There’s no doubt that the film version of “The Fault in Our Stars,” an adaptation of John Green’s international bestselling novel about cancer-stricken teenagers who fall in love, will be a hit when it’s finally released in theaters Friday. The big question is: Just how huge is this movie going to be?
The film, starring Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort as the star-crossed lovers, has been a hot topic since — well, pretty much the second it was announced that the novel had been optioned for a movie, way back in January 2012. About two and a half years later, and the millions of loyal “The Fault in Our Stars” (better known as TFIOS) fans are impatiently waiting for opening night.
Proof: Movie ticket seller Fandago announced Tuesday that “The Fault in Our Stars” has officially broken the record for “the biggest pre-selling love story in the company’s 14-year history, and is also the ticket service’s biggest pre-selling drama of the year,” according to TheWrap. The previous record holder for romance movies was that 2012 Rachel McAdams-Channing Tatum flick “The Vow.”
Experts are guessing the film will gross anywhere from $35 million to $40 million on opening weekend, a very solid number for a non-action movie in the summer. Here’s a look at more numbers that could give us some clues:
Books sold: 10.7 million copies. John Green, a very humble man and social media superstar, wrote a long Tumblr post about how the book became so successful. In a nutshell: a lot of reasons, and he’s not even sure how it became a phenomenon, either. “I don’t know why people like ‘The Fault in Our Stars,’ but they do,” he said. “And they seem to like it enough to recommend it to their friends and family.”
Number of languages: 46. That includes Spanish, French, Hebrew, Dutch and more. The film is especially big in Amsterdam, which plays a big role of in the book. (Several movie scenes were shot there, as well.)
Consecutive weeks on the New York Times bestseller list: 78 on the Young Adult chart (debuted at No. 1, currently the top of the list today).
Trailer views on YouTube: 19,958,965 at the moment, and it ticks up every second.
Trailer “likes” on YouTube: 305,046 and counting, making it the most “liked” trailer in YouTube history, far surpassing the previous No. 1 trailer, “One Direction: This is Us.”
Budget: $12 million — so, compared to all those gazillion dollar blockbusters, it could easily be much more profitable.
Hours spent by fans waiting in line at the premiere: 30 — at least, the rabid ones at the Manhattan premiere on Monday. It’s only a sign of things to come.
Shailene Woodley, rising star
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Shailene Woodley, rising star
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