Now that the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes are behind us, studios are scrambling to figure out when to release upcoming movies, whether the films have been finished or will be completed by the end of 2024. As a result, Warner Bros. has moved the release date once again for Dune: Part Two, but to a sooner release. It will move by two weeks, going from March 15 to March 1.
Dune: Part Two Release Date Shifts As Studios Scramble for Dates
The move from Warner Bros. comes as a response to Universal shifting its release of the Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt-starring film The Fall Guy. The action-comedy was moved from March 1 to May 3 to take advantage of Deadpool 3 going from May to July. It leaves the Denis Villeneuve film with less competition for most of March. The only real comparable competitor will be Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, but that does not release until March 29, freeing Dune: Part Two in its new release date to conquer theaters, particularly for IMAX screenings.
This is not the first time that Dune: Part Two was pushed. It was originally set to release on October 20 of this year, then was supposed to release today (November 20). As the strikes continued as studios refused to give writers and actors a fair deal in payment, benefits, and AI protections, it got pushed into 2024.
The follow-up will cover the second half of Frank Herbert’s classic novel. Depending on how things go, the acclaimed director will get his wish to adapt the second novel to complete the story of Paul Atreides, played by Timothée Chalamet. To bring Dune: Messiah to life on the big screen would “be the dream,” Villeneuve told Empire earlier this year.
Dune: Part Two will be released in theaters on March 1.
