Dune: Part 2 Rocks Worldwide Box Office With $178+ Million Opening Weekend

Directed by Denis Villeneuve, the epic sci-fi crushed industry projections to gross a solid $81.5 million (675 crores) in North America in the first weekend which is almost double the first movie's $41 million back in 2021 when the movie opened simultaneously in theatres and HBO Max.

Dune 2 could be an IMAX phenomenon going forward as around 23% of the total domestic opening weekend gross came from IMAX showing at $18.5 million (153 crores) where ticket rates are higher than regular prices. It is also the biggest opening for both, director Denis Villeneuve and actor Timothée Chalamet.

Overseas, the movie grossed a mighty $97 million (805 crores) on a 5-day opening weekend over 71 markets, and allied to domestic grosses, the sequel hit $178.5 million (1480 crores) worldwide. The movie is due to open in China (March 8), and Japan (March 15).

The UK was the biggest contributor outside North America with $11.8 million, followed by France ($9.6M), Germany ($9.1M), South Korea ($6.9M), and Australia ($6M). In India, Dune 2 has a decent start, grossing around $1.6 million (13.50 crores) over a 3-day opening weekend, plus a Thursday premiere.

Stay tuned...