‘Dune: Part Three’ CinemaCon Preview: Denis Villeneuve Talks ‘New Direction’ and ‘Thriller’ Vibe for Final Entry in Series

On day two of CinemaCon, Warner Bros. took the audience of exhibitors assembled at Las Vegas’ Caesar’s Palace to Arrakis. During the studio’s Tuesday, April 14 presentation, exclusive footage of Denis Villeneuve’s “Dune: Part Three” was played, giving a closer look at the closing chapter of the Canadian director’s epic space opera. Villeneuve showcased the first seven minutes of the movie for the CinemaCon crowd, and it did not disappoint.

We witnessed a solemn group of warriors being sent to battle on a crowded transport ship, chanting as they get fired up for an uncertain fate, which turns out to be an intense blast of gunfire from a massive tower that bursts from the ground. There were none of the principles in the sequence, but it was staggeringly epic.

Villeneuve came out on the CinemaCon stage with his “entourage” of a massive army of people dressed in Fremen gear. He said he is going in a new direction and didn’t want to “walk in my own footsteps.” He called the first “Dune” more meditative, the second film more of a war film, and this new one more of a thriller. It takes place 17 years after “Part II” and is a “very different world,” Villeneuve said. “Paul is dealing with the consequences of his actions and decisions. It is more of a redemption story… but the heartbeat of the film is the love story between Chani and Paul.”

He was joined on stage by Jason Momoa, Zendaya, and Timothée Chalamet as well. Chalamet spoke about Paul becoming “his worst vision” and is “struggling to retain the parts of himself he retains the most,” and host of the event Patton Oswalt said the movie does not shy away from the darker parts of the source material. Momoa also explained his character is a new one named Hayt who has been born from the cells of Duncan Idaho, who died in the first film.

Chalamet also had some kind words for his director and the experience of working with Villeneuve over the last decade, calling him the true Paul Atreides and “The One,” on a different level.

Adapted from Frank Herbert’s sci-fi novel series, the “Dune” trilogy follows the journey of noble scion Paul Atreides (played in the films by Chalamet) as he comes into power over the dangerous and inhospitable desert planet Arrakis, which contains a powerful spice that makes it attractive to colonizers. The first two films, released in 2021 and 2024, adapted Herbert’s first “Dune” novel and told the story of how Paul’s family was betrayed and massacred by their rivals, House Harkonnen. By the conclusion of the second film, Paul had aligned with the native Fremen people of Arrakis to successfully defeat House Harkonnen and began a holy war against the Empire.

“Dune: Part 3” is based on the second novel in the series, “Dune: Messiah.” Published in 1969, the novel follows Paul, now the Emperor, as he grapples with a plot to dethrone him while grappling with the dark consequences his actions have had on the world. The film is slated to be the final in Villeneuve’s trilogy after he confirmed plans to adapt the novel back in 2021 prior to the release of the first “Dune” film.

Aside from Chalamet, the “Dune” movies feature a large ensemble cast. Zendaya, Momoa, Florence Pugh, Rebecca Ferguson, Charlotte Rampling, Anya Taylor-Joy, Javier Bardem, and Josh Brolin reprise their roles from the first two films, while Robert Pattinson and Isaach de Bankolé join the cast as new characters. The films are produced by Legendary Pictures and are the third filmed adaptation of the “Dune” novels after David Lynch’s 1984 adaptation starring Kyle MacLachlan and a SyFy limited series released in 2000.

The “Dune” films have received critical acclaim and are widely commercially successful, with the first grossing $411 million and the second grossing $715 million. Collectively, they have been nominated for 15 Academy Awards, winning eight.

“Dune: Part Tree” releases in theaters December 18.