'Dune: Part Three' Is Already Outselling 'The Odyssey' as Presales Climb

Holiday box office battles usually take shape in the final weeks before release. This year, the fight has been brewing for months. Ticket sales for ‘Dune: Part Three‘ have been growing steadily since tickets first went on sale, and the latest numbers suggest the trilogy finale could become a major event.

Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi saga has built its reputation on large-format spectacle, and that appeal is now showing up in advance sales. With the film still weeks away, tracking figures are already being compared with some of the biggest hits of the year. That puts the movie in rare company before a single public screening has taken place.

According to box office tracking, ‘Dune: Part Three’ has crossed $25 million in domestic presales with 48 days to go before its release. Pre-release sales are reportedly running ahead of where Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey’ stood at the same point. Tracking suggests that pace could support a domestic debut of $120 million or more, though that remains a projection.

The comparison matters because ‘The Odyssey’ went on to open with $124.5 million domestically in July, according to Box Office Pro and The Hollywood Reporter. That was Nolan’s biggest domestic debut since ‘The Dark Knight Rises’, and it helped revive a sluggish summer. If ‘Dune: Part Three’ tracks anywhere near that level, it would be a major result for a December release.

DUNE: PART THREE crossed the $25M mark in pre-sales at the domestic box office, 48 days before its release. Pre-release sales are better than THE ODYSSEY, making possible a $120M+ domestic debut. https://t.co/oG3QLFpLlp
— Global Box Office (@GlobalBoxOffice) October 31, 2026

The momentum has been building for a while. Earlier tracking reported that the film generated about $10 million in advance sales during its first day of wider presales, a franchise best, and that figure pointed toward a possible opening above $100 million. That would make it the first film in the trilogy to reach that mark in its opening weekend.

Premium formats are a big part of the story. Reports say IMAX 70mm tickets have sold out within minutes, and the film has set a first-day presale record at London’s BFI IMAX, with 33,000 tickets sold in the first 24 hours. According to Screen Rant, that outpaced ‘The Odyssey’ at the same venue, and The Hollywood Reporter has tied the record to the film’s exclusive IMAX window in its early weeks.

The film opens in North America on December 18, with some international markets starting on December 16. It shares that date with Marvel’s ‘Avengers: Doomsday’, a head-to-head clash that fans have nicknamed “Dunesday.” Early presale data suggests ‘Doomsday’ leads in raw ticket volume, with one tracker saying it’s outselling ‘Dune: Part Three’ by between 3.2-to-1 and 4-to-1.

By contrast, analysis suggests ‘Dune: Part Three’ leads in high-margin IMAX 70mm sales. Box Office Pro has asked whether the industry could see its first-ever $400 million domestic opening weekend, calling it far from guaranteed but definitely in play. Collider noted that a record weekend earlier this year was driven by ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’, which opened to $360 million.

Story-wise, the film is based on Frank Herbert’s novel ‘Dune Messiah’ and picks up 17 years after the events of ‘Dune: Part Two’. Timothée Chalamet returns as Paul Atreides, alongside Zendaya as Chani, Florence Pugh as Princess Irulan, Rebecca Ferguson, Javier Bardem and Josh Brolin. Newcomers include Anya Taylor-Joy as Alia and Robert Pattinson as Scytale, and Jason Momoa and Charlotte Rampling are part of the cast as well.

It’s also the shortest film in the trilogy, with a reported runtime of 2 hours and 20 minutes. By comparison, the first film runs 2 hours and 35 minutes, and ‘Part Two’ runs 2 hours and 46 minutes. The movie was shot on 65mm film, with sequences captured in IMAX, which helps explain the intense demand for large-format screenings.

“Forgive me for all I’ve done.” Experience the epic conclusion. Dune: Part Three only in theaters and IMAX December 18. #DuneMovie #FilmedforIMAX https://t.co/x9Nftg9yXd
— DUNE (@dunemovie) July 8, 2026

The trilogy’s box office history helps explain the excitement. The first film earned $402 million worldwide, according to Variety, and ‘Part Two’ reportedly grossed $715 million globally. A final chapter that opens bigger than both would mark a clear step up for the franchise.

That said, presales don’t always translate directly into opening weekend results. Analysts have cautioned that the numbers can change significantly between now and release, especially with so many major films competing for screens. Premium formats could also skew the early data, since they sell out faster than standard showings.

With the final trailer already out and tickets on sale worldwide, the next few weeks should reveal whether the early pace holds. Any new tracking update could shift expectations for both ‘Dune: Part Three’ and ‘Avengers: Doomsday’. For now, though, the early signs point to a finale that audiences are eager to see on the biggest screens possible.