(Washington) The second installment of the sci-fi blockbuster “Dune” topped the North American box office, bringing in $81.5 million in its first weekend, according to estimates from specialty firm Exhibitor Relationships on Sunday.
Posted at 2:07 p.m.
The more than 2 hours and 30 minutes long feature film, directed by Quebecois Denis Villeneuve, offers a magnificent spectacle but also a reflection on power, faith and fanaticism.
The main character, played by French-American star actor Timothée Chalamet, completes his transformation by becoming the expected messiah, a vengeful leader after his lineage is wiped out.
The hostile planet Dune, dreamed up by the American writer Frank Herbert, also makes it possible to convey messages about ecology, from the scarcity of water to the industrial plunder of resources.
The numbers achieved in Canadian and American cinemas this weekend were “extraordinary” for a science fiction film, commented analyst David A. Gross. It's also currently the best score of the year for a release.
Other stars are represented in the distribution, such as Zendaya or even Léa Seydoux and Javier Bardem.
Far behind and relegated to second place in the rankings, Bob Marley: One Love, a film about the reggae legend's life, collected $7.4 million.
The Jamaican singer who achieved massive success and died suddenly in 1981 is played by British actor Kingsley Ben-Adir, known for his role as Malcolm X in One Night in Miami.
On the third step of the podium, the final episodes of The Chosen series about the life of Jesus Christ collected $3.9 million.
Close behind, in fourth place, Ordinary Angels raised just under $3.9 million over the weekend. The film tells the true story of a hairdresser from Kentucky who unites her entire small town to help an abandoned widower care for his sick daughter.
The Marvel superhero film Madame Web, which placed fifth, grossed $3.2 million. For this fourth Sony film in the Spider-Man universe, actress Dakota Johnson plays an ambulance driver with clairvoyant abilities.
The rest of the top 10
- 6. Migration ($2.5 million)
- 7. Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba – Road to Pillar Training (2 million)
- 8. Wonka (1.7 million)
- 9. Argylle (1.4 million)
- 10. The Beekeeper (1.1 million)