Dune is not scheduled to hit theaters in the U.S. and the U.K. until October 21, but Denis Villeneuve's highly-anticipated sci-fi adaptation began its international rollout in several locations on Wednesday, and is off to a very strong start.
According to box office reports, the movie had taken in approx $8.5 million from 24 markets around Europe and East Asia by close of business on Thursday, and while today's figures have yet to be finalized, could now be heading towards a potential $35M - $40M opening. That obviously remains to be seen, but presales in the likes of France, Italy and Germany are said to be through the roof.
Of course, the big question is, how will Dune fare domestically? There is (understandably) a lot of uncertainly surrounding the film's box office performance, with growing concern that a sequel won't be greenlit if Part 1 doesn't prove to be at least a moderate success for Warner Bros. Villeneuve seems confident that he will get to make his follow-up, however, as it recently came to light that diminished box office returns won’t necessarily prohibit him from moving forward with a sequel - as long as the movie is a hit on HBO Max.
Do you guys plan on checking out Dune on the big screen? Drop us a comment down below, and take a look at a new featurette focusing on Hans Zimmer's score.
About The Author:
Mark Cassidy is a writer, photographer, amateur filmmaker, and Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic from Dublin, Ireland.