Dune: Part Two ended with Muad’dib fulfilling his own terrible vision and leading the Fremen in a galaxy-wide holy war. What happened after the Kwisatz Haderach left Arrakis? We’ll find out when director Denis Villeneuve completes his third and final film in the franchise, adapting the novel Dune: Messiah . Who will star in this upcoming spice epic? When will it be released? And what can we expect from the film? Here’s everything we know about Dune: Part Three so far.
Title
This Dune film is based on Frank Herbert’s Dune: Messiah, his second novel in the series. Denis Villeneuve has also stated that he is not making a traditional trilogy with his three films, but rather that he has made a “diptych” with his first two installments. However, the film’s official title still makes it read as the third film in a trilogy. It is called Dune: Part Three .
Dune: Part Three Plot
While there’s no official synopsis for the film yet, Villeneuve is adapting Frank Herbert’s Dune: Messiah . The director said the film, set approximately 12 years after the end of Part Two, will be “completely different” from the first two films and will “finish the Paul Atreides arc.”
Changes Villeneuve made to his first two films will have a butterfly effect on Dune: Part Three , but the novel’s synopsis provides a glimpse into the overall story. Here’s the Dune: Messiah synopsis from Frank Herbert’s official website :
Dune Messiah continues the story of Paul Atreides, better known—and feared—as the man christened Muad’dib. As emperor of the known universe, he wields more power than any single man was ever destined to wield. Worshipped as a religious icon by the fanatical Fremen, Paul faces the enmity of the political houses he displaced upon assuming the throne—and a conspiracy within his own sphere of influence.
And even as House Atreides begins to crumble around him from the machinations of his enemies, the real threat to Paulo comes from his lover, Chani, and the unborn heir to her family dynasty…
Behind the scenes
In addition to directing, Villeneuve once again co-wrote Dune: Part Three with Jon Spaihts. The two co-wrote the previous installments. The film comes from legendary images, with Warner Bros. Pictures serving as distributor.
The legendary Hans Zimmer will also return to the franchise to compose the score.
Production on Dune: Part Three officially began on July 7, 2025, in Budapest.
Dune: Part Three is cast
Dune: Part Three will see the return of Timothée Chalamet as Paul Atreides, Zendaya as Chani, Florence Pugh as Princess Irulan, and Anya Taylor-Joy as Paul’s sister Alia .
Jason Momoa also revealed/tipped that he will also be back as Duncan Idaho even though the character died in Dune: Part One. His son, Nakoa-Wolf Momoa, and Ida Brooke of Silo will join the franchise as Paul Atreides’ twin children, Leto II and Ghanima. In Dune: Messiah, they are also Chani’s children, but after the ending of Dune: Part Two, it’s unclear if this will still be true in Villeneuve’s adaptation.
Dune: Part Three will also introduce Robert Pattinson as Scytale, one of the main villains from Dune: Messiah .
It’s unclear whether Rebecca Ferguson will reprise her role as Paulo’s mother, Lady Jessia, but we hope she does .
Dune: Part Three Release Date
Dune: Part Three is set to hit theaters for its unholy holy war on December 18, 2026.
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