While the WarnerMedia/Discovery merger won't be completed until mid-2022, it looks like we're already seeing changes over at Warner Bros. Pictures as Deadline is now reporting that Denis Villeneuve's Dune will no longer release day-and-date in theaters and on HBO Max, but will instead debut exclusively in theaters.
Warner Bros. representatives are strongly denying the change to the film's release plan and still claim that the film will open simultaneously, but DHD seems confident in their reporting, and may simply have gotten the jump on the official announcement.
It's also quite telling that WB has already reached a deal with Regal Cinemas to restore a 45-day exclusive theatrical window to their 2022 releases, so it probably shouldn't come as a surprise that Dune was added to the agreement, especially considering Villeneuve's vocal dissatisfaction with the controversial day-and-date approach.
Collider adds that Dune will likely be the studio's only film to forgo the simultaneous release model this year, with both Will Smith's King Richard and Clint Eastwood's Cry Macho still expected to follow the current release plan. No word on what could happen with James Gunn's The Suicide Squad or Keanu Reeves' The Matrix 4, but both are strong candidates to follow Dune's lead - although it may be too late in the marketing process for the former.
The film boasts an incredibly impressive cast, which includes Academy Award-nominee Timothée Chalamet (Call Me by Your Name; Little Women), Rebecca Ferguson (Mission: Impossible - Fallout; Doctor Sleep), Oscar Isaac (Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker; X-Men: Apocalypse), Academy Award-nominee Josh Brolin (Avengers: Endgame; Avengers: Infinity War), Stellan Skarsgård (Chernobyl; Avengers: Age of Ultron), Dave Bautista (Avengers: Endgame; Guardians of the Galaxy), Stephen McKinley Henderson (Fences; Lady Bird), Zendaya (Spider-Man: Far From Home; Euphoria), David Dastmalchian (Blade Runner 2049; Ant-Man and the Wasp), Chang Chen (Mr. Long; Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon), Sharon Duncan-Brewster (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story; Sex Education), with Academy Award-nominee Charlotte Rampling (45 Years; Assassin’s Creed), with Jason Momoa (Aquaman; Game of Thrones), and Academy Award-winner Javier Bardem (No Country for Old Men; Skyfall).
In addition to directing, Villeneuve also co-wrote the script with Jon Spaihts (Doctor Strange; The Mummy) and Eric Roth (Forrest Gump; The Curious Case of Benjamin Button).
Dune was planned to be the first part of a two-part film adaptation of the immensely popular sci-fi novel of the same name written by Frank Herbert.
It's currently slated to hits theaters on October 1.