Dune: Part Three Has Already Broken A Major Odyssey Box Office Record

Published Oct 21, 2026, 11:43 AM EDT

Jeff Dodge (he/him), a published author and graduate of Western Washington University, has been a TV news editor for many years and has had the chance to interview multiple reality show stars, including Randy Jackson, Nick Cannon, Heidi Klum, Mel B and John Cena. Fun Fact: he’s been to every single Idol Live! Tour.

Dune: Part Three just broke a major record previously set by The Odyssey, which was released back in July.

The sci-fi threequel, in theaters this December, is expected to wrap up Denis Villeneuve's trilogy that began in 2021. Earlier this year, IMAX 70mm tickets went on sale in certain cities and quickly began selling out. Warner Bros. secured an exclusive IMAX window, which means other movies, like Avengers: Doomsday, cannot screen in that format for three weeks.

Now it's being reported by THR that Dune: Part Three has broken the first-day ticket presale record at BFI IMAX, the largest IMAX screen in the UK, with 33,000 tickets sold and $1.2 million (£880,000) grossed in the first 24 hours, which is $200,000 more than what The Odyssey earned ahead of its release over the summer.

Other films that have scored high presales at BFI IMAX are Dune: Part Two, Oppenheimer and Avatar: Fire and Ash.

BFI IMAX's Top 5 Presale Records	Money Grossed In First 24 Hours
1. Dune: Part Three	£880,000
2. The Odyssey	£750,000
3. Dune: Part Two	£366,000
4. Oppenheimer	£254,000
5. Avatar: Fire and Ash	£116,000

The Odyssey performed exceptionally well at BFI IMAX when it debuted on July 17. It wasn't just the presale tickets that set records there. On opening weekend, the theater grossed more in ticket sales than any other IMAX location with $296,147.

Dune: Part Three surpassing The Odyssey's 24-hour presale milestone indicates that more records could be broken this December, especially since it will have IMAX screens all to itself during its initial weeks in theaters.

The first two Dune films were box office and critical hits, with 2021's Dune earning $410.6 billion and an 83% Rotten Tomatoes score. The COVID-19 pandemic did have a major impact on Warner Bros.'s plans for the movie. Instead of releasing exclusively in theaters, Dune was also made available on HBO Max the same day.

Three years later, Dune: Part Two was released, with the added benefit of receiving an exclusive theatrical release and coming out in a post-pandemic environment. The sequel grossed $714.8 million and earned a 92% on Rotten Tomatoes, outperforming its predecessor on both fronts.

Awards shows have been kind to the Dune franchise as well, with the first installment winning Best Original Score, Best Sound, Best Film Editing, Best Cinematography, Best Production Design and Best Visual Effects at the Oscars, and Dune: Part Two taking home Best Sound and Best Visual Effects.

Time will tell if Dune: Part Three has similar success, but the upcoming film, which continues adapting Frank Herbert's bestselling and critically acclaimed book series, will see Timothée Chalamet reprise his role as Paul Atreides.

The character is now in control of the Imperium as an emperor, but Paul's behavior and decisions that got him there could come back to haunt him, with betrayals, conspiracies and enemies threatening his reign.

Chalamet's co-stars include Zendaya, Florence Pugh, Robert Pattinson, Jason Momoa, Javier Bardem, Anya Taylor-Joy, Josh Brolin, Rebecca Ferguson.

Dune: Part Three will be released in theaters on Friday, December 18, 2026.

• 

  Paul Atreides

• 

  Princess Irulan

• 

  Alia Atreides

• 

  Chani

Dune: Part Three continues the epic adaptation of Frank Herbert's sci-fi saga, this time drawing from his book Dune: Messiah.