Following a leak, Epic Games confirms Fortnite is getting Dune-themed skins and items in the item shop, allowing players to spice things up as Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) or Chani (Zendaya) starting today, October 19. Fortnite is no stranger to crossovers with feature films, but this is one of the more unique examples to appear in the games since the Denis Villeneuve movie hasn't quite been presented as a mass appeal blockbuster in the vein of past partners like Avengers: Endgame.

The new Dune Fortnite skins leaked earlier in the week ahead of the official reveal, spoiling the surprise to a large extent for many. Fortnite has had a number of marketing partnerships with films over the years, with recent examples including films like Free Guy and Shang-Chi. The game has cemented itself as a successful way to market upcoming media by reaching a massive audience in-game and online, as the buzz generated by these ambitious crossovers reverberate far beyond the confines of Fortnite itself.

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Starting today, Dune is joining that conversation as new skins and cosmetics have been added to Fortnite, making Timothée Chalamet's Paul Atreides and Zendaya's Chani playable. Players will also be able to equip a Dune-themed Ornithopter glider, pickaxes, and emotes themed after the upcoming movie. The two starring actors announced the new additions in the Fortnite trailer below.

Recently, Fortnite added Carnage and Venom skins for Venom: Let There Be Carnage's premiere. It seems like a growing number of major blockbuster movies are tying in with Fortnite in one way or another, but this could perhaps prove to be a critical part of Dune's marketing push. While Marvel movies don't have much of an issue raking in money at the box office, Dune is a bigger financial risk. It's the first part of a two-part story, but the second part hasn't gotten the official greenlight from Warner Bros., and the 1984 movie adaptation was a box office bomb. The studio is waiting to see how the first film performs on its massive budget before committing to an equally, if not more, expensive sequel.

Targeting the Fortnite playerbase to get more people in theater seats or watching on HBO Max during Dune's opening weekend could be vital for a sequel. With Fortnite crossing over with franchises like Bad Boys and more, it seems clear it's just as much of a marketing tool as it is a video game. Whether or not this is actually paying dividends for these studios is likely hard to measure, but Epic Games' partners seem to continue turning to its game for marketing signal-boosting, so it must be working to some extent.

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Fortnite is available on all platforms.

Source: Fortnite/YouTube