Fatherhood film Courageous, opening in theaters today, is this week's hottest ticket, according to ticketing website Fandango.com. The faith-based movie has more than $2 million in pre-sales, more than double that of Sherwood Pictures’ most recent film, Fireproof, which opened at $6.8 million and went on to gross more than $33.4 million at the box office.

No. 1 on the "Fandango 5" list, the Sherwood Pictures movie from Fireproof movie-making brothers Alex and Stephen Kendrick ranked above the 3-D version of The Lion King, Moneyball, Dolphin Tale and Drive, which were all recently released.

Rated PG-13 for some violence and drug content, Courageous will open in 1,126 theaters nationwide. By comparison, The Lion King opened in 2,330 theaters and Dolphin Tale opened in 3,507. Sony Pictures is expecting the film, budgeted for around $2 million, will land in the $5 million-$6 million range through Sunday, Variety reported.

Sales to stores of Courageous T-shirts are outpacing sell-in of Fireproof T-shirts at the time of the movies' release, according to Kerruso, the film's official apparel licensee. Jason Anzalone, marketing director, sees sales of such products as "a good indicator" of how the movie will perform in theaters. "Stores saw the impact of Fireproof’s message on people’s lives, and are bringing in more Courageous apparel earlier than with Fireproof in anticipation of the same kind of impact," he said. 

The three Courageous-related books, including the Tyndale House Publishers' novel of the same name by Randy Alcorn and the twin titles The Resolution for Men and The Resolution for Women (both B&H Books), have posted on the latest of CBA's Top 50 and the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association's best-seller lists.

Gift supplier DaySpring has released wall art featuring a plot device from Courageous. The Resolution, a commitment-pledge to lead and serve their families signed by the lead characters in Courageous, is available in a frame with family picture photo spot and printed prepacks for group distribution. In addition, DaySpring has brought out a Courageous-themed DayBrightener calendar with movie quotes, inspirational sayings and scriptures, and greeting cards.

Attracting large turnouts when it was screened twice during the International Christian Retail Show in Atlanta in July, Courageous—which addresses fatherhood through the lives of four police officers—is being seen as key for many Christian stores' fourth-quarter revenues.

The film has received some mostly positive early reviews. MovieGuide magazine said the movie "may do for fatherhood what Fireproof did for marriage." Additionally, Christianity Today magazine said that Courageous is (Sherwood's) most ambitious and watchable film to date.

With a message that "isn't subtle," the Orlando Sentinel called the film "often a soapy melodrama" with "moving moments—a eulogy, a father's desperate efforts to stop a carjacking. And there's more humor, toying with stereotypes, playing around with miscommunication."

Click here for more information on Courageous. No date has yet been set for the DVD release.

This article has been updated since its original publication.

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