What feels like the one-millionth verse is the same as the first: Dune has joined the canceled 2020 release brigade. This news comes a month after the highly anticipated sci-fi flick released its first trailer to wide excitement.
Sure, the sandworms look a little sphincter-like! That doesn't mean we wanted to see the film delayed. Unfortunately, with news that more and more theaters are shutting their doors until the pandemic ends, there's just no way to release exhibition films. With Dune's price-tag prior to marketing (a reported 200 million), there was never any world where it could afford to release via streaming or solely at drive-ins.
With basically all major release films shifting their release calendar, it's worth mentioning what will ultimately need to be a larger conversation: film exhibition is going to change drastically if we don't see a bailout for the industry. As it is, AMC Theaters already effectively kneecapped smaller theater chains in a hail mary attempt to keep themselves alive.
We mentioned Pixar's Soul as of James Bond: No Time To Die's date shift. As of right now, Disney has remained firm, but expect that to change in the coming weeks.
Dune will now release in theaters October 1st 2021, according to Collider.
