‘Dune: Part Two’ Pushed Back to 2024

The spice must flow, sure. But no one said it must flow in a timely manner.

The first Dune was delayed for a hefty amount of time because of the Covid-19 pandemic. And it seems like Dune: Part Two is an even more faithful sequel than we would have wanted, because now it has been delayed too. Originally scheduled to open in theaters on November 3, 2023, the film has now been bumped back to March 15, 2024.

The dual writers and actors strikes are to blame. Union actors are not permitted to promote their work at studio events like press junkets and red-carpet premieres — and without those sorts of events, it is very difficult to promote a movie like Dune, which is stacked with big-name talent like Timothee Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, Dave Bautista, Christopher Walken, and Javier Bardem.

Warner Bros.

Although technically a sequel, Dune: Part Two really is the really second half of the first story; director Denis Villeneuve broke Frank Herbert’s massive novel into two parts when he adapted it to the big screen. Although Warner Bros. didn’t allow him to film the entire story all at once, the first Dune was a big enough critical and commercial hit to justify Warners giving Villeneuve the green light to adapt the second half of the book, which adds characters like Feyd-Rautha (Butler) and Shaddam IV, the Emperor of the Known Universe (Walken), who are critical to Herbert’s novel but didn’t show up in the first film.

Hopefully the strikes are resolved quickly and Dune: Part Two opens on its new schedule in March of next year.