Dune: Part Three Sets BFI IMAX First-Day Presale Record With 33,000 Tickets

Dune: Part Three has made the BFI IMAX in London a measure of just how eagerly audiences are seeking out premium-format screenings. The venue sold 33,000 advance tickets in 24 hours, earning more than £880,000, or about $988,000, and setting its first-day presale record. The early tally puts Denis Villeneuve’s return to Arrakis ahead of Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey on that specific measure.

The scale of the rush had been building. In April, all three opening-weekend screenings at the BFI IMAX sold out in under an hour. Two preview screenings also sold out earlier this month after more than 100,000 people reportedly entered the online queue. Those earlier sellouts pointed to a strong appetite; the latest total turns that demand into a new venue record.

That record concerns first-day presales, while The Odyssey still has a separate BFI IMAX milestone: the highest total gross for a film at the cinema. By mid-August, Nolan’s film had drawn more than 100,000 admissions there and earned £2,683,987 from a single screen, with occupancy at 95%. Dune: Part Two is also among the cinema’s leading first-day presales. The distinction matters: Dune: Part Three has set the pace at the start of sales, while the longer-running admissions and revenue records belong to The Odyssey.

For audiences weighing whether to pay for a premium-format ticket, the projection plans are part of the draw. The BFI will screen Villeneuve’s film from a 70mm IMAX print, tying the presentation to its stated commitment to preserving and celebrating celluloid. Preview screenings in IMAX 70mm begin at the venue on December 15. The earlier films return to the BFI IMAX from December 11; Dune: Part Two will also screen on an IMAX 70mm print.

A new mix of film and digital photography

Dune: Part Three is the franchise’s first film made with a combination of IMAX-certified digital cameras and IMAX film cameras. It includes 71 minutes in IMAX’s expanded 1.90:1 aspect ratio. At select IMAX with Laser and IMAX 70mm venues, those sequences can fill the taller 1.43:1 frame. The film was shot primarily on 65mm film, with desert scenes captured using IMAX Digital.

That mix gives the format a particular place in this release: much of the film was captured on large-format stock, while the expanded sequences are designed to make use of the height of certain IMAX screens. The BFI’s 70mm presentation offers London audiences a chance to see the film in a format tied closely to its production. How many viewers can access that version, though, is limited by the small number of equipped cinemas.

The new trailer for ‘DUNE: PART 3’ has been released.
In theaters on December 18. https://t.co/T1eilXnA1N

— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) July 8, 2026

Gizmodo described the rollout of premium-format tickets as “kind of a disaster,” comparing the rush with the one for The Odyssey. Reports of expensive resale listings add another sign of how tight access has become: one seller reportedly sold a single ticket for a Cinemark Dallas screening for $1,000 on eBay, while Forbes noted IMAX 70mm seats listed for $200 each. Those are reported resale examples, not the usual price of admission.

Scarcity helps explain why the most sought-after screenings have attracted such attention. Only 41 theaters worldwide can project Dune: Part Three in IMAX 70mm, including 18 locations in the US. Even with the film’s broad release, the specific combination of a large screen and 70mm projection will be available at relatively few cinemas. For readers planning a group outing or a book-club-style trip to the cinema, the BFI figures suggest that waiting to choose a screening may mean fewer premium options.

Paul Atreides returns for Villeneuve’s final chapter

The story is based on Frank Herbert’s Dune Messiah and takes place 17 years after the previous film, with Paul Atreides ruling as Emperor. Timothée Chalamet returns as Paul, joined by Zendaya as Chani, Rebecca Ferguson as Lady Jessica and Javier Bardem as Stilgar. Florence Pugh plays Princess Irulan; Anya Taylor-Joy plays Alia Atreides; Jason Momoa returns as a new version of Duncan Idaho; and Robert Pattinson plays Scytale.

Villeneuve co-wrote the script with Brian K. Vaughan. He has said this installment leans further into thriller territory and has more action than the previous two films. That shift gives the finale a different stated emphasis from its predecessors, while the story remains rooted in Herbert’s book. The film also marks Villeneuve’s and Chalamet’s final journey into this universe.

The cast of ‘DUNE: PART THREE’ wants you to know that tickets are on sale now. https://t.co/yW9Qz9FyKn

— Film Updates (@FilmUpdates) October 20, 2026

The film opens internationally beginning December 16 and in North America on December 18. Its North American date puts it opposite Avengers: Doomsday, a release-weekend pairing fans have called “Dunesday.” Reports suggest Dune: Part Three has secured an IMAX-heavy opening weekend, and the BFI’s presale result indicates how closely theaters will be watching demand for their largest screens.

The advance sales offer a striking early signal, but the full comparison with The Odyssey will depend on admissions and revenue after opening. For now, London’s first-day record sets a clear benchmark for the film’s premium-format run. With the BFI’s previews beginning December 15 and the international opening following the next day, the next indication will be whether this initial rush carries through to the film’s wider release.