Dune: Part Three Sets Presale Record, Snatching Title from Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey Director Denis Villeneuve's Dune: Part Three has broken the record for first-day ticket presales at London's BFI Imax, grossing £880,000 ($1.2m) - surpassing the previous record held by Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey. The epic space opera is set to premiere December 18, 2026, alongside Marvel's Avengers: Doomsday, in what promises to be a blockbuster showdown. Science fiction is a genre we have all come to love and appreciate over the decades, with franchises such as Star Wars and Star Trek illuminating the possibilities that abound in the universe. Highest Grossing Sci-Fi FranchisesThe genre has produced some of the highest-grossing movies of all time that are tied to this genre. Filmmaker James Cameron and his Avatar franchise have grossed over $6.7 billion worldwide, making it one of the highest-grossing film franchises in entertainment history. The MCU's Avengers: Endgame only just overtook the original Avatar as the highest-grossing title ever following its re-release, cementing the sci-fi genre's place as being an ultra-attractive product for moviegoers.So far, in 2026, the competition has been a lot more mixed in terms of box office success, with the main contest between superhero action-adventure, Spider-Man: Brand New Day and the action epic/fantasy that is Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey. With global earnings of about $2.5 billion and $1.79 billion, respectively, it would take a monumental effort for any feature released in this calendar year to topple their gains.However, come the end of the year, the sci-fi genre is poised to throw into the ring one of its most influential franchises - and it is a heavy hitter. Director Denis Villeneuve is responsible for giving us, across multiple genres, several brilliant movies and his next offering is based on a story that has undeniably defined the sci-fi genre.Dune Part Three Box Office ClashDune: Part Three and the MCU's Avengers: Doomsday will both premiere in theaters on December 18, 2026, in what is sure to be an epic contest at the box office. Villeneuve's Dune: Part Three will have its sights set on toppling Brand New Day's box office earnings to reign supreme.However, even before officially making its premiere, the hotly anticipated epic space opera has already snatched one record away from Brand New Day's closest contender. In just 24 hours, the UK's largest screen, BFI Imax, has sold 33,000 advance tickets for Dune: Part Three, breaking first-day presale records for the venue with a total gross of more than £880,000 ($1.2m). That eclipses the previous record of £750,000 ($1m) held by Nolan's The Odyssey. Both movies just so happen to star Robert Pattinson.