'Dune: Part Two' Has Big Opening Weekend
by EG
Everyone expected Dune: Part Two, the sequel to the 2021 sci-fi original, to have a successful opening weekend, but the movie outperformed even the most optimistic expectations to become the first real hit movie of 2024. That's badly needed good news for a theater industry that has endured months of slow business as movie after movie has failed to connect with mass audiences. And with the help of very positive reviews, Dune: Part Two might continue to bring good news for quite some time. Read on for details.
Via Variety.
“Dune: Part Two” is riding those massive sandworms all the way to the top of box office charts.
Director Denis Villeneuve‘s big-budget sequel has collected $81.5 million in its domestic debut and delivered a mighty, necessary jolt for struggling movie theaters. It’s the biggest opening weekend of the year and the largest since last October’s Taylor Swift concert film “The Eras Tour” ($93 million).
“This is an outstanding opening for a science-fiction [sequel],” says David A. Gross of movie consulting firm Franchise Entertainment Research. “Audiences are connecting with these human, vulnerable [characters].”
Buoyed by positive reviews and glowing word-of-mouth (it has a 94% on Rotten Tomatoes and “A” CinemaScore), “Dune 2” seems to have expanded its fanbase beyond sci-fi buffs and arrived on the higher end of expectations. Heading into the weekend, Warner Bros., the studio behind the adaptation of Frank Herbert’s seminal 1965 novel, conservatively projected a $65 million start, though most box office prognosticators believed that revenues would surpass $80 million.
At the international box office, the sequel added $97 million for a massive global tally of $178 million.
“It’s really permeated the culture,” says “Dune” producer Mary Parent. “All signs point toward a long play.”
Like the first film, “Dune: Part Two” is especially popular in Imax and other premium large formats. PLFs, as they are known in the industry, contributed a massive 48% of the film’s domestic tally. Meanwhile, Imax accounted for $18.5 million of ticket sales, representing 23% of the marketshare. Demand to watch on 70mm film — the director’s format of choice — has been so high that some brave moviegoers have resorted to 3:15 a.m. showtimes. (Yes, a.m.)
“Our most iconic film locations are virtually sold out for weeks,” says Imax CEO Rich Gelfond.
With interest for those pricier PLF screens, “Part Two” looks like it’ll have the legs needed to justify its expensive return to the desert planet of Arrakis. The film, co-produced and co-financed by Legendary Entertainment, cost $190 million to produce and roughly $100 million more to promote to global audiences. Initial ticket sales for the sequel have far exceeded the original “Dune,” which opened in 2021 to $41 million while landing simultaneously on HBO Max. “Part One” ended its run with $402 million globally, making it one of the only financial wins from the studio’s pandemic-era hybrid release strategy.
The follow-up was originally slated to hit the big screen last fall, but it was delayed to spring because of the actors strike, which prevented stars Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Florence Pugh and the rest of the sprawling, buzzy cast from being able to promote the movie. On its new release date, the second “Dune” benefited from pent-up demand; there hasn’t been a blockbuster in weeks.
Get the rest of the story at Variety.