For 2nd weekend in a row, ‘Dune’ bests ‘Last Night in Soho,’ ‘Antlers’
After a record-breaking start, October’s box office closed out quietly this weekend with “Dune” repeating at number one and two prominent genre newcomers, “Last Night in Soho ” and “Antlers,” stumbling.
Whether it’s due to Halloween falling on a Sunday, too many new options or simply a lack of enthusiasm, moviegoing audiences seemed to have other plans this weekend. Notable exceptions are the latest “My Hero Academia” and the new Wes Anderson pic “The French Dispatch.”
First place still went to the bigger budget and wider release Timothée Chalamet film. In its second weekend in theaters, “Dune,” which is also available on HBO Max, grossed an additional $15.5 million, according to studio estimates Sunday. Although down a steep 62% from its debut, the ticket sales were enough to give it one more week atop the North American charts.
With a production budget of $165 million (not including marketing and promotion), “Dune” has now grossed $69.4 million in North America and $292.1 millon globally. Warner Bros. and Legendary last week confirmed plans to go ahead with a sequel that is expected to open exclusively in theaters in 2023.
“Halloween Kills,” in its third weekend, placed second with $8.5 million. The penultimate film in this modern trilogy has now grossed $115.1 million globally.
Edgar Wright’s “Last Night in Soho,” meanwhile, opened in sixth place. Playing on 3,016 screens, the stylish thriller distributed by Focus grossed an estimated $4.2 million. Thomasin McKenzie stars as a modern-day fashion student who at night dreams increasingly realistic dreams of Anya Taylor-Joy’s aspiring singer in the 1960s.
“There are few bigger champions of the theatrical experience than Edgar and we couldn’t be prouder he has made Focus his home,” said Lisa Bunnell, Focus’ president of distribution.
Scott Cooper’s “Antlers,” about a mythical beast terrorizing a blighted Oregon town, also earned an estimated $4.2 million from 2,800 locations. The Searchlight-distributed horror stars Keri Russell and Jesse Plemons.
“Obviously, we hoped for a little more but we went up head to head against ‘Last Night in Soho,’ another really good genre film,” said Frank Rodriguez, Searchlight’s head of distribution. “They may have cancelled each other out.”