Ster-Kinekor has announced this morning that, due to increased demand for tickets for the hottest film this year, it is opening up even more screens for the pre-release of Fifty Shades of Grey at 20:00 on Thursday, 12 February.

The country’s leading cinema chain had originally promoted the pre-release screenings for its monthly ‘Girlfriends’ Getaway’ event, and had included its luxurious Cine Prestige cinemas at six sites, as a special spoil for the girls. All these screenings are already fully booked and the lucky ladies who booked for this event well in advance, are in for a treat with goodie bags, prize draws and the like.

However, the continued hysteria for tickets to see the film before its official release on Friday, 13 February, has prompted Ster-Kinekor to open up an additional cinema at every one of its sites across the country to screen the film on Thursday evening, 12 February. The screenings will have staggered starts from around 20:00.

Says Doug Place, Marketing Executive of Ster-Kinekor Theatres: “Tickets are already selling fast for these extra screenings and we strongly advise the public to book their tickets online (www.sterkinekor.co.za) or via the SK App, to avoid disappointment. It is not advisable to arrive at the cinema on Thursday without a pre-booked ticket.”

In fact, this is the widest Ster-Kinekor opening of a film in the company’s history (the previous being The Amazing Spider-Man 2 last year) and currently pre-sales for Fifty Shades of Grey are already breaking records, and have surpassed previous title holders such as Skylight, Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part 2 and The Avengers.

“In addition to the ‘Girlfriends’ Getaway’ ticket sales, pre-sales for the film online are also breaking records, as couples book for the hottest film on circuit this year, for Valentine’s Day.  The ‘love seats’ in both our commercial cinemas and Cine Prestige theatres were the first to be sold out!” comments Place.

Fifty Shades of Grey is the perfect film for that special Valentine’s Day date night, so remind your date to book tickets for the special Valentine’s Day screenings at all Ster-Kinekor cinemas. Shows will start at fifteen minute intervals, from 19:30 until 21:00, depending on the cinema.

Fifty Shades of Grey is the second in a series of major titles that are expected to make 2015 the biggest box office year in cinema history. The first was Taken 3, which released in both commercial and IMAX cinemas in January this year. These two titles will be followed, in the coming months, with the much-anticipated release of Fast & Furious 7, The Avengers 2: Age of Altron, the new Minions movie, Spectre (new Bond film) and the eagerly-awaited return of Star Wars to the big screen in December,” concludes Place.