Overview
- Warner Bros. and IMAX opened priority sales for Dune: Part Three on Tuesday, Aug. 18, offering early IMAX, IMAX 70mm and other premium-format screenings the week of the Dec. 18 wide release.
- The surge in demand crashed or slowed major ticketing services and produced long virtual queues, prompting AMC CEO Adam Aron to apologize and approve roughly $2 million in IT resources to fix the chain’s systems.
- Only a few U.S. theaters can project IMAX 70mm, and the format’s inclusion of roughly 71 minutes of exclusive expanded-aspect-ratio footage created acute scarcity that led to rapid sell-outs of early shows.
- Scalpers and resale sites quickly listed early IMAX tickets at high prices, with some listings reaching into the hundreds or thousands of dollars and raising fresh pressure on exhibitors to limit bulk buying.
- The presale underscores a larger industry shift toward eventized premium formats and frames Dune’s December release as a premium‑screening contest with Marvel’s Avengers: Doomsday for holiday audiences.