UPDATE: Thanks to a robust Sunday, Dune Part Two actually came up higher than projected with $82.5M. But you can see the original figures below.
Dune Part Two might be set on the desert planet of Arrakis, but the film proved to be a welcome oasis to distributors with the biggest opening of 2024 so far. This sequel kicked up $81.5 million, dominating the large format screens which is how most people wanted to experience it. Large format screenings were sold out in the big cities. Not nearly as many tickets were sold for standard theaters.
And while Warner Bros. might have made a ton of money due to premium ticket sales, there’s no telling how much they made from the sales of the infamous popcorn bucket sold at AMC outlets. These were even parodied on Saturday Night Live a few weeks ago. These buckets have reportedly sold out at all locations and are selling for a huge markup on the secondary market:
But is the movie as… ahem, satisfying as the popcorn bucket? It would appear so. Dune Part Two earned an A CinemaScore, just slightly higher than the first Dune‘s A-. Those polled by PostTrak gave five out of five stars. Critics and audiences are aligned for once. Its Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score is 94% and its audience score is at 95%.
Outside of the U.S., Dune Part Two generated an additional $97M, bringing its global total to $178.5M.
This is definitely a case of one movie “sucking up the oxygen” at the cinema. Almost everyone who went to the multiplex did so to see Dune Part Two. Does anyone even care how the other movies did?
Bob Marley: One Love took the runner-up spot, but only earned in the single digits. Making $7.43M this weekend, its domestic total now sits at $82.77M.
Two faith-based movies also hit the Top Five. Last week’s new entry Ordinary Angels remained in the #3 spot. last week’s #2, Demon Slayer Kimetsu no Yaiba -To the Hashira Training, fell out of the Top Five entirely.
In its sophomore frame, Ordinary Angels took in an additional $3.85M to bring its total to $12.5M.
Lower on the list is the Fathom Events release of The Chosen, Season 4, Episodes 7-8. This series was created by Angel Studios and previous seasons are available on multiple streaming platforms including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Peacock. But the faithful have been turning out for these theatrical pre-releases, although with diminishing results for each subsequent issue. But for a limited Fathom release, The Chosen, S4, E7-8‘s 3.9M isn’t bad.
This year’s theatrical punching bag, Madame Web, managed to make enough in its third weekend to stay in the Top Five. Although as stated, it was a low bar as nearly everyone was only out to see Dune Part Two.
Speaking of Saturday Night Live, co-star Sydney Sweeney hosted this weekend and poked fun at Madame Web‘s poor performance during her monologue.
Even so, it outperformed The Chosen, generating an additional $3.2M, bringing its domestic total to $40.4M.
As mentioned, Sony/Crunchyroll’s Demon Slayer Kimetsu no Yaiba -To the Hashira Training has fallen out of the Top Five.
Check out the Top Five in order below:
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- Dune Part Two (Legendary/ Warner Bros.) – 3-day $81.5M/ Wk 1
- Bob Marley: One Love (Paramount) – 3-day $7.43M/ Total $82.77M/ Wk 3
- Ordinary Angels (Lionsgate) – 3-day $3.85M)/ Total $12.5M/ Wk 2
- Madame Web (Sony) – 3-day $3.2M/ Total $40.4M/ Wk 3
- The Chosen, Season 4, Ep. 7-8 (Fathom) – 3-day $3.9M/ Wk 1
It’s unclear how well Dune Part Two will hold up as it’s not exactly a four-quadrant attraction. Could everyone who wanted to see it have already done so?
On the other hand, it doesn’t face much competition next weekend. The only movies opening are the horror movie Imaginary about a young girl’s killer teddy bear, and Kung Fu Panda 4, which Universal has not been promoting at all.
Does that mean that Dune Part Two will continue to reign? Check back and find out!
