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The Legendary–Lionsgate ‘Dune’ Drama

After a months-long secret dispute over foreign adaptation rights, the two studios recently reached a settlement in which Legendary forked over a pittance—just $13 million to resolve the claim. Perhaps not surprisingly, Legendary and Lionsgate are now in early talks about a potential merger…

Dune
The Denis Villeneuve blockbuster—which would gross more than $700 million globally—was being framed as a copyright infringement. To make matters worse, Lionsgate’s claim wasn’t entirely ridiculous. Photo: Courtesy of Legendary Pictures
Eriq Gardner
July 29, 2025

A year ago, Legendary Pictures was confronted with a genuine sci-fi nightmare. Just as its Dune: Part Two rolled into theaters, the studio received an unexpected letter from Lionsgate claiming that it, not Legendary, held the foreign adaptation rights to Frank Herbert’s 1965 epic about political power, prophecy, and giant sandworms. In other words, the Denis Villeneuve blockbuster—which would gross more than $700 million globally—was being framed as a copyright infringement. To make matters worse, Lionsgate’s claim wasn’t entirely ridiculous.