The Force will soon be arriving at a toy store and Taco Bell near you.
In May, the merchandising and food promotion blitz for the long-awaited new "Star Wars" movie, "Episode I -- The Phantom Menace," is scheduled to open.
A battalion of toy action figures and space crafts related to the movie will go on sale three weeks before "Phantom" opens nationwide.
Lucasfilm Ltd., which is producing the movie, has licensed Hasbro Inc., Galoob Toys Inc. and Lego Group to make the toys. Promotions with Pepsi, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and Kentucky Fried Chicken are expected to blast off in May as well.
But that's about all Lucasfilm is divulging. The company, which has a history of shrouding in secrecy the plots and special effects of the "Star Wars" movies, has kept a tight lid on its merchandising and promotion campaigns for "Phantom."
Despite few details about product and food tie-ins to the movie, industry observers say "Phantom," which kicks off the second "Star Wars" trilogy, could prove to be the mother of all film merchandising attempts.
"I think there's a very good chance this will be the single biggest movie ever," said Marty Brochstein, executive editor of the Licensing Letter, a New York trade publication.
Brochstein estimated that sales from products related to "Phantom" could exceed those of the industry's largest single-movie merchandising grosser, "The Lion King." Brochstein estimated that the Disney film has sold about $1.5 billion worth of toys, mugs, T-shirts and videos since its 1994 release.
"Everybody would be mightily disappointed if ["Phantom"] didn't move over $1 billion in merchandise," he said.
Judging from the estimated $4.5 billion in product sales generated since 1977 from the first three "Star Wars" flicks, most industry watchers are confident the new take won't disappoint.
According to New York-based License magazine, "Star Wars" films have had the highest-grossing product sales of any movie series.
They are followed by merchandise sales from "The Lion King," the "Batman," "Jurassic Park" and "Star Trek" films.
"Star Wars" creator George Lucas is credited with founding the film merchandising industry.
"'Star Wars' represented the birth of modern movie licensing," Brochstein said. Lucas retained the licensing rights to products that used the "Star Wars" name. "Before that, licensing was considered ancillary income. But now in major films, particularly those that are kid-oriented, it becomes a budget item."
In addition to the toys, Sony Classical will release a "Phantom" soundtrack in May. Video games from Nintendo and Lucas Arts are expected to roll onto store shelves in May as well, and Sega is making a new arcade game based on "Phantom."
Pub Date: 3/16/99