Kung Fu Panda 4 Beats Dune: Part Two At Domestic Box Office This Weekend

It was a big weekend at the box office for sequels. Denis Villeneuve's Dune: Part Two thrived in its second weekend while the animated feature Kung Fu Panda 4 debuted quite strong. As the weekend winds down, it looks like the DreamWorks film managed to beat the Warner Bros. epic at the domestic box office. Together, the films brought in over $100 million in North America. Kung Fu Panda 4 had a $58 million debut while Dune: Part Two scored $46 million this weekend, bringing its domestic total to $150 million. 

Before the day is done, Dune: Part Two is expected to pass $300 million at the worldwide box office thanks to its release in China. For comparison, Dune: Part One finished its box office run in 2021 with $433,922,307, which means the sequel has already surpassed the first installment's final domestic total of $108,897,830. This isn't too surprising considering the first Dune was released only a few months after theaters started reopening from the pandemic. 

As for Kung Fu Panda 4, the new film has a ways to go before reaching the first installment's total from 2008. Kung Fu Panda made $215,434,591 at the domestic box office and $631,744,560 worldwide. Kung Fu Panda 2 made $165,249,063 at the domestic box office and $665,692,281 worldwide in 2011, and Kung Fu Panda 3 took in $143,528,619 and $521,170,825 worldwide in 2016.

What Is Kung Fu Panda 4 About?

Here's the official synopsis for Kung Fu Panda 4, which focuses on the history and lore of the franchise:

"After three death-defying adventures defeating world-class villains with his unmatched courage and mad martial arts skills, Po, the Dragon Warrior (Golden Globe nominee Jack Black), is called upon by destiny to...give it a rest already. More specifically, he's tapped to become the Spiritual Leader of the Valley of Peace.

That poses a couple of obvious problems. First, Po knows as much about spiritual leadership as he does about the paleo diet, and second, he needs to quickly find and train a new Dragon Warrior before he can assume his new lofty position.

Even worse, there's been a recent sighting of a wicked, powerful sorceress, Chameleon (Oscar® winner Viola Davis), a tiny lizard who can shapeshift into any creature, large or small. And Chameleon has her greedy, beady little eyes on Po's Staff of Wisdom, which would give her the power to re-summon all the master villains whom Po has vanquished to the spirit realm.

So, Po's going to need some help. He finds it (kinda?) in the form of crafty, quick-witted thief Zhen (Golden Globe winner Awkwafina), a corsac fox who really gets under Po's fur but whose skills will prove invaluable. In their quest to protect the Valley of Peace from Chameleon's reptilian claws, this comedic odd-couple duo will have to work together. In the process, Po will discover that heroes can be found in the most unexpected places." 

What movies are you checking out in theaters this weekend? Tell us in the comments!