Dune and Godzilla vs. Kong Sequels Get New Release Dates
Warner Bros. and Legendary are shuffling some dates. According to Deadline, Dune: Part Two, originally scheduled to hit theaters on October 20, 2023, has been pushed back to November 17, 2023. The sequel to last year’s Dune – or Dune: Part One, I guess – was set to release on the same day as The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, a prequel to the popular dystopian sci-fi series. The date, Deadline notes, is one Warner Bros. has used several times in the past to launch big movies, but they decided not to take their chances against a long-running franchise entry. Warner Bros. and Legendary have also set a date for a sequel to Godzilla vs. Kong, which will release on March 15, 2024. The date had previously been reserved for a mysterious DC movie that either hasn’t materialized or won’t be ready in time.
It’s too bad about Dune: Part Two being held back. I know it’s not that much in the grand scheme, and it was already over a year out, but I loved Part One, and it’s not a sequel so much as the second half of a larger movie, so it’s like waiting to finish something you’ve already begun rather than waiting to start something new. The last few added cast members have only sweetened the deal, with Christopher Walken, Florence Pugh, and Léa Seydoux mining spice in Arrakis. I understand avoiding a Hunger Games movie, though; although the first one did surprisingly well, its competition had already been out for at least two weeks when it premiered. Another Godzilla vs. Kong excites me less, but if it’s more like the previous one – with plenty of giant gorilla vs. atomic lizard action – and less like the boring-as-tube-socks Godzilla solo movies, I’m up for another fun monster mash. Apparently, Dan Stevens will be playing the new lead character; Stevens also starred in director Adam Wingard’s The Guest, which is excellent, and I’m sure he’ll be… as good as the actor playing the obtrusive human everyone wants to go away so we can watch monsters kick each other into buildings can be. (But if you haven’t seen The Guest, it’s great; so is Wingard’s You’re Next.) Regardless of the wait time, some cool sci-fi flicks are on the horizon, of one stripe or another.
Are you bummed to have to wait an extra month for Dune: Part Two? Do you enjoy the Monsterverse? Is Gamera waiting in the wings to give everyone a beatdown? Let us know in the comments, and stick around Geeks + Gamers for more shifting release dates!
