A special Dune: Part Three prologue is playing in select 70mm theaters this weekend with Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey, and, as we first reported on SFFGazette.com, it has now leaked online in its entirety.
The preview opens with a message of gratitude from Denis Villeneuve to Nolan, and what follows is four minutes of breathtaking, pulse-pounding action. As war erupts on Arrakis, the filmmaker delivers an engrossing, haunting take on war that establishes how high-stakes this conclusion to the trilogy really is.
Dune: Part Three has IMAX theaters to itself this December, leaving Avengers: Doomsday to make do with "Infinity Vision." If this is the sort of action we can expect from the threequel, then it's hard to argue that the Dune finale doesn't deserve those screens.
Will this prologue be officially released? It's certainly possible, but we wouldn't bank on it. This is a theater-exclusive preview, and we only recently got a full trailer for the movie. The intention behind this footage is to sell audiences on buying a ticket for IMAX screens on December 18, and based on this leak, it's mission accomplished.
When an extended look at Dune: Part Three was shown at CinemaCon in April, this sequence was hailed as being like Saving Private Ryan in space. If that was Villeneuve's intention, then he's arguably upped the ante with an opening battle that's among the biggest we've seen in a movie.
While the footage is being removed from social media platforms almost as quickly as it appears, fans have uploaded it to various video hosting websites, meaning it can still be found here (for now, at least).
Dune: Part Three is set nearly two decades after Paul Atreides seized control of the Imperium. Now a ruthless Emperor, Paul must face the consequences of his reign as old allies return, terrifying new threats emerge, and betrayal lurks in every shadow.
Haunted by visions of Imperial collapse and the reappearance of his long-lost love, Paul is drawn into a sweeping conspiracy, with Chani at the heart of its unfolding mystery. As rebellion brews and enemies close in, Paul must confront the true cost of power and the fate of those he loves the most.
The film stars Oscar nominee Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Jason Momoa, Oscar nominee Florence Pugh, Rebecca Ferguson, Isaach de Bankolé, Oscar nominee Charlotte Rampling, Anya Taylor-Joy, Robert Pattinson, and Oscar winner Javier Bardem.
Denis Villeneuve directs from a screenplay by himself and Brian K. Vaughan (this is the first chapter of the trilogy not penned by Jon Spaihts), based on the novels written by Frank Herbert.
Dune: Part Three is produced by Oscar nominees Mary Parent, Cale Boyter, Villeneuve and Tanya Lapointe, and Joe Caracciolo, and executive produced by Joshua Grode, Thomas Tull, Herbert W. Gains, Brian Herbert, Byron Merritt, Kim Herbert, Kevin J. Anderson, Richard P. Rubinstein, John Harrison and Jessica Derhammer.
The epic conclusion to the trilogy arrives in theaters on December 18,