Sci-fi epic Dune release date pushed back to October 2021

Timothee Chalomet (left) in Dune, which garnered huge buzz from its dazzling trailer. Photo / Supplied

2020's great movie pushback continues, with news that the highly anticipated Dune remake now won't hit cinemas until October 2021 – almost a year after its initial planned release date.

The sci-fi epic, adapted by director Denis Villeneuve from Frank Herbert's seminal novel, released its first trailer last month to wild excitement.

The cast includes Timothee Chalamet, Oscar Isaac, Josh Brolin, Rebecca Ferguson, Javier Bardem, Jason Momoa, Dave Bautista, Stellan Skarsgard and Zendaya, uniting for one of the most anticipated blockbusters of the decade.

Originally set for a November release, Dune was then moved to a Boxing Day 2020 release, then underwent a schedule change a week after the trailer dropped – and was moved forward a week, to December 17.

Now, sci-fi fans have woken to the news they won't be able to see the hotly anticipated film for another year: Dune's new release date is October 1, 2021.

It's among a slew of blockbuster pushbacks as the movie industry grapples with how to fill cinemas during a global pandemic.

No Time To Die has also been postponed until next year. Photo / AP

No Time To Die, the latest instalment in the James Bond franchise, was meant to hit cinemas back in April, before being delayed until November - last week, it got pushed to April 2.

Also hit by pandemic pushbacks: Wonder Woman 1984, which had already been delayed pre-coronavirus and has this year moved from August to October to its current release date of Christmas.

The question now is how long cinema chains worldwide can hold out without any traditional blockbusters to show in them. Cinema giant Cineworld announced last week that they would close all their UK and US cinemas indefinitely, leaving as many as 45,000 workers unemployed. The move has shuttered 536 cinemas in the US and 127 across the UK.

"Cineworld will continue to monitor the situation closely and will communicate any future plans to resume operations in these markets at the appropriate time, when key markets have more concrete guidance on their reopening status," a company spokesperson said.