15 Head-Scratching Popcorn Buckets That Were Sold At Movie Theaters

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Movies and popcorn are like peanut butter and jelly — they simply belong together. The simple notion of grabbing a bucket of popcorn at the movie theater, though, isn't quite so simple anymore, since movie studios started selling complex — sometimes downright eye-popping — collectible popcorn buckets.

Theme parks began offering reusable popcorn containers in the 1990s, but those early ones were simply plastic buckets with movie images and characters printed on them. Disney, for example, started out in the early '90s with simple plastic containers that had lids, handles, and images of Mickey Mouse and his animated pals. But, as the years passed, the popcorn holders got more elaborate, being molded to look like full-body versions of different characters, like Dumbo and Sulley from "Monsters, Inc." You might think that these contraptions would be difficult to clean. Hand washing is the way to keep your bucket clean.

Cinemas eventually picked up on the idea of promotional popcorn containers, and a theater bucket frenzy took off in earnest in 2019 with the release of an R2-D2 popcorn holder, offered by AMC Theatres for the debut of "The Rise of Skywalker." The three-dimensional mini R2-D2 replica retailed at about $50 and sold out completely. The bucket mania had begun.

Since then, competition has become a bit fierce among film companies, and a host of collectible popcorn buckets has hit theater shelves — some of them eyebrow-raising, to say the least, and others rather awe-inspiring. Many of these collectible containers aren't exactly designed to efficiently hold popcorn — but that hasn't stopped aficionados from paying top dollar to get hold of them.

A commemorative tub unveiled for the release of  "Fantastic Four: First Steps" wasn't just crazy detailed — seriously, look at Galactus' face — but it also set a Guinness World Record for being the world's largest commercially available popcorn container. The bucket holds 2.37 gallons — who needs refills when you're set for the foreseeable future? — and is 17.5 inches tall and 20 inches wide with light-up LED eyes.

This "Dune: Part 2" popcorn container from AMC Theatres became famous for all the wrong reasons (without being graphic, let's just say that people got creative). The infamous snack holder even got its own sketch on "Saturday Night Live."

Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman aren't ones to pass up a joke, and the "Deadpool & Wolverine" actors rode the waves of chaos created by that disastrous "Dune" bucket by creating their own spoof version — with Wolverine's gaping-open mouth and tongue in place of the sandworm opening. 

"Barbie the Movie" shattered myriad box office records and spawned tons of merch, among which, unsurprisingly, were collectible popcorn containers. Fans got salty, though, (pun intended) when they saw the price tag on the uber-blockbuster's commemorative tub shaped like Barbie's pink convertible — a whopping $64.99 plus tax.

It doesn't get much ghastlier than the "M3GAN 2.0" commemorative popcorn bucket from AMC Theatres, complete with a detachable face to show the murderous doll's mechanical underpinnings. Popcorn is eaten from the back of the doll's head, completing the creepy package.

One of the popcorn buckets created for "Alien: Romulus" was an oblong alien head sold by Cinemark, and, though cool-looking, the creepy skull shape makes it unstable and difficult to put popcorn in or eat from. A concealed handle lets you grasp and hold up the tub, and popcorn is removed from the awkwardly shaped cavity via a narrow hatch that's difficult to pull a fistful of popcorn through without spillage. If you want to eat popcorn without getting your hands greasy, therefore, this hard-to-handle vessel isn't the one to use.

Simply being a cool-looking popcorn holder is no longer enough in the battle of the buckets, and merch makers have been going super-high tech in creating containers for new film releases. For "Gladiator II," a tub shaped like the Roman Colosseum doesn't merely look like a detailed replica — it also has augmented reality features, and scanning a QR code makes fighting gladiators and spectators appear in the bucket — via your phone, of course. While it's just as over the top as many collector tubs, unlike most, this one's shape at least makes it functional for holding popcorn.

If you're among the millions who acquired a healthy fear of sharks — and the ocean in general — after watching "Jaws," you may want to think twice about this collectible popcorn tub from Alamo Drafthouse. It'll hold your popcorn, sure enough — but you'll have to put your hand right into that shark's wide-open, tooth-filled mouth each time you grab a handful.

If you've ever dreamt of a hands-free popcorn bucket, the one created for the release of "Despicable Me 4" is for you. Designed to look like a baby carrier, the wearable holder can be slipped on like a backwards backpack to securely snug your popcorn to your chest while keeping your hands at liberty — you could even eat your popcorn double-fisted if you wanted. Bonus: There's a spot for extra snack storage, so you can stash a Snickers, the world's best-selling chocolate bar, to eat with your popcorn.

This DeLorean popcorn holder, created to commemorate the 40th anniversary re-release of "Back to the Future," deserves a spot in any article talking about collectible popcorn tubs — simply because it's "BttF" merch. Granted, like so many of its ilk, it doesn't hold a lot of popcorn, but it's just a seriously cool nod to one of cinema's most epic film franchises — and it lights up, so there's that.

Who wouldn't want to own an iconic piece of the Marvel universe like Thor's hammer? This detailed replica was made to commemorate the release of "Thor: Love and Thunder" — though how one can eat popcorn from it with any degree of success, we don't know. From the long, balance-thwarting handle to its teetering placement on its rock base, snacking with it looks challenging, to say the least.

Speaking of the Marvel Universe, this Captain America shield popcorn bucket, released for "Captain America: Brave New World," has quite an innovative design. Behind the realistic-looking shield replica, there's a collapsible bucket that can be compressed and hidden when you just want a merch display and not a functional popcorn tub.

It seems this "Blue Beetle" container may deserve a "most incommodious" award in terms of actually facilitating popcorn munchage. The wings spread apart to give access to the popcorn cavity, but it looks like spills galore are waiting to happen with this awkward, shallow bowl. On the other hand, a carry strap makes it portable, and the wing closure does help keep your popcorn clean and safe — so, pluses and minuses to be considered.

This 20-sided dice popcorn holder from AMC Theatres was created for the release of "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves." We can't say whether any D&D enthusiasts have actually tried gameplay with this oversized die, but many have been using it to hold their actual game dice rather than popcorn.

The Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans holiday release "Red One" centers around a rescue mission to recover a kidnapped Santa Claus. The snow globe-shaped, battery-operated, remote-controlled collectible popcorn holder created for the film, and sold by Regal Theatres, almost outshines the movie's muscular stars, though, flashing red and green in a brilliant display at the push of a button.