‘Dune’ Forecast to Earn $35 Million in China After Second Place Opening

“Dune,” Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi film of epic proportions, opened solidly in China on Friday and is forecast to attain a gross box office of $35 million (RMB224 million) in the country.The forecast was made by Maoyan, one of China’s leading online ticketing agencies, which also reported that the film had grossed RMB23.8 million ($3.7 million) by 2pm Friday local time.The $3.7 million haul was only good enough for second place, behind “The Battle at Lake Changjin” a war film that is poised to become one of the highest-grossing films of all time in China. In 23 days of release, “Changjin” has earned $798 million (RMB5.11 billion).The early scores, however, are closely matched. At 2pm, “Dune” had achieved a 40% share of Friday’s nationwide box office, trailing the 45% for “Changjin.”Forecasts are based on a combination of ticket sales for current screening sessions, ticket pre-sales and perceived public interest based on social media activity. ...