Associated Press: Starbucks Corp. is moving into the movie-promotion business, partnering with the film studio Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. to market the upcoming film “Akeelah and the Bee.”
The agreement marks the first film deal for Starbucks, which has been percolating into the entertainment industry by distributing music at many of its more than 10,000 coffee shops worldwide.
Beginning in early April, Starbucks employees, who get a sneak peek at the film, will wear lanyards with “Akeelah” buzz words in the hope of sparking conversations about the movie, billed as the story of an 11-year-old girl from inner-city Los Angeles who makes it to a national spelling bee.
“Akeelah,” which stars Laurence Fishburne, Angela Bassett and young Keke Palmer, opens April 28 in more than 2,000 theaters.
