‘Magic Mike’ is king of online ticket sales

This post has been updated. See below for details:

“Magic Mike� is dominating online ticket sales, indicating that fans are preparing to go in groups to the male stripper movie starring Channing Tatum and Matthew McConaughey.

A spokesman for Fandango.com confirmed Tuesday that “Magic Mike� accounts for 36% of all ticket sales on the site, slightly ahead of “Brave,� which is already in theaters, at 31%.

Among other movies opening this weekend, “Ted� is a very distant second place, at 4%.

[Update, June 27, 10:22 A.M.: As of Wednesday, “Magic Mike’s� share of ticket sales on Fandango had spiked to 53%, the spokesman said. “Brave� was 17% and “Ted� 7%.]

The disparity is notable given that pre-release surveys of potential moviegoers -- known as “tracking� in the industry -- indicates that “Ted� should have a strong opening weekend. It’s expected to debut to about $40 million, compared with about $25 million for “Magic Mike.�

However, “Magic Mike� studio Warner Bros. has been encouraging women to see the movie with friends, a strategy that appears to be working based on the digital pre-sales. Moviegoers are more likely to buy tickets ahead of time when planning to go to a film with a large group.

Small groups or couples are more likely to purchase their tickets at the theater.

In some ads for “Magic Mike,� Warner Bros. tells fans to “tell your boyfriend you’re going to book club.�

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