Local Movie Theaters Prepare for Harry Potter Premiere

The Harry Potter film franchise begins its last march Thursday with the premiere of the series’ eighth and final installment, featuring the final showdown between Harry and his archnemesis, Lord Voldemort.

Goodrich Quality 16 on Jackson Road and Rave Motion Pictures 20 in Ypsilanti will show midnight screenings of the film, giving Dexter’s Potter fans the earliest possible look at Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2.

Carol Cheney, a representative of Goodrich Quality 16, said the screening at 12:01 a.m. Friday is close to selling out. There are five seats open for the 3-D screening and one seat open for the normal viewing. Tickets for 3-D movies cost $12 for adults, $9 for children, $9.25 for seniors and $9.50 for students. Tickets for the normal viewing cost $9.50 for adults, $6.50 for children, $6.75 for seniors and $7 for students.

Tickets may be purchased in advance at the box office.

Cheney said she suggests ticket holders arrive at the theater a half-hour to an hour before showtime.

Kelly Mervyn, general manager for Rave Motion Pictures in Ypsilanti, said the theater still has nine auditoriums open that will be showing the movie. In addition, theater staff will conduct costume and trivia contests with Harry Potter-themed movie prizes as well as ticket prizes for future movies.

"Last year, we were No. 1 in ticket sales for the state during the midnight premiere of Deathly Hallows: Part 1," Mervyn said. "It's usually a great time for everyone. We like to think of it as an event."

Tickets for those shows range from $14 to $7.50.

The theater also will offer a combo viewing of Deathly Hallows: Part 1 at 9 p.m., followed by Deathly Hallows: Part 2, for $20. Deathly Hallows: Part 2 will be shown in 3-D. Tickets may be purchased at the theater box office.

Deathly Hallows: Part 2, the second film adaptation of J.K. Rowling’s seventh Harry Potter book, will chronicle Harry and his friends’ fight against the wizarding world’s forces of evil.

Started in 2001, the film series’ $6.3 billion in box office receipts makes it the most lucrative movie franchise of all time. Its most recent installment, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1, grossed more than $125 million in the United States during its first weekend.