“Dune: Part Two” has been delayed to 2024.
The story of Paul Atreides, played by Timothée Chalamet, will be continued on March 15.
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Warner Bros. made the announcement Thursday after Variety exclusively reported last month that the company was eyeing a 2024 date for the sci-fi tentpole. Legendary Entertainment co-produced “Dune: Part Two” with Warner Bros. Film Group, and both parties had to agree on a new release date.
As part of the shift, “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” — which was previously dated for March 14 — is getting pushed back one month to April 12. The film is also produced by Legendary and Warner Bros. and is the latest entry in the Monsterverse franchise.
The “Dune” delay comes as the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes continue to drag on. Due to the SAG-AFTRA strike, actors may not do press for any struck films, which would have meant the star-studded “Dune” cast would not have been on the press circuit for the big-budget film.
The date change is not expected to have a material impact on IMAX, who has fall product in titles like “The Equalizer 3,” “Wonka” and “The Marvels” (assuming none of those titles move on the calendar, as well). Both WB and Legendary are confident that next year’s spring break for students and the Easter holiday will provide runway for both titles to succeed.
In addition to Chalamet, the “Dune: Part Two” cast includes Zendaya, Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, Rebecca Ferguson, Javier Bardem Dave Bautista, Christopher Walken, Lea Seydoux and more.
As Variety reported last month, Warner Bros. was also assessing possible delays to 2024 for “The Color Purple” (Dec. 25) and “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom” (Dec. 20), but the studio currently plans to retain December dates for both titles.
Sony is the only other major studio to delay several of its movies amid the strikes; last month the company pushed back “Kraven the Hunter” and a “Ghostbusters: Afterlife” sequel to 2024, in addition to removing “Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse” from the release calendar. And “Dune: Part Two” isn’t the only Zendaya-starring movie to get delayed; MGM’s “Challengers,” a tennis drama starring Zendaya, Mike Faist and Josh O’Connor, also moved to next year.
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