I Don’t Think Avengers: Doomsday Vs. Dune 3 At The Box Office Is Another Barbenheimer, It’s Even Bigger

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As a huge movie fan, I still remember the summer of 2023 and the whole ‘Barbenheimer’ phenomenon – it was wild! Well, get ready for another potential blockbuster showdown in December 2026. Apparently, the new Avengers movie, Doomsday, and the third Dune film are both scheduled to come out on the same day. It’s going to be amazing – and tough! With the Russo brothers directing Avengers and Denis Villeneuve handling Dune, we’re getting a superhero epic versus a sci-fi masterpiece. Honestly, I already know I’m going to be stressing over which one to see first!

While some are comparing the upcoming release of “Dune: Part Two” and a new Marvel movie to the “Barbenheimer” phenomenon, I believe this competition is actually more significant. There’s more at stake for the studios involved – Warner Bros. and Marvel – and for the future of movie theaters. Let’s take a closer look at what’s happening, with the release still less than a year away.

There’s A Long History Of Movies Opening The Same Day, But They Rarely Go For The Same Audience

It’s common for several major movies to be released on the same weekend. When Dune: Part Three and Avengers: Doomsday premiere on December 18th, they’ll join a long history of competing blockbusters. While films like The Thing and Blade Runner (1982) or Ghostbusters and Gremlins (1984) appealed to similar audiences, most big weekend clashes, like the one between Barbie and Oppenheimer, pit movies aimed at very different groups of people against each other.

Looking back, November 1995 saw the releases of both Casino and Toy Story, while October 2004 brought us Ray and Saw. Later, in November 2006, Casino Royale and Happy Feet hit theaters, and in July 2008, The Dark Knight came out alongside Mamma Mia! – those are just a few examples of very different movies being released around the same time. But the big movie weekend in December 2026 will be different – it’s going to be particularly interesting because the films are expected to be much more similar.

I Think This Could Be Warner Bros. Testing Marvel’s Strength After A Down Period

I was really surprised when I found out Dune: Part Three was coming out on the same day as Doomsday! Thinking back to the Avengers movies, no other big films even tried to open on the same weekend. But this year is different – Villeneuve’s latest Dune is going to directly compete with the highly anticipated Avengers event, and it’s going to be a fascinating showdown.

As a huge movie fan, I’m getting the sense Warner Bros. is seeing Marvel stumble a bit and maybe trying to take advantage. It feels like they’re testing how much Marvel’s dominance has weakened after a bit of a slump. Sure, films like Spider-Man: No Way Home, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 did really well, but honestly, most of the Marvel movies since Endgame just haven’t hit the same blockbuster heights they used to.

While Dune: Part Two didn’t earn as much at the box office as the biggest Avengers films, it still grossed an impressive $715 million globally, according to Box Office Mojo. Warner Bros. has good reason to be optimistic, particularly because Timothée Chalamet’s popularity has soared since he first played Paul Atreides. It makes you think about what might happen if the next installment, Part Three, performs as well as or better than the original Dune movie at the box office.

I Wonder Who’ll Get More IMAX Screens And Other Premium Formats

Both Doomsday and Part Three are expected to premiere in nearly 4,000 theaters nationwide later this year, as cinemas prepare for their release. However, there’s a limited number of IMAX and other premium-format screens, so the films will likely compete for those more profitable showings in December.

You might recall the buzz in 2023 when Tom Cruise reportedly wasn’t thrilled that Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning only had a one-week exclusive run in IMAX before Barbie and Oppenheimer took over theaters. This year, the competition for IMAX screens seems likely to be even fiercer. In fact, the movie that secures more IMAX showings could very well have a significant advantage.

Though There Have Been Some Down Years Recently, December Is Traditionally A Massive Box Office Month

Box Office Mojo reports that December has been a hugely successful month for movie theaters seven times since 2000, exceeding $1 billion in domestic ticket sales. There have also been seven Decembers where sales topped $900 million. Despite some slower years recently, particularly due to the pandemic, December is generally a very strong month for movie revenue, and that success often continues into January.

I’m also really interested to see how well Avengers: Doomsday and Dune: Part Three will continue to perform after the new year. Both movies are being released in the last couple of weeks of 2026, which means they’ll likely earn a lot of money in January and February. We’re currently seeing this happen with James Cameron’s Avatar: Fire and Ash, which has already surpassed $1 billion, and it’s a pattern we’ve seen with previous Avatar films and Cameron’s Titanic as well.

These two films are almost certain to be huge hits right away, and continue earning a lot of money for weeks after they come out. But will their success encourage other big movies to release around Christmas instead of summer? It’s worked well for the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit trilogies, and James Cameron’s films, but it remains to be seen if Hollywood will make a bigger shift towards holiday releases. I’m looking forward to seeing what happens.

December is shaping up to be a huge month for movies, with two major blockbusters opening on the same day. It’s hard to predict exactly how impactful this competition will be, but I’m really excited to watch it unfold.

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2026-01-11 17:09