Dune Might Make World Premiere at Venice Film Festival

Director Denis Villeneuve‘s adaptation of Frank Herbert’s Dune was originally slated to hit theaters last year, only for the coronavirus pandemic to result in the film being pushed to this October, though a new report from Variety claims that the film could make its world premiere a few weeks early at the Venice Film Festival. The Venice Film Festival is currently slated to kick off on September 1st, while the film is currently slated to officially be released on October 1st, with the ambitious blend of sci-fi and fantasy sure to be appealing to the international audience that the festival typically draws.

Variety did note, however, that neither Warner Bros. nor the festival itself confirmed these suspicions.

A mythic and emotionally charged hero’s journey, Dune tells the story of Paul Atreides, a brilliant and gifted young man born into a great destiny beyond his understanding, who must travel to the most dangerous planet in the universe to ensure the future of his family and his people. As malevolent forces explode into conflict over the planet’s exclusive supply of the most precious resource in existence-a commodity capable of unlocking humanity’s greatest potential-only those who can conquer their fear will survive.

The spread of the pandemic and subsequent closure of movie theaters resulted in virtually every studio, and in-person film festival, taking unconventional approaches to cope with the situation. While some festivals pivoted to online festivities, most films pushed back their releases by months or even as much as a year. Warner Bros., on the other hand, took a more unexpected approach, as they announced that their entire slate of 2021 films would be debuting both in theaters and on HBO Max on the same day.

While this convenience excited some fans, it disappointed a number of filmmakers, not only because their films were crafted specifically to be witnessed on the big screen, but also because an in-home debut would likely stifle box office success. Villeneuve, for example, shared an open letter in which he claimed an in-home debut would prevent the series from moving forward, despite plans having already been crafted for a follow-up.

Last month, however, a report claimed that the success of Godzilla vs. Kong could see Dune skipping an HBO Max release.

Deadline detailed the situation, “It hasn’t been decided yet if Legendary’s other Warner Bros. title Dune will go day and date theatrical and on HBO Max. This is despite the fact that the latter streaming service keeps promoting it as part of their 2021 suite. The success of Godzilla vs. Kong this past weekend makes a clear argument in Legendary’s negotiations with Warner to keep that all-star sci-fi movie strictly in theaters.”

Stay tuned for details on Dune before it releases later this year.

Are you looking forward to the new film? Let us know in the comments below!