‘Drive-Away Dolls’ eyes September exit; what’s involved in possible ‘Dune: Part Two’ spring 2024 move

While Searchlight’s Emma Stone, Yorgos Lanthimos bender, Poor Things, dodged from Sept. 8 to Dec. 8, even with a star-less Venice Film Festival premiere, note the studio has launched big pics at Venice before for awards season and rode that wave to an early December launch, read 2010’s Black Swan.

Separately, Drive-Away Dolls is eyeing a move off its Sept. 22 release date, largely because it’s dated against awards bait title, Dumb Money, which will have the gas of TIFF behind it. New date for the Margaret Qualley, Geraldine Viswanathan, Matt Damon, Pedro Pascal caper is TBD. If you glance at the Comscore calendar, Focus has Oct. 6 on hold for an untitled feature.

As of today, Dune: Part Two is not moving, but you if Zendaya with 200M social media followers can turn Challengers into a counterprogramming success, then she can certainly help in trumpeting the feature take of the Frank Herbert novel. Of course, it stands to reason that Villeneuve and Legendary are going to wait this sci-fi spectacle out; why would they allow it to become distribution collateral damage again?

I hear Legendary, which is the pilot seat here on the pic’s fate, is in wait and see mode, and has until September before Dune 2‘s next leg of marketing has to go.

If Dune: Part Two moves where does it go? I hear there are three spring options, and you just have to look at the release calendar: March, April or a break in the summer connected to a possible Cannes Film Festival launch. Warners already has the following dates on hold in regards to where Dune: Part Two could go: March 15 where Legendary has their next Godzilla/King Kong movie, April 19 which they have on reserve for an event title, or June 21 which is an untitled open slot for the Burbank lot.

But again, if AMPTP and SAG-AFTRA see eye-to-eye by Labor Day weekend, Dune: Part Two could stay exactly where it is on the calendar.