Dune: Part Three is still four months away, but getting a ticket to some of its biggest screenings is already becoming a challenge.
A new wave of advance tickets went on sale Tuesday for IMAX, Dolby Cinema and other premium screenings of Denis Villeneuve’s third Dune film. Demand was high enough to overwhelm AMC’s website and app, with fans reporting long waits, errors and difficulty completing purchases.
AMC CEO Adam Aron acknowledged the problems shortly afterward.
“There was much discussion internally ahead of and preparing for the Dune 3 launch,” Aron wrote. “We thought we were ready, but we weren’t.”
According to Aron, traffic across AMC’s website and mobile app reached roughly three times the level seen when tickets went on sale for Spider-Man: Brand New Day, currently the highest-grossing movie of 2026. He described demand for Dune: Part Three as “crushing” and called the resulting ticketing problems “intolerable and inexcusable.”
Dune: Part Three tickets are already selling out
The rush is especially intense for IMAX 70mm screenings.
This actually isn’t the first time Dune: Part Three tickets have caused a frenzy. Warner Bros. and IMAX released an initial batch of IMAX 70mm tickets in April, eight months before the movie’s release. That allotment sold out within minutes.
The latest presale expanded availability to additional screenings and premium formats, but many of the most desirable showings quickly filled again.
In New York, fans even lined up outside AMC Lincoln Square ahead of Tuesday’s sale rather than relying on the online system. Tickets for some screenings later appeared on resale sites for hundreds of dollars.
Aron has since said AMC plans to address both issues. After the website problems, he directed the company’s IT team to make improvements to its ticketing systems. He also criticized people reselling tickets above face value, writing that AMC intends to take steps to limit the practice.
Why IMAX 70mm tickets are so difficult to get
Part of the problem is simply scarcity.
Only a small number of theaters can project movies in IMAX 70mm film, making prime screenings at locations like AMC Lincoln Square in New York and AMC Metreon in San Francisco significantly more difficult to secure than a normal theatrical showing. WIRED reports that only 25 locations in the United States currently support the format.
Villeneuve has also made IMAX a major part of the marketing for his final Dune movie. Dune: Part Three was filmed for IMAX, and Warner Bros. has been promoting the 70mm presentation months ahead of release.
For opening weekend, IMAX is also offering a limited-edition filmstrip to ticket holders at qualifying 70mm screenings while supplies last.
Dune: Part Three adapts Dune Messiah
Dune: Part Three continues Paul Atreides’ story by adapting Frank Herbert’s second novel, Dune Messiah.
Unlike Villeneuve’s first two movies, which split the original Dune across two films, the third installment jumps forward to deal with the consequences of Paul’s rise to power.
Timothée Chalamet returns as Paul alongside Zendaya, Florence Pugh, Rebecca Ferguson, Javier Bardem and Anya Taylor-Joy. Jason Momoa is also returning as Duncan Idaho, while Robert Pattinson joins the cast for the third film. Villeneuve directed the movie and co-wrote the screenplay with Brian K. Vaughan.
Dune: Part Three opens in theaters and IMAX on December 18, 2026.
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