December's 'Dune vs Doomsday' clash tracks record-breaking opening

December is shaping up to be a major month for Hollywood at the box office, with Marvel’s ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ and Denis Villeneuve’s ‘Dune: Part Three’ preparing for a high-profile theatrical showdown.While ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ is reportedly flying ahead with an advance collection already three times more than 'Dune'. the sci-fi epic is making its own records, by raking in the highest advance booking for an IMAX release in the US.Global Box Office projects ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ to open with a domestic weekend haul of USD 300 million to USD 400 million. The highly anticipated Marvel film has already surpassed USD 125 million in global presales months ahead of its theatrical release.

Its domestic US advance sales have crossed USD 50 million, with more than 70% of the tickets reportedly booked for premium large-format screens.Meanwhile, Dune 3 is tracking for a franchise-record domestic opening weekend of over USD 100 million.

Marvel reigns over North American box office with top opening weekends

1. Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026) – $360 million2. Avengers: Endgame (2019) – $357 million3. Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021) – $260 million4. Avengers: Infinity War (2018) – $257 million

‘Avengers: Doomsday’ gets an early release in India

Marvel Studios has confirmed that ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ will release in Indian theatres on Thursday, December 17, 2026, a day ahead of its scheduled US release on December 18.

The announcement came with a special Diwali message featuring Robert Downey Jr., who plays Doctor Doom, and Chris Evans, who returns as Steve Rogers.The film will release in English, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu across India.

‘Dune: Part Three’ builds momentum with IMAX re-releases

Meanwhile, ‘Dune: Part Three’ is gearing up for its December 18 release in the US, with the film expected to bring Denis Villeneuve’s adaptation of Frank Herbert’s science-fiction saga to its conclusion.Ahead of the release, reports state that the first two films - ‘Dune: Part One’ and ‘Dune: Part Two’, are scheduled to return to IMAX theatres from November 13, with screenings already booked for features planned through November 17 in select regions. The screenings will also feature an exclusive preview of ‘Dune: Part Three’, and its 19-year time jump.