Denis Villeneuve’s “Dune: Part Three” is scheduled for release on December 18, 2026 — the same day as “Avengers: Doomsday.”
Do we have another “Barbenheimer” on our hands? “Dunesday?” Or will one of these two films shift its release date? It’s unusual that two fanboy-driven blockbusters would hold the same opening weekend. Part of what made “Barbenheimer” work was that the films were radically different and didn’t compete for the same audience.
Jeff Sneider said on a recent episode of The Hot Mic that his sources are adamant the film is not moving from its December 18 release date. Matt Belloni echoed that intel on The Town podcast, adding that Warner Bros. has doubled down, saying they claimed the date first and have confirmed they’re not budging.
I fully expected Warners to blink and move ‘Dune 3’ up the calendar, ideally to October or November, but that now seems unlikely. A splashy premiere at the Venice Film Festival would have been easily secured, and maybe Warner Bros. will still blink, but for now, they’re holding their ground.
‘Dune 3’ wrapped shooting in November and is currently in the middle of what will be a lengthy post-production process. Meanwhile, ‘Doomsday’ had wrapped a few months earlier, but is booked for reshoots in January, while the film is surely being edited as we speak.
Are Warner Bros. really planning to go head-to-head with a potential juggernaut like “Avengers: Doomsday”? If that’s the case then I say, why not? Movie theaters desperately need another “Barbenheimer” and this would surely do the trick.