Dune 2 Nears Huge Box Office Milestone, Passes First Movie's Entire Run After 10 Days

Dune: Part II is nearing another box office milestone. After another weekend in theaters, the sci-fi film has reached $494.7 million worldwide, and should climb past $500 million today, March 18.

This includes $208 million from North America and $289.4 million from international markets, according to a box office report from Variety. Obviously it's still very early for 2024, but Dune: Part II is also the highest-grossing movie of 2024 so far both in North America and worldwide. No. 2 so far in 2024 is Kung Fu Panda 4 ($176.5 million) followed by Bob Marley: One Love ($169.2 million) at No. 3.

Dune: Part II needed only 10 days on the market to surpass the entire North American box office run of the first movie, which was $108 million. Of course, a comparison to the original is not fair given the first movie was released simultaneously in theaters and on Max (then known as HBO Max) due to the pandemic. The 2021 Dune movie ended its theatrical run with $433 million worldwide.

1984's Dune, meanwhile, from director David Lynch, made close to $31 million at the box office, not adjusted for inflation.

Dune: Part II was a hugely expensive movie. It reportedly had a production budget of $190 million, while another $100 million was spent on promotional activities to boost its entire cost to close to $300 million. The biggest markets for Dune: Part II beyond the US are China ($36 million) and the UK ($32.8 million).

Looking ahead, director Denis Villeneuve has said he has ideas for Dune: Part III but if he makes it, the film won't be his next project. In addition to a potential third Dune film, Warner Bros. Discovery is producing a Dune TV series. In the world of video games, Dune: Awakening is on the way.