Lansing - Mark Housepian, dressed as Anakin Skywalker, and his wife, dressed as herself, arrived 10 hours before "Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith" began at Celebration Cinema.
"I want to name our first son Anakin, but she won't let me," he said.
The couple were joined by Housepian's brother, Matt, dressed as Obi-Wan Kenobi, and the rest of the Housepian family, but unlike the brothers, they opted out of dressing the part.
Mark said the pilgrimage to see "Star Wars" has become a family tradition and that they sat in the same seats three years ago when "Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones" was released.
The Housepians were among many fans throughout the world who flocked to theaters Wednesday night with their lightsabers and blasters for the premiere of "Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith."
General Manager Dan Boyer of Celebration Cinema, 200 E. Edgewater Blvd. in Lansing, said fans started lining up outside the theater at noon on Wednesday, and tickets for the midnight show had sold out by 3 p.m.
"We kept adding more theaters as they kept selling out," Boyer said.
Last week, Celebration had five theaters showing "Episode III" but had to add four more theaters as ticket sales increased. The nine screens were the most Celebration has ever dedicated to the same film.
Boyer said the theater sold more than 2,000 tickets for the seven 12:01 a.m. and two 12:15 a.m. showings.
Nationwide, more than 2,900 midnight screenings brought in an estimated $16.5 million, and the movie grossed a record $50 million in its first full day, according to box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations. Ticket sales totaled $158.5 million from Thursday after midnight through Sunday. Outside the theater, fans in costumes dressed as Ewoks, Yoda and, of course, the Jedi. Some costumes were elaborate, like Lansing resident and MSU alumnus Alec Lloyd's stormtrooper outfit.
Lloyd said he loves the "Star Wars" movie premieres.
"Where else can you wear a stormtrooper costume?" he said.
Lloyd said being a "Star Wars" fan is in the genes. Autumn, his wife, was dressed as Padmé, and their 7-year-old daughter Katie walked around the theater wearing her father's stormtrooper helmet.
Not all fans were decked out in proper "Star Wars" attire, but they prepared for the film in other ways.
Fan Rachel Miller's lack of a costume didn't diminish her dedication to the series. She said she watched "Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones" at least 10 times in the past few days in preparation for the premiere.
"I think I've been anticipating this one since I got out of the last one," Miller said from her theater seat. "I've been driving my husband mad."
Seeing stormtroopers parade around the theater added more to the experience for Miller and her friend Brian Wilson.
"I'm just waiting for Chewbacca to walk in," Wilson said.
Seated in the front of the theater, fan Mary Thompson said she drove three hours from Ruth, southeast of Bad Axe, to see the movie with her son. She even took the day off work on Thursday.
"I gotta sleep sometime," she said.
Cheers erupted as the lights dimmed and the signature Lucasfilm logo appeared on the silver screen, but when the lights came up after the movie, some fans had mixed reactions.
Williamston resident Nick Gorden said he liked "Episode III" but was still a little disappointed.
"I think they did an OK job," he said. "I don't think it lived up to the hype."
He thought the biggest problem was that Hayden Christensen wasn't a strong enough actor to portray the transformation of Anakin to Darth Vader.
David Proctor, also from Williamston, enjoyed "Revenge of the Sith" but still preferred the original episodes.
"It was better than the first two," he said. "I could tell they left out a few things, but I think, other than that, they did a good job."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
