The 60th anniversary of Frank Herbert’s Dune will arrive in 2025, but the real party begins this week with the premiere of Dune: Part Two. Almost all of the advance reviews and reactions have been extremely positive, and the box office has been starved for a hit movie since Timothée Chalamet’s last film, Wonka, was an unexpected success in December. Having two hits in a row is going to do a lot for Chalamet’s reputation as a box-office star.
But the real attraction of Dune: Part Two is the film itself, which is a masterful sci-fi spectacle from director Denis Villeneuve, who finally has the blockbuster numbers to go with his breathtaking genre movies. Villeneuve has often said that he wants fans to see Dune: Part Two on the biggest screens possible. But for movie lovers who don’t want to go out to the theater, we’re going to tell you whether Dune: Part Two is already streaming.
Is Dune: Part Two streaming?
No. Warner Bros. made that mistake with the first Dune movie, and the studio likely left millions on the table. In 2021, Warner Bros. put out its entire movie slate on a day-and-date theatrical and streaming premiere in a bid to drive subscribers to the streaming service formerly known as HBO Max. Legendary Entertainment, the company that produced Dune and put up most of the money to make it, was incensed that the grand plans to turn it into a franchise could have been jeopardized by Warner Bros.’ unilateral decision to embrace streaming at all costs.
At one point, there were rumors that Legendary was considering legal action to prevent Dune from being included in HBO Max’s streaming premieres. That ultimately did not come to pass, and Dune was given the same simultaneous release as every other WB movie in 2021. The key difference between Dune and the rest of WB’s films that year is that it actually made $434.8 million worldwide and $110 million domestically during a time when the box office hadn’t recovered from the pandemic. By bucking that trend, Dune secured a greenlight for Dune: Part Two. Yet, given the strong response that it got at the time, Dune could have almost certainly earned more if it had been a theatrical exclusive release.
When will Dune: Part Two be available to stream?
Because all early indications are that Dune: Part Two will be a hit, Warner Bros. Discovery will not be in a hurry to bring it to Max. As long as there’s money to be made in the theaters, that’s where Dune: Part Two will stay. The weak 2024 box office schedule may even work to this film’s advantage because there’s not much competition until March 22 when Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire arrives in theaters. Kung Fu Panda 4 may siphon off some of Dune: Part Two‘s audience next weekend, but it would be an upset if DreamWorks Animation’s sequel will top this film.
If we have to make a guess for Dune: Part Two‘s premiere date on Max, it will probably be in mid-summer, likely around July.
Dune: Part Two is now playing in theaters.
