It's Barbenheimer 2.0 for Robert Downey Jr. as he and Timothée Chalamet joke about Avengers: Doomsday and Dune: Part 3 releasing on the same day: "We'll see if we're still friends by then"

Although it's still January, we're already thinking about December 2026 when two of the year's biggest movies, Avengers: Doomsday and Dune: Part 3, release on the same day. That's right, it's Barbenheimer all over again.

However, stars Robert Downey Jr. and Timothée Chalamet are seeing the funny side of it and have even come up with the perfect title. "We've decided to coin it. We're thinking Dunesday," said Downey Jr at a Q&A event for Chalamet's new movie Marty Supreme in Los Angeles, which was later posted on Twitter. The Marvel star then jokingly added, "We'll see if we're still friends by then."

Avengers: Doomsday marks former Iron Man star Downey Jr.'s introduction to the MCU as villain Doctor Doom, who will have to battle a whole host of classic and new Marvel heroes returning for the fifth Avengers picture. Dune: Part 3 is also shaping up to be a rather huge cinematic event, closing off Denis Villeneuve's Dune series as we know it.

This isn't Downey Jr.'s first rodeo, as the Oppenheimer star experienced Barbenheimer firsthand back in July 2023 when Christopher Nolan's epic was released on the same day as Greta Gerwig's Barbie. The rivalry actually caused an influx of ticket sales after it became a trend to watch both titles one after the other, creating the most unlikely double feature. The trend became so popular that Barbie went on to win the Golden Globe Award for Cinematic and Box Office Achievement.

The Dunesday double feature perhaps makes a little bit more sense, with both movies leaning into similar genres.

Both Avengers: Doomsday and Dune: Part 3 will release on December 18, 2026. For more, check out our upcoming movies, and keep up to date with movie release dates.