Dune 2 Depends On Part One’s Streaming Performance, Say Sources

Even though Director Denis Villeneuve and lead star Timothée Chalamet have expressed their desires to work on Dune 2, its sequel totally depends on how well it does on HBO Max, as reported by Variety

Dune is a complex sci-fi adventure world based on Frank Herbert’s famous novel of the same name. Villeneuve’s high-quality movie is the second adaptation, and multiple experts already have doubts about the movie being a financial success.

David Lynch’s 1984 Dune was the first movie adaptation that tanked real bad at the box office. Among the many reasons for its failure, one was the inability to make the complex world easy to follow. Villeneuve’s Dune also raises similar doubts.

The sequel being greenlit by Warner Bros. highly depends on how Dune 1 performs. After being delayed thrice with a hybrid release, it’s yet to see if the movie will turn out financially successful.

Dune: Part One is riding on a massive $165 million budget from Warner Bros. According to Variety, HBO still hasn’t given the go-ahead for Dune’s sequel.

Insiders also state that Dune 2 will only be given the nod after looking at the first film’s performance on HBO Max.

Considering Dune: The Sisterhood a prequel spinoff series, is already in production at HBO, it seems that both HBO and Warner Bros. are taking cautious steps towards giving more money to a risk-taking movie.

It’s unclear whether a hybrid release works in favor of Dune 2 or against it.

Director Villeneuve, along with many, has been pretty vocal about expressing his disappointment in the same day-and-date release of the movie. He described Dune: Part One as a “tribute to the big-screen experience.”

However, with the pandemic making things difficult for the movie industry, studio executives have stated that performance on HBO Max is usually in line with ticket sales.

So if Dune flops at the box office, there’s a significant chance that it’ll go unwatched on the streaming platform too. Eventually, making it impossible to get a nod for the sequel.

Villeneuve’s passion for the cinema (and a sequel) and a star cast of Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Oscars Isaac, Rebecca Ferguson, and Jason Mamoa, for now, seem to be the only driving force for fans to watch the movie and make it successful.

Dune: Part One will be released on October 22, 2021, in theaters and HBO Max.

About Dune

Dune (also known as Dune: Part One) is an American sci-fi film based on Frank Herbert’s novel of the same name, directed by Denis Villeneuve.

Part One introduced the planet of Dune/Arrakis, the only place where the enhancer drug “Melange” is found and sought out by many. The Atreides House is sent to the planet as the ruling Duke, as part of their adversaries’ trap. However, the Atreides are aware of the same and aim to defend Dune and their house.

The ensemble cast is made up of Timothée Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac, Josh Brolin, Stellan Skarsgård, Dave Bautista, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Zendaya, David Dastmalchian, Chang Chen, Sharon Duncan-Brewster, Charlotte Rampling, Jason Momoa, and Javier Bardem.

Source: Variety