PDWT_12 said:
I don't think they were ever going to make part two immediately after part one. Villenueve signed a two movie deal, but it was always going to be Warner Bros waiting to see how much money the first part made before they turned him lose for a sequel
The pandemic delaying the first movie has really thrown a wrench in Villenueve's schedule going forward (as well as many people in the cast I'm sure), and he complained publicly (similar to Nolan) about the same day theater and HBO Max release that WB had planned for all its future releases. I think a lot of that has been smoothed over, but seems like Dune doing well at the box office (Not a guarantee for DV's movies) and timing to work out just right may have to happen for us to get the second part.
Just FYI, this strategy is a 2021 thing only. For instance,
The Batman in March is currently set to be a theatrical exclusive, along with all of Warner Bros.' 2022 and beyond releases. That could very well change, of course, and at some point WB will probably adopt a strategy similar to Paramount+ (on streaming 45 days after the theatrical release), but for now the day-and-date HBO Max strategy ends with
The Matrix Resurrections on December 16.