Cameras are now rolling on the third and final Dune movie (with Denis Villeneuve at the helm, at least), which will not be known as "Dune: Messiah" as we had assumed based on previous comments from the filmmaker.
Villeneuve confirmed that Dune: Part Three is now filming with a production still spotlighting the sands of Arrakis.
“First, it’s important that people understand that for me, it was really a diptych,” Villeneuve said of the first two movies in a recent interview. “It was really a pair of movies that will be the adaptation of the first book. That’s done and that’s finished. If I do a third one, which is in the writing process, it’s not like a trilogy. It’s strange to say that, but if I go back there, it’s to do something that feels different and has its own identity.”
Villeneuve has stated that he has no intention of helming any more movies in the franchise, but that doesn't mean Warner Bros. will stop making them! According to a recent rumor, the studio is planning to move forward with at least one more Dune movie, and they might be looking at Gareth Edwards (Rogue One, Godzilla, Jurassic World Rebirth) to take the helm.
The first two movies were big successes, but a fourth chapter would still be somewhat surprising given the direction Frank Herbert's saga goes in after the second book.
New cast addition for Part Three include Robert Pattinson as the villainous Skytale, with Nakoa-Wolf Momoa and Ida Brooke as the twin children of Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) and Chani (Zendaya), Leto II and Ghanima.
These characters are only introduced towards the end of Frank Herbert's second novel, before playing much larger roles in subsequent books. Given the ages of the actors playing the twins, this would obviously indicate that Villeneuve plans to incorporate at least some elements of Children of Dune.
Jason Momoa will also return as a "Ghola" of Duncan Idaho, as will Anya Taylor-Joy, who is set to play a much larger role as Alia Atreides.
The saga continues as award-winning filmmaker Denis Villeneuve embarks on Dune: Part Two, the next chapter of Frank Herbert’s celebrated novel Dune, with an expanded all-star international ensemble cast. The film, from Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures, is the highly anticipated follow-up to 2021’s six-time Academy Award-winning Dune.
The big-screen epic continues the adaptation of Frank Herbert’s acclaimed bestseller Dune with returning and new stars, including Oscar nominee Timothée Chalamet (Wonka, Call Me by Your Name), Zendaya (Spider-Man: No Way Home, Malcolm & Marie, Euphoria), Rebecca Ferguson (Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning), Oscar nominee Josh Brolin (Avengers: Endgame, Milk), Oscar nominee Austin Butler (Elvis, Once Upon A Time…In Hollywood), Oscar nominee Florence Pugh (Black Widow, Little Women), Dave Bautista (Guardians of the Galaxy, Thor: Love and Thunder), Oscar winner Christopher Walken (The Deer Hunter,), Stephen McKinley Henderson (Fences), Léa Seydoux (James Bond, Crimes of the Future), with Stellan Skarsgård (Avengers: Age of Ultron), Oscar nominee Charlotte Rampling (45 Years, Assassin’s Creed), and Oscar winner Javier Bardem (No Country for Old Men, Being the Ricardos).
Dune: Part Two will explore the mythic journey of Paul Atreides as he unites with Chani and the Fremen while on a warpath of revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family. Facing a choice between the love of his life and the fate of the known universe, he endeavors to prevent a terrible future only he can foresee.