Groupon teams with Lionsgate for movie tix

Lionsgate is offering $6 tickets to "Lincoln Lawyer" through Groupon

In an interesting first for Groupon, the group buying company is offering a deal for half off tickets to the new Matthew McConaughey film "The Lincoln Lawyer," which opens this Friday. The deal is being offered through Fandango--which is an interesting move, considering earlier this month, LivingSocial offered a Fandango deal of $9 for two tickets, which met with enthusiastic reception. 

Of course, what makes the Groupon deal so interesting is that Fandango isn't the merchant offering the deal--Lionsgate is the merchant, marking the first time a major motion picture company has partnered with Groupon to offer a deal. Fandango will act as the go-between, allowing customers to enter the discount code they receive after purchasing the deal, in order to get their tickets. The two-day promotion will end on March 17.

"We believe this agreement is the shape of things to come as Hollywood studios discover a natural alliance with smart, entrepreneurial digital partners in bringing our content to consumers with cutting edge promotional campaigns that harness the unprecedented reach of the online world," said Lionsgate Vice Chairman Michael Burns in a prepared statement. "We're delighted that our 'Lincoln Lawyer' partner, Tom Rosenberg at Lakeshore, shared our vision in helping us create this historic first."

The film features McConaughey as Mick Haller, a Los Angeles-based criminal defense lawyer who typically handles small-time petty criminals until he lands the case of a rich Beverly Hills playboy played by Ryan Phillippe who's accused of attempted murder. As is usually the case for courtroom dramas, the case is not what it seems. Bum bum BUM!

The deal, along with the movie trailer and an exclusive Groupon interview with Matthew McConaughey, will be distributed among Groupon's nearly 10,000 affiliate partners to reach some 60 million subscribers. True to form, Groupon's interview with McConaughey features questions about the campaign trail leading up to his being named the Sexiest Man Alive in 2005, as well as what kinds of rocks he likes to pick up to keep in shape.

Image source: Groupon.com