The sci-fi film "Dune", directed by Dennis Villeneuve, premiered in the United States last weekend and grossed $40.1 million, breaking the previous expectation of $30 million to $35 million and easily winning the North American box office.
The film received critical acclaim from audiences and critics alike, receiving an 82% new rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Dune set a new record for Warner Bros. for the best three days since the release of Godzilla vs. King Kong in April. But given the film's $165 million production cost, is Dune good enough for Warner Bros. to approve its sequel plans? Only time will tell.
Meanwhile, Wes Anderson's latest independent film, The French Pie, is a hit on the professional film market, with the highest average screen box office of any large and small film in 2021. "The French Pie" ranked ninth at the box office with $1.3 million. The film was shown in only 52 theaters, with an average revenue of $25,000 per screen, and performed well in literary films. The film has not yet been released internationally.
74% Rotten Tomatoes
In second place was Moonlight Panic: Killing, which grossed $14.5 million, down 70.7 percent from 49.4 million in the first weekend. To date, the R-rated horror film has grossed $73.1 million in North America and $90.9 million worldwide.
"007: No Time to Die" ranked third with $11.9 million, down 50% year-on-year. With a cumulative total of $120 million in North America and a total global box office of $526 million, it is the only two Hollywood films this year that have grossed more than $500 million worldwide (the other being Fast and Furious 9). "007: No Time to Die" will be released in China this Friday.
Venom 2 ranked fourth with $9.1 million, $182 million in North America and $352 million worldwide.
In fifth place was last week's new animated film, "Heavenly Spirit Machine," which grossed just $7.3 million in its first week (previously estimated at $10 million) and grossed $17.3 million worldwide. The movie received an 80% latest rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
New film this weekend
Soho Horror Night (Released in the United States on October 29)
A young girl (Tomasin Mackenzie) who is passionate about fashion design. With the ability to travel through time, she mysteriously entered the 1960s, where she met her idol, a dazzling desire to become a singer (Anya Taylor Joy). But the London of that era was not what it represented, and time seemed to fall apart with gloomy consequences.
"Relief" (released in the United States on October 29)
Directed by Amy Koppelman
Adapted from the novel of the same name, it tells the story of a new mother played by Seyfried and a children's book author Julie, who escapes to the bright world of Cleora color she created to escape the darkness caused by postpartum depression.
(Edit: RICa)