AMC Theatres has revealed a Dune 3 popcorn bucket with a second option built for two people sharing. The Dune 3 popcorn bucket rollout adds the Sandworm Thumper Collectible and the Double Sandworm Collectible ahead of the film’s Dec. 18 release.
Hank Green on fan expectations
“From the moment we started planning the Dune: Part Three collectibles, our goal was to exceed those fan expectations. The Sandworm Thumper and Double Sandworm collectibles take the experience to the next level with designs straight from the movie,” Hank Green said in AMC Theatres’ statement. The company is attaching the new merchandise to a film launch that already has a built-in audience for specialty concessions, and it is doing so with two separate buckets rather than a single repeat of the earlier item.
Both buckets will come with a large popcorn, and AMC will sell them at locations in the United States and at Odeon Cinemas throughout Europe. AMC will also offer Dune: Part Three drinkware, mystery keychains, and a Sandworm plush, giving the release more than one collectible tier for moviegoers who buy on site.
Part Two, then the backlash
The earlier Dune: Part Two bucket became an online and retail hit during the film’s run, which turned a concession item into a merchandising story of its own. AMC is clearly trying to keep that demand alive without simply recycling the same novelty, and the two-worm version is the clearest signal that the company wants the new line to feel more deliberate than a one-off gag.
That earlier bucket was also mocked on Saturday Night Live, a reminder that the design traveled far beyond theaters and into pop-culture parody. Marcello Hernández delivered the line, “I’m not scared of the teeth in the middle,” while Marcus Gonzalez of the Zinc Group said sexual innuendo “was definitely not the intent,” adding, “The worm’s the worm’s the worm.”
Price after Dec. 18
AMC said the price of the bucket will be announced closer to the film’s Dec. 18 release date, leaving buyers with the design reveal but not the final cost. Last year, Regal sold a bucket for The Fantastic Four: First Steps for $80, which gives AMC shoppers a useful reference point for how far premium movie merchandise can run when studios and exhibitors lean into collectible packaging.
The immediate takeaway is simple: AMC is not just repeating a viral bucket, it is widening the offer around it. If the company can keep the Sandworm Thumper Collectible and the Double Sandworm Collectible from becoming a parody before release, it will have turned a punchline into a cleaner sales pitch.
