Free Blockbuster

{{Short description|Neighborhood movie exchange nonprofit}}

{{Infobox organization

| name = Free Blockbuster

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| founded_date = {{Start date|2018}}

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| founder = Brian A Morrison

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| headquarters = Hollywood, California

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| purpose = To combat the myth of scarcity by providing free entertainment to as many people as possible.

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| website = {{URL|http://freeblockbuster.org}}

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Free Blockbuster is an initiative that promotes neighborhood movie exchanges. The initiative was started in 2019 by film enthusiasts in Los Angeles, including Brian Morrison, a former Blockbuster employee who opened the first site outside of a grocery store in Los Feliz, Los Angeles.{{Cite web|last=Farr|first=Stephanie|date=November 19, 2020|title=Free Blockbusters, with everything you'd find at a real Blockbuster, are now in Fishtown and Delco|url=https://www.inquirer.com/news/free-blockbuster-movies-fishtown-philadelphia-springfield-delco-20201119.html|access-date=May 2, 2021|website=www.inquirer.com}}{{Cite web |last=Vaziri |first=Aidin |date=March 26, 2024 |title=Bay Area Free Blockbuster kiosks encourage users to 'take a movie, leave a movie' |url=https://www.sfchronicle.com/entertainment/article/free-blockbuster-kiosks-bay-area-19368157.php |access-date=August 26, 2024 |website=San Francisco Chronicle}} Free Blockbuster stands were later installed on the east coast of the United States the following year starting with Richmond, Virginia.{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=April 21, 2021|title='Free Blockbuster' fosters local movie exchange|url=https://commonwealthtimes.org/2021/04/21/free-blockbuster-fosters-local-movie-exchange/|access-date=May 2, 2021|website=commonwealthtimes.org}} Further adoption occurred in the Philadelphia region, with the site in Fishtown becoming the eighteenth Free Blockbuster box installed in the country by November 2020. There are over 200 Free Blockbuster Boxes across the United States as of 2024.

Typically, Free Blockbuster boxes are made by upcycling abandoned newspaper distribution boxes.{{Cite web|last=Bartkowiak Jr|first=Dave|date=April 12, 2021|title=Free Blockbuster take-it-or-leave-it libraries pop up in Metro Detroit|url=https://www.clickondetroit.com/features/2021/04/12/free-blockbuster-take-it-or-leave-it-libraries-pop-up-in-metro-detroit/|access-date=May 2, 2021|website=clickondetroit.com}} They use the brand name Blockbuster on the kiosks which feature a Blockbuster logo downloadable from the Free BlockBuster website. Some inspiration was taken from Little Free Library in developing the initiative.