‘Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2’ Is Fall’s Most Anticipated Movie (Survey) 

Moviegoers are eagerly anticipating Katniss Everdeen’s last act.

“The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 2,” the final film in the popular series, is the most anticipated fall movie, according to a recent survey by Fandango. That distinction comes with a big caveat. The online ticketer polled 1,000 moviegoers on the films they’re most excited to see between September and November, but that excluded a certain blockbuster-to-be because “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” doesn’t hit theaters until December.

The two most recent “Hunger Games” sequels topped Fandango’s list of most anticipated fall releases, making this the third consecutive year it’s topped charts. The first “Hunger Games” was released in March of 2012.

The last “Hunger Games” attracted 36% of the vote. The second and third most anticipated films were the latest James Bond mission, “Spectre,” which 26% of respondents picked, and the Ridley Scott and Matt Damon collaboration, “The Martian,” with 11%. The Steven Spielberg drama “Bridge of Spies” and Johnny Depp’s villainous turn as Whitey Bulger in “Black Mass” round out the top five, with 10% and 9%, respectively.

In the realm of family film’s, Pixar’s “The Good Dinosaur” topped all comers with 26% of voters picking it as the most anticipated, followed by the fantasy adventure “Pan” with 22%, and the R.L. Stine adaptation “Goosebumps” with 19%.

Horror fans are looking forward to M. Night Shyamalan’s return to the genre that made him famous with “The Sixth Sense.” In a close race, his creepy chiller “The Visit” topped the list of most anticipated horror films with 24%, followed by Daniel Radcliffe’s spin on Mary Shelley (23%) with “Victor Frankenstein” and “Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension” (18%).

Survey respondents also did a little Oscar prognosticating. Depp, who is nearly unrecognizable as “Black Mass” notorious gangster Whitey Bulger, was voted most likely to win an Academy Award for best actor, followed by “Bridge of Spies” star Tom Hanks as a heroic lawyer and “Steve Jobs” leading man Michael Fassbender as the prickly Apple co-founder. Were Depp to win, it would be his first Oscar after three previous nominations for “Sweeney Todd,” “Finding Neverland” and “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.”

Voters predicted that best actress honors will flow to Julia Roberts for her work as a grieving mother in “Secret in Their Eyes,” followed by Cate Blanchett’s turn as the object of Rooney Mara’s affection in “Carol” and Emily Blunt’s steely drug enforcement officer in “Sicario.”

Of course, other potential Oscar-bait performances such as Will Smith in “Concussion” and Jennifer Lawrence in “Joy” don’t hit theaters until December, meaning that Depp and Roberts might be wise to hold off on drafting their acceptance speeches.

1. “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 2”: 36%

Actor in a fall movie most likely to get an Oscar nod:

Actor in a Fall Movie Most Likely to Get an Oscar Nod:

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‘Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2’ Is Fall’s Most Anticipated Movie

No sh*t Sherlock. It’s a popular franchise and it’s the last film.

I am so over this series already, they shouldn’t of split the last book in two.

Can’t wait for this movie! Jennifer Lawrence ROCKS.

No it isn’t. Whether Fandango likes it or not, the next Star Wars movie DOES open in the autumn (known to them as “fall”). Fandango can’t arbitrarily change the earth’s rotation around the sun.

Plus these things are inflated by fangirls, so it wouldn’t surprise me if it beat star wars anyway. Though it is clear which one is more anticipated. Though it wouldn’t surprise me if Mockingjay ended up the better movie, Star Wars should do around 100 million more at the box office.

Will, you’re way off on your “Star Wars” box office estimate figuring you’re only referring to domestic. It will be a monster.

As for Fandago’s predictions based on fans’ survey responses, I’m sure “Mockingjay” will be huge as well but among which audience. Saying that it’s the most “anticipated” is absurd. It has to be broken down by age and given the likelihood that “adults” have zero interest in this mind-numbingly boring series of YA movies or surveys about it, only teens are viewing it as the most anticipated.

The pedant in me wants to agree, but they did list three months – September through November, and in moviegoing terms December is usually its own thing with carryover through awards season. Memorial Day has long kicked off ‘Summer’ at the box office even though the calendar says it’s technically a month away – it has to do with school and vacation schedules.