‘Release of ‘Dune: Part Two’ pushed back to March 2024 due to writer strikes’
Variety reports that Dune: Part Two’s debut has been rescheduled to March 15th due to ongoing strikes involving writers and actors. Initially set for November 3rd, the highly anticipated movie will now be released four months later, as Warner Bros. and Legendary Entertainment decided that the star-studded cast’s promotional efforts are crucial for maximizing its box office success.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the studio and production company delayed the film as long as possible, but should have started promoting the film in early September. It hoped the extra time would allow the cast, which includes Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Austin Butler, Florence Pugh and Christopher Walken, to fully participate in marketing efforts.
Along with the second installment, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire and Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim have been moved to April 12, 2024 and December 13, 2024, respectively. These dates were largely shuffled to accommodate Dune: Part 2.
The ongoing labor action by writers and actors in Hollywood is the result of long-standing tensions over a number of issues, but most notably over residual payments from Netflix and other streaming platforms. Warner Bros. Discovery was at the center of these recently when it decided to release some movies either directly to its HBO Max (now MAX) streaming platform with no or limited theatrical releases. However, CEO David Zaslav said last year that the company would “fully embrace theater” going forward.
Dune: Part One did well enough at the box office with a gross of $402 million, but the hype for the sequel is much higher. “Part one is more of a contemplative film. Part two is an action-packed, epic war film. It’s much denser. We went to all new places,” said director Denis Villeneuve.
