Dune 2 Just Gave The Box Office Its Biggest Boost Since Barbenheimer
"Dune: Part Two" proved to be just what the box office needed. The much-anticipated sequel to 2021's "Dune" generated much interest from moviegoers all over the world. So much so that we're now looking at the biggest theatrical event in the U.S. since "Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour" in October of last year, and the biggest boost to ticket sales that theaters have seen since the Barbenheimer phenomenon last summer. Safe to say, Legendary and Warner Bros. have another hit on their hands.
Director Denis Villeneuve's "Dune" sequel pulled in a bigger-than-expected $82.5 million domestically over the weekend to go with $100 million internationally for a global debut of $182.5 million. It was far and away the number one movie over the weekend, with "Bob Marley: One Love" ($7.4 million) landing at a distant second. But that hardly mattered as the adaptation of Frank Herbert's beloved science fiction novel had the biggest domestic rollout since Taylor Swift's blockbuster "The Eras Tour" opened to $93 million last October. So yes, it's been nearly five months since we've had a legitimately big box office opening for any single film.
More impressively, "Dune: Part Two" notched the biggest level of global interest in moviegoing since "Barbie" and "Oppenheimer" shattered box office records when the dueling summer tentpoles opened to $344 million and $176 million globally, respectively, in July 2023. It's also worth pointing out that Villeneuve's sequel opened to a nearly identical amount as Christopher Nolan's "Oppenheimer," which has since pulled in a whopping $960 million worldwide and was nominated for a boatload of Oscars this year, including Best Picture. This is not to say it's an apples-to-apples situation, but there are commonalities between the two films. This all bodes well for this massive-scale sci-fi epic.
Dune: Part Two is the box office messiah we needed
To say the very least of it, this was the win that theaters sorely needed. Before "Dune 2" opened, the box office was down 20% compared to this time last year. The sequel helped close that gap and, given the film's A CinemaScore and great reviews from critics (you can read /Film's review right here), it looks to have long legs in the coming weeks. Especially since we don't have another live-action blockbuster coming down the pipeline until "Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire" on March 22. Timothee Chalamet's Paul Atreides has a clear path to lead us to box office glory for weeks to come.
The first "Dune" opened to $41 million back in 2021 when the pandemic was a larger factor. The sequel effectively doubled that number, which is hugely impressive. It's not quite as big of a jump as "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse" ($35 million opening) to "Across the Spider-Verse" ($120 million opening), but it's damn impressive. The first movie debuted on HBO Max the same day that it opened in theaters in North America, which certainly impacted ticket sales at the time. But it's clear that audiences found the movie on their own and that they wanted to experience the follow-up on the big screen.
A lot can happen between now and the end of the movie's run, but Legendary and Warner Bros. stand to make a pretty penny with this one, even with the $190 million budget. Legendary shouldered 80% of that figure, it's worth noting. At this point, it's very difficult to imagine the movie finishing its run with any less than $600 million worldwide, which would be about $200 million more than the first one made in its original run. It's a great sign for those who wish to see Villeneuve return for "Dune: Messiah." The spice must flow, as it were.
"Dune: Part Two" is in theaters now.