Dune spices up the box office in France with an impressive first-day debut

Those hoping to see great things for Dune at the box office rejoice! The numbers are in for the Denis Villeneuve-directed adaptation of Frank Herbert’s science-fiction classic, and they’ve got some spice! According to analysts, Dune earned $1.55 million during its first day in France on Wednesday (including Tuesday night previews). A reported total of 181,316 movie fans showed up for premium screenings of the film. Even the first 2 p.m. screening in Paris recorded record numbers and set a new benchmark for the pandemic.

Dune has screened at several events so far, including the Venice Film Festival, the Deauville American Film Festival, as well as special viewing at Paris’ Grand Rex cinema. In addition to receiving a seven-minute standing ovation in Venice, and critics hailing the movie as a must-see in theaters, Dune has quickly become the talk of Tinseltown for weeks on end.

We’ve been lucky enough to have two of our star reviewers get spicy with the film over the past couple of weeks, including JimmyO and Chris Bumbray. Jimmy gave Villeneuve’s sci-fi epic a 10 out of 10, saying “Dune is a modern masterclass in filmmaking.” Meanwhile, Bumbray gave the film a 9 out of 10, saying that if the movie does not get a sequel, “it’ll be one of the biggest tragedies in modern film.” That’s very high praise on both accounts, and you can bet I’ll be braving movie theaters for this one.

We’ll be watching the box office numbers for Dune as they continue to roll out. It’s rare to get a science-fiction film with this much care paid to the source material, and it would be a real shame if a low box office turn-out keeps Villeneuve from completing his vision with a second film. If you’re interested, and able, be sure to see Dune on the big screen when it comes out.

Dune opens in theaters and goes day-and-date on HBO Max on October 22, 2021.