‘Dune: Part Two’ Crosses $500M Global Box Office; ‘Kung Fu Panda’ Franchise Tops $2B Worldwide

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief “Snow in Midsummer,” which quietly probes the 1969 massacre of Malaysian Chinese during post-election turmoil, was named the winner of the best film for young cinema competition (Chinese-language) at the Hong Kong International Film Festival. Liang Ming was named best director for “Carefree Days,” while the film’s female lead Lyu Xingchen collected the best actress award.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Germany’s Beetz Brothers and South Africa’s Storyscope have partnered to co-produce “Free at Last,” a premium documentary series re-telling of the history of Apartheid. The series will unveil the true stories behind the oppressive and racist regime that ruled South Africa for decades, weaving together exclusive accounts from both victims and perpetrators, unseen footage and previously unpublished documents.

Refresh for latest…: A busy holdover weekend for wide studio releases was led by the trio of Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, Kung Fu Panda 4 and Dune: Part Two. And, in a soaring performance, Hayao Miyazaki’s Oscar winner The Boy and the Heron swooped into China helping the market set a new Qingming holiday record. 

Following a slightly stronger than projected first quarter at the international box office, and with some titles added to the release calendar later in the year, Gower Street Analytics has increased its global box office projection for 2024 to $32.3B.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Worldwide box office is headed for a marginal decline of 3% in 2024, a setback that follows three years of recovery from a pandemic era low in 2020. Gower Street Analytics, a distribution and exhibition industry consultancy, forecasts that worldwide box office this year will aggregate at $32.3 billion, down by more than $1 billion from the $33.9 billion earned in 2023. “A $32.3 billion global box office in 2024 would represent an approximate 5% decrease year-on-year (a 3% decrease at current exchange rates) from 2023. The 2024 revised estimate is 18% lower than an average of the last three pre-pandemic years (2017-2019),” Gower Street said. The forecast comes on the eve of CinemaCon, the annual National Association of Theater Owners convention, being held in Las Vegas April 8-11. While Gower Street’s forecast is for a marginal decline, it actually represents a more than $1 billion improvement on its previous $31.5 million forecast for 2024.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Euro Gang Entertainment, the company launched last year by Hollywood veterans Gianni Nunnari (“300,” “Immortals”) and Simon Horsman (“Legacy: The True Story of the L.A. Lakers”) is ramping up operations in Italy through a partnership with Rome-based Alfred Film, the young shingle co-founded by experienced producers Roberto Amoroso and Maria Theresia Braun.

Addie Morfoot Contributor Joe Berlinger’s hit Netflix “Crime Scene” franchise has expanded to Germany. “Crime Scene Berlin: Nightlife Killer” marks the first international local market produced version of the true crime doc series, which is being released globally on April 3. “Nightlife Killer” is a German language docuseries that was produced in Berlin and managed by Netflix Germany.

American superstar singer, Taylor Swift, has joined the billionaire club. The 34-year-old's earnings have surpassed $1.1 billion dollars (£875 million), thanks to her successful 'Eras Tour' and her well-regarded music assortment, Forbes magazine reports.

BBC Studios Launches First Kids Streamer In Korea

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter After three days of release, “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” stands as the third-highest-grossing movie of the year. It has collected a mighty $194 million globally in its opening weekend, ranking behind only “Dune: Part Two” ($626 million after five weeks of release) and “Kung Fu Panda 4” ($347 million after four weeks of release) in terms of overall ticket sales. The monster mashup, from Warner Bros.

Warner Bros/Legendary Entertainment’s Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is out and roaring at the international box office, generating $15.9M from 49 markets through its first two days overseas (Wed/Thurs). Not included in that total is the strong China opening day today which came in at an estimated RMB 96.9M ($13.4M).

Alex Ritman French TV giant Banijay is losing its second C-suite exec in just over a month. The company has confirmed to Variety that COO Peter Langenberg is departing, with his last day set to be March 31. Langenberg will remain with Banijay on a consultancy basis in the ESG (environment, social and governance) space.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent “Dahomey,” the Berlinale Golden Bear-winning film helmed by French-Senegalese director Mati Diop, has been sold to a raft of international territories by Les Films du Losange. Along with being acquired by Mubi in key markets, “Dahomey” has been acquired in Australia & New Zealand (Rialto), China (Hugoeast), Spain (Filmin), Portugal (Nitrato Filmes), Greece (One From the Heart), Scandinavia (NonStop Entertainement), Benelux (Cinéart), Bulgaria (Beta Films), Ex-Yugoslavia (Discovery), Hungary (Mozinet), Czech Republic (Film Europe), Romania (Voodoo), Baltic Countries (Taip Toliau), Poland (New Horizons), Ukraine (Kyivmusicfilm), Taiwan (Joint Entertainment), Indonesia (PT Falcon) and Sudu Connexion in Africa.

Naman Ramachandran The first edition of India’s Cinevesture International Film Festival and market (Chandigarh, March 27-31) will feature a range of masterclasses and panels headlined by a range of luminaries including filmmakers Shekhar Kapur (“What’s Love Got to Do with It?”) and Karan Johar (“Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani”). The lineup also includes actors Jaideep Ahlawat (“Paatal Lok”), Roshan Mathew (“Paradise”), Suvinder Vicky (“Kohrra”), Rajshri Deshpande (“Trial by Fire”), Boman Irani (“Dunki”), Rasika Dugal (“Mirzapur”), Abhay Deol (“Trial by Fire”), actor-producers Richa Chadha and Ali Fazal (“Girls Will be Girls”), filmmakers Tahira Kashyap (“Sharmajee Ki Beti”), Sudhir Mishra (“Tanaav”), Ajitpal Singh (“Tabbar”), Anurag Singh (“Kesri”) and Saugata Mukherjee, head of content at streamer SonyLiv.

EXCLUSIVE: After smashing records in Vietnam, Tran Thanh’s hit romance drama Mai has now set a new milestone for an opening weekend at the international box office, becoming the first Vietnamese title to score a $1M debut outside the home market.

Universal/DreamWorks Animation’s Kung Fu Panda 4 had a rock ‘em sock ‘em weekend at the international box office, adding $55.3M from 69 markets for a $135M overseas running cume, and $268.2M global (there are several key markets still to release, including France, Australia, the UK and Korea). 

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Indie streamer Mubi has acquired worldwide streaming rights to South African artist William Kentridge’s prestige series “Self-Portrait As a Coffee Pot” which explores how art is made in the digital age. The nine-episode series by Kentridge – who is celebrated around the world for his influential works comprising animation, installations, theater, opera and films – first previewed as a rough cut at the 2022 Toronto Film Festival.

Roll up, roll up for part two of our Cannes preview, this time with a focus on international, mainly non-English language fare. If you didn’t catch Andreas’ English-language focused part one, check it out here.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Beverley McGarvey has been appointed president of Network 10, head of streaming and regional lead for Australia and New Zealand, with immediate effect by Paramount Global. She reports to Pam Kaufman, president & CEO of international markets, global consumer products and experiences at the group.

With a solid offshore hold, Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part Two is closing in on $500M globally. The overseas weekend brought in $51.2M across 73 markets, a 40% drop versus last session (-37% excluding China). The international box office cume through Sunday is $289.4M, and worldwide the running total is $494.7M. The latter figure means the film has already surpassed Villeneuve’s 2021 Dune worldwide.