There is absolutely no doubt about it: Avengers: Doomsday is shaping up to be one of the biggest movies of the year. We've all been anticipating it since Marvel Studios made it official at San Diego Comic-Con 2024, announcing that Robert Downey Jr. would return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe in the repackaged Avengers 5 to play infamous villain Doctor Doom. And now, it's just months away.
The film will arrive in movie theaters on December 18, 2026, and it's going to be a game-changer for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, something else that could potentially be a game-changer for that particular date is the release of Dune: Part Three. The epic conclusion to the Denis Villeneuve saga comes out on the same day and, well, both studios have confirmed that neither one is relenting.
Dunesday is official as neither Avengers nor Dune will move from December 18
It's official: Dunesday is a go. The affectionately-crafted nickname for the day that both Avengers: Doomsday and Dune: Part Three will release in theaters is a play on the Barbenheimer movement - which saw fans flock to theaters on the same day in 2023 to watch both Barbie and Oppenheimer. What was once a fear that two major movies opening opposite each other might harm their own box office takings ended up offering up a significant box office boost to both films. Can Dunesday do the same for the two big December blockbusters? It's going to have to because it looks like it's going ahead.
Despite both Dune 3 and Avengers: Doomsday holding their December 18 release date, fans thought one of them might move. But the release of the first official Dune 3 trailer has officially confirmed that it's sticking by its plan. And, according to a report from Variety, neither it nor Avengers: Doomsday will be shifting. Disney's annual shareholders meeting also reiterated that as it saw the studio confirm that the Avengers' next big screen showdown will also release on December 18. And with that, we have a showdown: Both movies epic in size - and, oddly enough, starring Florence Pugh in a main role - set to do battle on the grandest cinematic stage of them all.
The question is: Will Dunesday help or hinder the films involved? It's a bit more complicated than the Barbenheimer one. While that movement was a surprise, it's clear to see why it worked: Both films were so strikingly different that it became "iconic" to go and see such vastly unique projects back-to-back. The seriousness of Oppenheimer was such a drastically different vibe to the light-hearted, empowering nature of Barbie. This was illustrated in the wardrobe changes fans partook in for each film (black for Oppenheimer and pink for Barbie).
While Avengers: Doomsday is a superhero movie and Dune: Part Three is a sci-fi / fantasy epic, there is more than enough crossover there - both in subject matter and in terms of their respective core audiences. Avengers is set in a world where sci-fi / fantasy happens ever day and you can rest assured that the conclusion of the Multiverse Saga will feature plenty of both. And, as for Dune 3, Paul Atreides has essentially become a superhero to world of pop-culture.
Even if there wasn't that much crossover, they are both major parts of the nerd-culture landscape, appealing to the same - or similar - demographics. Now, that could go one of two ways: On one hand, plenty of people will come out to be a part of the Dunesday movement, seeing both films in a bid to fully consume the experience in the same way that the moviegoers who took part in the Barbenheimer movement did. That's the best case scenario as it's best for the box office - both in general and with respect to both films, too.
However, there's also the concern that it could effectively "split the vote". General moviegoers who would have genuinely gone to see both of these movies on their respective opening weekend may feel that they have to choose this time around. It also puts them in automatic competition with each other, as one of them will win the battle of the box office on opening weekend. And if one of them underperforms because of this, they come out of the loser.
That takes us to the reason that Marvel fans are concerned. Although Avengers: Doomsday has all the makings of a global phenomenon due to the franchise that it belongs to, the MCU has had more lows throughout the Multiverse Saga than it ever has before. Thus, there isn't the same level of buzz heading into Doomsday as there was for 2018's Avengers: Infinity War or 2019's Avengers: Endgame, which both brought about the epic conclusion to the Infinity Saga. It needs to succeed so that the rather divisive Multiverse Saga can end on a high. Not only is a sequel set to come out in 2027, this two-part grand finale has to set the stage for the MCU's next chapter - therefore it must be a success story.
And yet, many of us are expecting Avengers: Doomsday to be the biggest movie of the year - with only Spider-Man: Brand New Day being capable of outperforming it. The film is expected to cross the $1 billion mark relatively quickly, making it the third Multiverse Saga movie to do that. The question is whether it could match the heights of the previous two Avengers movies, which both crossed the $2 billion mark. Without the China market - which hasn't responded to recent MCU movies - that would be a tall task. It's not impossible (Spider-Man: No Way Home brought in $1.9 billion without a release in China) but all of the stars would have to align for that to happen, and it's currently unclear if that could happen.
The return of Robert Downey Jr. and the long-awaited debut of Doctor Doom are certainly turning the tide. Prior to the Doomsday rebrand, Avengers 5 was set to focus on the Multiverse Saga's original big bad Kang the Conqueror but Marvel Studios ultimately moved away from the character and deemed Doctor Doom more must-see. We're going to find out how must-see fans consider him on December 18.
With all of that in mind, Dunesday could quite literally make or break both Avengers: Doomsday and Dune: Part Three. Both of these films would have been box office champions if they had been released on separate weeks, but now there can only be one No. 1 on that particular weekend. The one that pulls it off just might win the battle, too.
Needless to say, Marvel fans are hoping that Avengers: Doomsday is the one that walks away with the crown. There is no doubt that this would create even more buzz heading into 2027's sequel Avengers: Secret Wars.