Warner Bros. Pictures is considering delaying some of its major 2023 releases, including Dune: Part Two and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, due to the ongoing labor strikes. As per a report by Variety, Warner Bros. Film Group is now looking to push director Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi epic from its November 2023 into 2024.
According to the report, Dune: Part Two being a co-production between Legendary Entertainment and Warner Bros. Pictures means that “both parties must agree on a new release date, said one insider. Legendary has yet to be approached by WB about a move, they added. Another source familiar with Warner Bros. said that releases are moving forward as originally planned and no formal discussions have been had, but noted that the duration of the union battles are completely unpredictable.”
As well as considering a movie for the Dune sequel, the studio is also now wondering whether the DC outing Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom and the upcoming musical The Color Purple would also benefit from being released next year.
The ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike, which has coincided with the Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike, means that actors cannot promote upcoming movies that have been made under studios associated with the AMPTP, with the strike stopping members from attending events such as premieres or taking part in press circuits. With no indication of how long the strike will go on for, Warner Bros. Pictures is clearly thinking about how these factors could impact promotion and box office for the likes of Dune: Part Two and the Aquaman follow-up.
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Dune 2, Aquaman 2 & The Color Purple Are All Set for Release at the End of 2023
Warner Bros. Pictures
Award-winning filmmaker Denis Villeneuve returns for Dune: Part Two, the next chapter of Frank Herbert’s celebrated novel Dune. Dune: Part Two will explore the mythic journey of Paul Atreides as he unites with Chani and the Fremen while on a warpath of revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family. Facing a choice between the love of his life and the fate of the known universe, he endeavors to prevent a terrible future only he can foresee.
Starring Timothée Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Stellan Skarsgård, Dave Bautista, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Zendaya, David Dastmalchian, Charlotte Rampling, and Javier Bardem, with Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, Christopher Walken, and Léa Seydoux joining the cast, Dune: Part Two is currently set to be released on November 3, 2023.
Aquaman and the Last Kingdom meanwhile will reunite several members of the cast from the first movie, including Jason Momoa, Amber Heard, Willem Dafoe, Patrick Wilson, Dolph Lundgren, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Temuera Morrison, and Nicole Kidman, and is currently due for release on December 20, 2023.
Finally, The Color Purple is based on the 1982 novel and stage musical, as well as being a remake of the 1985 movie directed by Steven Spielberg, and tells the story of the life-long struggles of an African American woman living in the south during the early 1900s. Produced by Oprah Winfrey, Steven Spielberg, Scott Sanders, and Quincy Jones, and starring Taraji P. Henson, Danielle Brooks, Colman Domingo, Corey Hawkins, H.E.R., and Halle Bailey, The Color Purple is currently scheduled to be released on December 25, 2023.
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