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Timothee Chalamet stars as Paul Atreides in Denis Villeneuve’s “Dune: Half Two.”
Warner Bros. | Legendary Leisure
“The arrival of ‘Dune: Half Two’ is coming at some extent the place the business is in search of that momentum igniting blockbuster,” stated Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore.
To date in 2024, no movie has generated greater than $100 million in receipts. Whereas shock hits like Sony’s “Anybody However You” alongside Paramount’s “Imply Women” and “Bob Marley: One Love” have helped fill cinemas, the field workplace had few blockbuster holdovers from the vacations and restricted new choices within the new 12 months.
Final 12 months, the primary quarter was buoyed by $263 million in ticket gross sales from Disney’s “Avatar: The Method of Water,” which hit theaters in December of the earlier 12 months. Equally, 2022 had greater than $200 million in residual gross sales from Sony and Marvel’s 2021 hit “Spider-Man: No Method House.”
“We’re used to those peaks and valleys,” stated Invoice Barstow, who runs ACX Cinemas, a theater chain with six places in 5 states. “And positively, there is no thriller to the final three years of the pandemic after which strikes and all of the stuff that sort of kicks us. However, then alongside comes one thing like ‘Dune.'”
High ten motion pictures titles to date in 2024
- “Wonka” (Warner Bros.) — $81.3 million
- “Imply Women” (Paramount) — $72.1 million
- “Bob Marley: One Love” (Paramount) — $71.1 million
- “Migration” (Common) — $66.2 million
- “The Beekeeper” (Amazon MGM) — $63.1 million
- “Anybody However You” (Sony) — $62.1 million
- “Aquaman and the Misplaced Kingdom” (Warner Bros.) — $47.6 million
- “Argylle” (Common) — $41.6 million
- “Madame Net” (Sony) — $35.3 million
- “Night time Swim” (Common) — $31.8 million
Supply: Comscore
“It has been a protracted slog of a winter on the field workplace, unsurprisingly so after quite a few strike-induced delays crushed an already underwhelming studio slate in latest months,” stated Shawn Robbins, chief analyst at BoxOffice.com. “‘Dune: Half Two’ represents the flip of the tide.”
Whereas Warner Bros. is projecting a conservative $65 million debut for the a lot anticipated sci-fi sequel, field workplace analysts foresee a haul between $70 million and $80 million. Particularly, as moviegoers are prone to gravitate towards premium massive format screenings, that are pricier than common tickets.
“We have had bought out ‘See It First’ showings in all of our IMAX places and visitor response is already extraordinarily constructive,” stated Jeff Whipple, vice chairman of promoting, advertising and public relations at Larry H. Miller Megaplex Theatres, which operates 15 places, predominately in Utah.
“Utah film followers know that ‘Dune: Half Two’ is an enormous film that must be skilled on the most important display potential,” he famous, including that Megaplex places are seeing robust superior ticket gross sales for premium auditoriums like IMAX, Dolby Atmos and D-Field movement screens.
The draw of those greater priced tickets is main some exhibitors to suppose the movie might outperform projections.
“I feel Warner Bros. has been conservative,” stated Tim Handren, CEO at Santikos Leisure, a regional cinema chain with 27 theaters in eight states. “Warner Bros. has finished an absolute incredible job advertising this film.”
“They’re geniuses in advertising,” he added. “They only know find out how to construct consciousness.”
The movie’s forged has been closely selling the movie for weeks, collaborating in junkets, video interviews and showing on late evening exhibits. Even the celebs’ premiere outfits have been making headlines, driving extra consciousness of the movie’s launch.
Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya attend the World Premiere of “Dune: Half Two” in Leicester Sq. on February 15, 2024 in London, England.
Gareth Cattermole | Getty Photos Leisure | Getty Photos
Alongside business veterans like Christopher Walken, Stellan Skarsgard, Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin and Dave Bautista, “Dune: Half Two” options 4 of the most important younger stars in Hollywood — Zendaya, Timothee Chalamet, Florence Pugh and Austin Butler.
Early ticket gross sales for the weekend are forward of Universal’s “Oppenheimer,” which opened at $82.4 million, however under “Jurassic World Dominion,” which debuted at round $145 million, in accordance with knowledge from Fandango.
Cinema operators, whereas targeted on the movie’s opening weekend haul, are, maybe, extra within the longevity of “Dune: Half Two” on the field workplace.
Whereas there are a selection of recent releases in March, which can assist pad the general home field workplace haul, “April just isn’t almost as robust,” Handren identified.
Extremely anticipated movie openings of 2024
March
- “Dune: Half Two” (March 1)
- “Imaginary” (March 8)
- “Kung Fu Panda 4” (March 8)
- “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire” (March 29)
April
- “The First Omen” (April 5)
- “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (April 12)
Could
- “The Fall Man” (Could 3)
- “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” (Could 10)
- “Imaginary Mates” (Could 17)
- “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” (Could 24)
- “The Garfield Film” (Could 24)
Titles like “Dune: Half Two” — which have an actual shot at remaining in theaters with restricted drops in ticket gross sales week after week — will help preserve the field workplace afloat till the summer time film season begins in early Could.
The movie additionally presents exhibitors an opportunity to tease upcoming motion pictures to audiences with these all-too-familiar previews earlier than the movie begins.
“I feel ‘Dune’ opens up the complete world for us for summer time,” Barstow stated.
Disclosure: Comcast is the dad or mum firm of NBCUniversal and CNBC.
