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 In a milestone for the studio,
"Dune" landed the biggest three-day tally for
Warner Bros. since the company began its
day-and-date strategy on HBO Max. "Godzilla vs.
Kong," which scored a then-pandemic record $31
million in April, previously held that
high-water mark. In the months in between,
anticipated movies such as "The Suicide Squad,"
the LeBron James sports comedy "Space Jam: A New
Legacy" and the musical adaptation of "In the
Heights" failed to live up to box office
expectations while being offered concurrently on
HBO Max.
"I'm smiling," Warner Bros. president of
domestic distribution Jeff Goldstein said on
Sunday morning. "Exhibitors are thrilled. The
best part is, fans are loving what they're
seeing. They're loving the big-screen
experience. It's been a winner of a weekend for
movie-lovers."
Directed by Oscar nominee Denis Villeneuve
("Blade Runner 2049" and "Arrival") and starring
Timothee Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac
and Josh Brolin, "Dune" is the first chapter in
an expected two-part saga. Villeneuve and the
cast of the movie have said they would like to
make the follow-up to complete the story about
warring political dynasties that clash over
access to a vital planet. The question now: will
ticket sales to start be enough to justify a
sequel?
Given the film's hefty $165 million
price tag, including the millions spent to
market it as a cinematic event, it's unclear if
box office revenues alone will be enough to
warrant a return to the desert land of Arrakis.
In that case, "Dune" will have to perform very
well on HBO Max to convince the studio it should
inject another $165 million to complete the
star-studded interplanetary tale. Legendary
Pictures co-financed "Dune" in addition to
producing and developing the movie.
In an interview with Variety this week,
WarnerMedia chair Ann Sarnoff said plans for the
sequel will be based on "the entirety of what
'Dune' can do for the company, including HBO
Max." She added, "The story in itself sets up
for a sequel. The production is so amazing and
the storytelling is so compelling that it's not
going to be judged on box office alone."
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 Avid fans of Herbert's seminal
1965 novel sought out "Dune" on the biggest
screen possible, with premium formats such as
Imax, Dolby and 4DX accounting for 50% of
domestic ticket sales. Imax alone contributed $9
million, representing 22.5% of the market share,
marking the company's largest opening weekend
since the pandemic. Also new to
theaters this weekend, Disney's animated
adventure "Ron's Gone Wrong" tanked with $7.3
million from 3,560 cinemas in North America. The
family movie, centering on socially awkward
middle schooler Barney and his malfunctioning
robot friend (Zach Galifianakis), has been well
received by audiences (it has an "A" CinemaScore),
which could be a promising sign for its
theatrical run. Despite playing only in
theaters, "Ron's Gone Wrong" placed fifth on box
office charts behind holdover titles "Halloween
Kills," James Bond entry "No Time to Die" and
comic book adaptation "Venom: Let There Be
Carnage."
In a distant second place, Universal's slasher
sequel "Halloween Kill" collected $14 million in
its second weekend in theaters, plummeting 71%
from its opening. It has generated $73 million
in North America to date, a win for the $20
million-budgeted horror film. Already, the
studio has announced that franchise star Jamie
Lee Curtis will return for the follow-up
"Halloween Ends," scheduled for Oct. 14, 2022.
MGM's "No Time to Die" landed at No. 3 with
$11.8 million, boosting its domestic total to
$120 million. Sony's "Venom" sequel secured
forth place, bringing in $9.1 million between
Friday and Sunday. After four weeks, the
anti-hero adventure, starring Tom Hardy, has
made $181 million.
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