Zendaya is a divine vision on the Dune promo trail
Zendaya gives us divine fashion moment for Dune red carpet event
ZENDAYA (A+)
Premiere of Dune in London
Gown: Rick Owens
She always understands the assignment, and this particular one was to "Dune" the hell out of the final promo stop. Hair and make-up are on point, and the sculptural ivory sequin stunner has such a sci-fi edge and adventurous aesthetic at every angle - making it one of the top fashion moments of 2021. This would be what Zendaya's Fremen femme fatale would be rolling up in if there were high society parties on Arrakis.
ANGELINA JOLIE (A)
Premiere of Eternals at the Rome Film Festival in Rome
Gown: Atelier Versace
She has sported various iterations of this kind of goddess gown that screams Hollywood glamour, and it never gets old. It is like she is wearing a liquid metal armour, which is totally befitting a superhero film and her role as elite warrior Thena.
GEMMA CHAN (C+)
Premiere of Eternals in Los Angeles
Gown: Louis Vuitton
Did wedding gowns from different decades decide to nest all over her? As the female lead of Eternals, I was hoping for bad-ass - not bridezilla with an ostrich carcass perched over her shoulders. Her character Sersi can manipulate inanimate matter, and one wishes Chan had that power to do some editing on this overdesigned mess of a dress.
EMMA WATSON (C-)
Earthshot Prize awards ceremony in London
Dress and pants: Harris Reed
Okay, this one is literally upcycled from old wedding gowns donated to Oxfam. I am all for sustainable fashion, but the way the lace has been pieced together with the chopped-up tulle is amateurish and far from innovative. The addition of bell-bottoms just makes the whole repurposing project even more beyond help.
MENG'ER ZHANG (D)
Premiere of Eternals in Los Angeles
Top and pants: Fendi
Cue the sad trombone, because this outfit is sighing, crying and dying. Is it the blah cream satin? Tragic pant creases? Droopy belt? Tortured top? Or all of the above? I just need to put a defibrillator on this stat so that everything will come back to life.
Dune opens to respectable $54 million at North American box office
LOS ANGELES: Dune, an adaptation of Frank Herbert's 1965 sci-fi novel, opened to a respectable US$40.1 million (S$54 million) at the North American box office.
In addition, like all Warner Bros movies this year, it premiered simultaneously on HBO Max.
In a milestone for the studio, Dune landed the biggest three-day tally for it since the company began its day-and-date strategy on HBO Max, beating Godzilla Vs Kong which scored a then-pandemic record US$31 million in April.
Directed by Oscar nominee Denis Villeneuve (Blade Runner 2049, Arrival) and starring Timothee Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac and Josh Brolin, Dune - which is showing in cinemas here - is expected to be followed by a second part.
But will ticket sales for the first part be enough to justify a sequel?
Given the film's hefty US$165 million price tag, including the millions spent to market it as a cinematic event, it is unclear if box office revenues alone will be enough to warrant a return to the desert land of Arrakis. It has taken in US$180 million overseas.
In an interview with Variety this week, WarnerMedia chair Ann Sarnoff said plans for the sequel will be based on "the entirety of what Dune can do for the company, including HBO Max".
She added: "The story in itself sets up for a sequel. The production is so amazing and the storytelling is so compelling that it's not going to be judged on box office alone." - REUTERS
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