If you managed to win tickets to watch Stranger Things ending in theaters Wednesday or Thursday, consider yourself lucky. Scores of fans are still trying to find their luck in reselling tickets on social media sites, where they are being sold for far more than their face value.
The long-running sci-fi show's finale will premiere on Netflix at 8 pm ET on Wednesday and will also be shown in select theaters in Canada and the United States.
Tickets, which go on sale Dec. 2 for $11 each, include an $11 concession stand voucher. due to limitations with remaining talentsThis means theatergoers will ultimately get their money's worth when purchasing the event.
Events across the country sold out “almost immediately,” according to Cineplex, which hosts many of the Canadian screenings.
“There is very limited seating remaining in some theaters,” Michelle Saba, vice-president of public relations for Cineplex, told CBC News in an emailed statement.
Landmark Cinemas will also show the ending, and shown on his website Places are also all or almost sold out across the country.
As a result, fans like Omar Hassanali of Mississauga, Ont., are scouring Facebook Marketplace for theater seats.
He said he didn't find out the finale would be shown in theaters until a few days after tickets went on sale, and by the time he tried to get them, there were only a few seats available – mostly single seats or seats close to the screen.
Hasanali's children, now 13 and 15, are now catching up on previous seasons as they are old enough to enjoy the show with him, and he hoped they would be able to see the event with other excited fans.
“It also gives kids something … to look forward to seeing something epic in the theater,” he said. “If something spectacular happens and everyone, you know, gasps in shock, it adds something to the experience.”
Most resellers offered him tickets for $50 each. “Some nicer people have [offered] “$25, and the most expensive is $200” per ticket, said Hasanali, who was looking for six tickets for his family of four and two cousins.
As the finale approaches, some sellers on Facebook Marketplace are reducing their listing prices to face value, but a number of listings are still listing tickets for 50 dollars each or as high as 100 dollars eachlike advertising people search for tickets. On Reddit, fans of the series wrote: called the resale “unfair” and some said they were inform sellers.
At Toronto's Winter Village Distillery, you can step into the Byers' living room and be part of an immersive Hawkins-inspired experience. CBC's Amelia Ekbal asked fans how they thought the epic Netflix series would end.
Resale in cinema
While live music lovers and sporting events Ticket resale is expected for high-profile events, says Vass Bednar, managing director of the Canadian SHIELD Institute, a non-partisan think tank, said resale is somewhat less common at theater events.
Tickets for events such as Taylor Swift: Eras Tour concert film or K-pop demon hunters The theatrical release drew a large crowd but was not as sold out as those releases had a lot of presentations.
A similar resale has plagued the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in recent years, but the fashion films sold out. resold for hundreds of dollars And caused a negative reaction from fans.
“Part of the reason we're not seeing an increase in resale at theaters is because theaters don't own and operate the secondary ecosystem,” Bednar said—unlike Ticketmaster, which allows users to resell verified tickets through its platform and gives them the opportunity to profit “not once, but twice, and sometimes more” when secondary sales occur on the platform.
Canadian Maggie Kahn's animated film KPop Demon Hunters has become a global sensation thanks to record-breaking views on Netflix and its big screen debut on a $20 million budget.
TIFF does use Ticketmaster to sell tickets, but most movie theaters like Cineplex don't have similar resale capabilities.
It's also a question of supply and demand, Bednar said. Since most films don't sell out, resales won't make money for those who buy tickets, meaning resale activity in theaters is limited to special events like the finale of an epic TV series.
Even if movie theater resales aren't a constant occurrence, Hasanali says it's disappointing to see resellers trying to make a profit from small events where they can only make $20 or $30 reselling each ticket.
“Anything that is limited and limited happens,” Hasanali said of resale. “It does start to sting a little bit more because you would think there would be some level where it doesn't make sense [resell] or is it safe from this kind of ticket scalping… but I think not.”
There are some barriers, but should there be more?
Cineplex says it is taking steps to limit the resale of tickets, including limits on the number of tickets an individual can purchase.
“As the popularity of these special events continues to grow, we are actively exploring additional steps to ensure fair access for fans,” Saba said in a statement.
Bednar said there are other, more extreme measures theaters can take to curb this type of activity, but they come with a cost.
“You would have to essentially digitally link the ticket to the buyer … to prevent it from being resold,” Bednar said.
Proposed new laws in the UK will ban the resale of tickets above face value. Advocates say it will level the playing field for fans, but resale companies say the move will encourage a black market.
Other governments have tried to legally block resale, such as in the UK, where politicians recently proposed laws this will prohibit resellers from selling tickets to all types of events for more than face value. But this control is also made possible in part by ticketing companies operating resale platforms.
And while more extreme measures could help, Bednar said it's important to consider whether it could make buying movie tickets more “draconian” or make it harder for casual fans to give a ticket to a friend or get rid of it if they simply can't make it.
After weeks of searching, Hasanali finally received six face value tickets to the Jan. 1 screening for his family and said he's looking forward to seeing the event together.
For fans still hoping to see the finale in person, Cineplex says a very limited number of tickets will still be available. only available in theater. While this is not a theatrical performance, several bars and restaurants from Toronto to Vancouver are also hosting viewing parties for the episode.
