experience — including a big plug for the e-tailer. To wit, the first members to arrive at the screening will “have the opportunity to get some of the most popular Amazon devices using Prime Now, Amazon’s one and two hour delivery service.” Also, there’ll be a Jumanji themed photo booth courtesy of Prime Photos, gift bags with Whole Foods Market Gift Cards, giveaways and more. For the moment the marketing scheme appears only to apply to the U.S.
The film stars Johnson, Jack Black, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, Nick Jonas and Bobby Cannavale. Jake Kasdan directs the new adventure that sees four teenagers in detention sucked into the world of Jumanji. When they discover an old video game console with a game they’ve never heard of, they are immediately thrust into its jungle setting, and the bodies of their avatars. What they discover is that you don’t just play Jumanji, Jumanji plays you.
This is just one of the tie-ins and special treats Sony has going to promote the pic which is looking to act as counterprogramming to the big Wookie in the Christmas corridor, Star Wars: The Last Jedi. The studio also created a 360-degree scavenger hunt to draw the audience inside the film’s world, where they can explore the jungle, learn about the characters and get a sneak peek at how the legend unfolds. Sony used Oculus’s React VR to create the VR experience that works across a variety of devices. Johnson will share the experience with his 58M Facebook fans on his official page.
Of the Amazon promotion, Johnson says, “We can’t wait to welcome Prime members to the jungle before anyone else. The game has changed, drawing four players into Jumanji — and now, we’re changing the game again by giving Prime members this exclusive access.”
