The 2024 box office is a franchise frenzy — at a time when audiences are feeling IP fatigue

Mean girls, Spider-Women and sandworms will headline the 2024 box office — and they'll have to do some heavy lifting.The March 1 release of "Dune: Part Two," the delayed and much-anticipated follow-up to Denis Villeneuve's 2021 science fiction epic is expected to attract hordes of moviegoers.It's arguably the most notable release in what's slated to be a franchise frenzy this year, as studios like Warner Bros., Disney, Universal and Paramount lean on familiar titles to entice audiences back into theaters. B ...