We live in an unprecedented time of theater snack container escalation. It seems that every movie no longer simply needs to sell tickets, they need to sell merch in the theater at the same time. This has largely taken the form of increasingly elaborate popcorn buckets, but now the upcoming Disney movie Moana 2 has taken a step in a new direction. Yes, Moana 2 has a popcorn bucket, but it also has a nacho boat.
The merch lineup for Moana 2, specifically at Regal theaters, has been unveiled (via Pop Crave) and while it includes the now standard popcorn bucket, one that is shaped like a wave that Moana is communing with, one can also buy an outrigger canoe that holds nachos and I need it. Behold…
Regal unveils collectable popcorn containers, nacho boat and dome cup for ‘Moana 2.’ pic.twitter.com/I7q0WI2YNoOctober 28, 2024
I love my movie snacks but I’ll be the first to admit that movie theater nachos are never on the list. They look like the stuff that was served in my elementary school which is far from appetizing. And yet, here I am thinking I might have to eat nachos when Moana 2's release date arrives later this month because I kind of want this boat.
If nothing else this shows that the continued escalation of snack delivery mechanisms is only increasing. We’ve been neck deep in the battle of the popcorn buckets from the unintentionally hilarious Dune: Part Two bucket to the very intentionally hilarious Deadpool & Wolverine popcorn bucket. At this point, every major movie release is adding at least a popcorn bucket.
There’s also a pretty interesting drink cup for Moana 2 that adds decorative elements to the top of the cup. There’s even a more traditional popcorn bucket with the movie’s logo, but seriously who wants that? If you’re interested in this stuff at all something that just has a logo on it just isn’t good enough.
As CinemaBlend’s resident theme park expert I’ve certainly seen my share of popcorn bucket insanity. Popcorn buckets are very popular at both Disney and Universal Parks. While standing in line at Disney World is nothing new, there have sometimes been lines for popcorn buckets that are longer than the lines for the attractions.
While I have a couple of popcorn buckets, one of the big reasons I don’t collect them is that most of them would just end up sitting on a shelf collecting dust. My kids could play with a Moana nacho boat which at least would give it some life outside of the theater. And it would get used in ways that aren’t as questionable as what people are doing with that Dune popcorn bucket.
