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It seems Denis Villeneuve is ready to get sand-traumatized again. With awards season bearing down upon us, there's a strong chance the filmmaker will be spending the next several months gathering accolades left and right for "Dune: Part Two." Despite releasing in the first quarter of the year, Villeneuve's "Dune" sequel remains one of the most critically-acclaimed films of 2024 and is practically assured to be in the running for several Oscar categories at the 2025 Academy Awards ceremony. Not that Villeneuve is waiting around; he's currently got several irons in the fire, including a movie adaptation of author Annie Jacobsen's nonfiction book "Nuclear War: A Scenario" (via The Hollywood Reporter) and, oh right, "Dune 3."

The filmmaker's third trip to Arrakis is expected to adapt the second entry in Frank Herbert's original "Dune" novel sextet, 1969's "Dune Messiah," and only "Messiah". While it shouldn't be quite as monumental an...

When it was first announced that Anya Taylor-Joy had a cameo in "Dune: Part Two," no further information was provided. Fans remained none the wiser about who the "Queen's Gambit" star was playing or how big her role would be. Then, the movie arrived and what this strange "Dune: Part Two" cameo actually meant remained somewhat of a mystery for those not following too closely or who hadn't read Frank Herbert's "Dune" novels.

During her uncredited cameo, which lasts less than a minute in a film that runs for a full 167 of them, Taylor-Joy is seen traversing the desert in one of Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet)'s visions. She then turns towards camera as her voice is heard saying, "You are not prepared for what is to come. You'll now learn the truth about our family, and it will hurt you to the core. Paul, don't worry, I'm with you.

Denis Villeneuve's last two feature films were 2021's "Dune" and 2024's "Dune: Part Two," collectively an adaptation of Frank Herbert's celebrated 1965 sci-fi epic set in the distant, distant future. Villeneuve's "Dune" films removed a lot of the eerie mysticism of Herbert's works, focusing instead on the book's sociopolitical underpinnings. They told a story of how religions are deliberately wielded by cynical political power-seekers to topple existing regimes, and how those regimes can, in turn, be manipulated by different shady religious zealots. The main character of the film was Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet), a young prince who escaped assassination, fled into the deserts of the planet Arrakis, took solace among the remote desert-dwelling people, and -- thanks to the machinations of his mother -- became the desert's Messiah. He then returned to overthrow the killer Harkonnen family.

All of this, it should be noted, was to gain control of Arrakis,...

Get ready for an onslaught of "Dune" material now that Hollywood has recognized there's quite an audience for author Frank Herbert's revered sci-fi saga. Not only do we have the upcoming Max series "Dune: Prophecy," the trailer for which reveals several sacrifices will be made, but we'll also see the return of Timothée Chalamet's Paul Atreides in a third movie from sci-fi maestro Denis Villeneuve.

After "Dune: Part Two" proved massively popular at a time when the box office wasn't exactly at its peak, you better believe Legendary Pictures decided to keep the spice flowing with a third "Dune" movie. The next installment in Villeneuve's epic saga looks likely to be an adaptation of the second novel in Herbert's original run, with Villeneuve previously revealing his eagerness to adapt "Dune Messiah." At this point, the man can basically do no wrong, having proven Herbert's supposedly "unfilmable...

The Streaming Wars are over and there is a clear winner — surprise, surprise, it's Netflix. Joining the pile of companies reconsidering this whole streaming thing is Apple TV+, which is now vowing to stop throwing so much money at shows no one watches. Apple TV+ is watched and used about as much as U2's "Songs of Innocence" was listened to when it got released on iTunes for free, with Bloomberg reporting that Apple TV+ "generates less viewing in one month than Netflix does in one day."

When every studio and company began launching its own streaming service, there was an outcry over the return of cable but worse, which is something no one liked and is the reason so many of us flooded to Netflix in the first place. However, the overabundance of streamers also came with the opportunity for variety and specialization. Just as Hulu had long been...

A third "Dune" movie is in the works from Legendary and director Denis Villeneuve, but it may be a while until it reaches audiences: The Hollywood Reporter recently shared the news that his next film is due in theaters December 2026, and it may not even be a "Dune" sequel. Cinema fans should get excited for any new project from the filmmaker who's also brought us movies like "Blade Runner 2049" and "Arrival," but sci-fi fans understandably can't wait to see the director return to the world of Arrakis.

When Villeneuve's "Dune: Messiah" adaptation does appear, it'll follow a tricky chapter in Frank Herbert's book series. As /Film's Michael Boyle pointed out in a piece written after the third film's announcement, "Dune: Messiah" sidelines one of the franchise's most important characters, Rebecca Ferguson's now-villainous Lady Jessica. "Although Jessica was arguably the co-protagonist of the first book, she spends...

This article contains dune spoilers for across the saga.

Even the most casual Dune fan knows that, at some point, there’s a giant worm boy. Since its first printing in 1981, Frank Herbert’s fourth book in the franchise, God Emperor of Dune, has proudly displayed a human/sandworm hybrid on its cover. Dune fans know that hybrid as Leto II, the son of Paul Atreides and Chani, who melds with a sandworm and becomes an all-powerful tyrant. Leto II is also one of the most fantastic elements of the Dune franchise, a series already filled with images wonderful and bizarre. God Emperor of Dune also isn’t part of Denis Villeneuve‘s planned series of films based on the first three Herbert books.

To the faithful, the idea of introducing sandworm Leto during the events of Dune Messiah is as painful as anything endured in the Gom Jabbar. But...

This article contains spoilers for "Dune: Part Two."

Denis Villeneuve's "Dune: Part Two" takes a few departures from Frank Herbert's original novel, perhaps most notably in the omission of Alia Atreides. Alia is Paul's young sister, born while he and his mother Jessica had survived the Harkonnen massacre and were hiding out with the desert-dwelling Fremen. In the book, Alia grows to toddlerhood supernaturally fast and already possesses a spate of eerie Bene Gesserit mental powers. She's also the one who, as a toddler, knifed the evil Baron Harkonnen to death.

Villeneuve figured that shooting in the desert with a toddler would be difficult and uncomfortable for a young actor, so he transformed Alia into a more abstract character. Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson) now has psychic conversations with the still-growing fetus inside her womb, while Paul (Timothée Chalamet) has a dreamlike vision of an adult Alia, seemingly contacting him from the future.

This article contains likely spoilers for Dune: Part Three as well as the books Dune Messiah and Children of Dune.

You are not prepared for what is to come. These are the words of promise, or prophecy, in Anya Taylor-Joy’s lone scene in Dune: Part Two. Whether the sequence is a kind of psychic chat room occurring between Paul “Muad’Dib” Atreides (Timothée Chalemet) and his unborn sister, Alia, or an actual vision of a conversation they will have in the future is obscure. Either way, the meeting seems otherworldly, not least of all because Paul and Alia are conversing on a beach. On Arrakis.

“Paul, you are not prepared for what is to come,” Alia warns. “You’ll now learn the truth about our family, and it will hurt you to the core.”

Alia is not unkind in her warning. There appears to be a deep reservoir of...

For decades, Frank Herbert's "Dune" was considered unadaptable, but despite many attempts, we finally got the definitive adaptation of the author's groundbreaking sci-fi novel with Denis Villeneuve's "Dune: Part Two." Villeneuve's "sequel" is a grand sci-fi epic, a dark film about the dangers of populist leaders, and a film with giant spectacle — and plenty of giant worms. As our own Chris Evangelista put it in his review, "Dune: Part Two" is "one of the bleakest blockbusters ever made."

The film takes place immediately after the events of "Dune: Part One" and follows Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) as he becomes part of the Fremen on the planet Arrakis, all the while wrestling with his role in the prophecy of the Lisan al Gaib and the destruction that would bring to the universe. It's already a huge hit and will continue to make bank at the box office in the immediate future,...

It's been over a month since "Dune: Part Two" was released in theaters, and it's already a clear-cut success. The film's now passed the $600 million threshold at the box office and the reviews have been consistently positive; not since the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy has such a seemingly-unadaptable book been so successfully adapted to the big screen. Already, "Dune: Part Three" has been confirmed to be in development, adapting the second book in the "Dune" series, "Dune: Messiah," and hopefully wrapping up director Denis Villeneuve's planned trilogy in a nice, satisfying bow.

Already, however, there are a few challenges ahead for the Villeneuve. The first is that "Messiah" begins 12 years after the events of "Dune," which means they'll either have to delay the film a bit to let the actors age into the roles or put a lot of make-up on Timothèe Chalamet to sell the illusion that...

Dune Awakening is all set to take us back to the merciless landscapes of Arrakis. Recently after Denis Villeneuve raised headlines with his Dune 2, the upcoming survival game will again take us back to the crazy sci-fi world of Frank Herbert. However, this world will be devoid of one of the strangest creations by Frank Herbert- turning into a sandworm by Leto II Atreides.

Dune Awakening

Besides its mesmerizing world, the Dune series is also famous for several bizarre creations. Science fiction novels and films often present us with fascinating weird projects but Frank Herbert went all out with his Children of Dune. There is hardly anything that can top the weirdness of Leto II Atreides’ character.

Dune Awakening will not let fans perform any beastly transformation

Leto II Atreides concept art by Joe Peterson (via CptnSwizzelz)

The fans were blown away when they witnessed the wild transformation of...

Frank Herbert's "Dune" is one of the most influential science fiction books of all time. The original novel remains a groundbreaking story that draws inspiration from the hero's journey or monomyth, environmental science, politics, real history, and Arabic religion and Middle Eastern culture to deliver an unprecedented epic about the dangers of messianic leaders and the importance of ecology.

Ever since its initial publication in 1965, "Dune" has captivated all kinds of audiences, including hopeful producers and executives eager to adapt the story of Paul Atreides and his rise to power into a cinematic event. For a long time, filmmakers kept trying and failing to turn "Dune" into a movie, resulting in Herbert's book being labeled "unadaptable." Since then, however, there have been a handful of movie and TV adaptations, each of them highlighting different aspects of the original novel and its sequels.

With Denis Villeneuve turning "Dune" into...

Dune: Part Two Image: Warner Bros. The story of the last 20 years of pop culture is, in many ways, the Victory Of The Nerd: Comic book films, gaming adaptations, the general adoption of deeply nerdy genre trappings like time loop stories, superheroes, and more, all making billions of dollars...

Dune: Part TwoImage: Warner Bros.

The story of the last 20 years of pop culture is, in many ways, the Victory Of The Nerd: Comic book films, gaming adaptations, the general adoption of deeply nerdy genre trappings like time loop stories, superheroes, and more, all making billions of dollars at...

Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part Two has worm-ridden its way to success after debuting with $182 million on opening weekend. The film has earned over $514 million at the international box office, making it the highest-grossing film of 2024 as of now. The Timothée Chalamet starrer has also been widely regarded by critics and audiences as a masterpiece.

The film is a follow-up to 2021’s Dune: Part One, continuing the story of Paul Atreides and his mother Lady Jessica on the desert planet of Arrakis after their family is betrayed by the evil Harkonnens and the Emperor Shaddam IV. Both films are based on Dune by Frank Herbert. While the novel series has four more books, Villeneuve reported is just interested in adapting the second book and wrapping up the story with Dune 3.

Denis Villeneuve Spent Six Years On Arrakis While Filming The Dune Franchise Denis Villeneuve | Credits: CBC

Denis Villeneuve has spent...

Based on Frank Herbert’s acclaimed novel, Denis Villeneuve’s Dune films have raked in commercial profits besides enamoring the viewers with a deft adaptation of a colossal source material. Previous efforts in getting the novel(s) brought to the big screen had rendered the premise largely unfilmable.

It’d be wrong to affirm, though, that all attempts to ‘film’ the saga fell short, as in 2000 and 2003, two three-part miniseries on the Sci-Fi Channel saw the triumphant adaptation of Herbert’s first three novels—a feat nothing short of remarkable.

Children of Dune (2003)

At the core of the second series, Frank Herbert’s Children of Dune, was a young, pre-breakout James McAvoy, who played Paul’s son Leto II Atreides. Ahead of Villeneuve’s first Dune film, reflecting on his experience as a part of the on-screen Dune ethos, McAvoy gushed about the filmmaker’s interpretation of the material.

Suggested...

"Dune: Part Two" spoilers follow.

In Frank Herbert's 1965 novel "Dune," the main character Paul Atreides, and his mother Jessica, flee into the deserts of Arrakis to escape a successful attack on their home by the murderous House Harkonnen. They fall in with the Fremen, the nomadic natives of Arrakis, and Paul will grow to become their leader. Thanks to some manipulation from Jessica, Paul will also come to be considered the Fremen Messiah. When they first fled, Jessica was pregnant. In her years with the Fremen, Jessica will give birth to a girl named Alia. She will grow to be a toddler with eerie powers, granted to her by the Water of Life, a semi-poisonous worm excretion that Jessica drank while pregnant.

In David Lynch's 1984 film adaptation of "Dune," Alia is played by a young Alicia Witt and voiced by an adult actress. In the 2000 miniseries adaptation of "Dune,...

James McAvoy has been in the entertainment industry since he was a teenager. When he made his debut as an actor in The Near Room in 1995, he was not much interested in becoming an actor. However, that changed soon and he ended up going to the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. He graduated from the academy in 2000.

James McAvoy in X-Men: Apocalypse

Since then, he has worked with numerous great directors such as Steven Spielberg and Matthew Vaughn. Long before he gained recognition with his roles in the X-Men film series and The Chronicles of Narnia, McAvoy appeared in the miniseries Frank Herbert’s Children of Dune. However, he refused to give any advice to Timothee Chalamet when his movie Dune was about to be released in 2021.

James McAvoy Refused to Give Advice to Timothee Chalamet

James McAvoy in Frank Herbert’s Children of Dune

One has to...

This Dune article contains spoilers.

If the shocking ending of Dune: Part Two left you wanting more, you can actually watch Dune: Part Three right now. Kind of. Although Denis Villeneuve hasn’t fully committed to a movie adaptation of Dune Messiah, there is an often overlooked filmed version of this Dune sequel out there right now. This isn’t a bootleg or a fan film either, but The Sci-Fi Channel’s excellent Frank Herbert’s Children of Dune miniseries. This very real adaptation of Dune Messiah even stars several major Hollywood stars, including James McAvoy and Susan Sarandon, as well as Star Trek legend Alice “The Borg Queen” Krige.

If you’ve slept on this particular Dune sequel, now is possibly the best time to watch it. Here’s what to know about Frank Herbert’s Children of Dune, why it’s great, and how to watch it.

What...

In Denis Villeneueve's sci-fi epic "Dune: Part Two," the desert-dwelling Fremen have learned a clever way to live in the wastelands of Arrakis, even as mile-long destructive sandworms furtively burrow around under their feet. For one, they have discovered that the sandworms are attracted to steady, regular ground beats, and have altered their walking to be irregular in response. The Fremen have also learned how to ride on the backs of the sandworms using an elaborate and dangerous lassoing method that takes years to refine.

A Fremen worm-rider will climb to the top of a sand dune and insert a small, forearm-length device called a thumper into the ground. A thumper, as its name implies, regularly pounds on the ground, deliberately attracting a sandworm. When a worm explodes out of the sand and charges for the thumper, the Fremen rider will fire grappling hooks into its body, hooking open the worm's creepy breathing flaps.

With Dune: Part Two exceeding fans’ expectations and perfectly setting up the room for the threequel, fans are ecstatic to see what the future holds for the acclaimed sci-fi IP. While Dune: Messiah is yet to be officially greenlit by Wbd, following the sequel’s success and with Villeneuve already knee-deep into its script, it’s only a matter of time before it gets announced.

The threequel, if greenlit, will potentially mark the end of his stay on Arrakis, and for the future of the series, one Industry insider stressed the idea for a new filmmaker to helm it moving forward.

Dune: Part Two

Industry Insider Wants a New Filmmaker to Replace Denis Villeneuve for Children of Dune

Denis Villeneuve once expressed that he always envisioned Paul’s story to be a three-parter, with Messiah being a reaction to “the fact that people perceived Paul Atreides as a hero “. However,...

Frank Herbert's "Dune" novels and their cinematic adaptations impressed two things upon pop culture consciousness that exist well beyond the franchise. One is that "the spice must flow," referring to the eternal need for spice melange, an incredibly powerful powder that powers starships and gives the Bene Gesserit their psychic abilities. The other is that sandworms, while terrifying, are also supremely cool. The idea of riding them around the desert like the galaxy's biggest, freakiest surfboards is even cooler. So it makes sense that one of the most epic scenes in Denis Villeneuve's "Dune: Part Two" features Paul Atreides (Timothy Chalamet) going through the Fremen rite of passage and catching a ride on his very first sandworm. 

Villeneuve has compared sandworm travel to "a very, very intense Uber," though I'm pretty sure Uber drivers don't generally turn around and try to swallow you whole. 

We get to see...

With “Dune: Part Two” now playing in theaters, Denis Villeneuve has accomplished what many sci-fi geeks have long seen as an impossible task: making a competent adaptation of Frank Herbert’s “Dune” that treats the mythology with the cinematic gravitas it deserves. And now that audiences are more invested in sandworms and ornithopers than any reasonable person would have thought possible a decade ago, there’s no reason to think the “Dune” train should slow down any time soon.

The latest film concludes the story Herbert told in his original novel, but he went on to write five sequels that expand the world in wild new directions. And his son Brian Herbert has kept the saga going with an additional 20 books released over the past half-century. There’s enough lore for Warner Bros. to make “Dune” movies for decades to come, with or without Villeneuve and his key players. With...

Denis Villeneauve’s Dune: Part Two was released earlier this week to overwhelmingly positive responses from critics and fans alike. The follow-up to 2021’s Dune: Part One sees Timothee Chalamet’s Paul Atreides becoming one with the Fremen, while his mother Lady Jessica manipulates events to make him the messiah of the Fremen, the Lisan al Gaib.

While a third film based on the novel Dune Messiah is yet to be greenlit, many scenes in the film set up the threequel, especially through Paul’s visions. The ending of the film also shows Zendaya’s Chani going away from Paul’s journey as he becomes the Emperor of the Known Universe. Though there are no Marvelesque post-credits scenes to set up Dune Messiah, one scene from the visions of Paul is theorized to indicate a key plot element. Spoilers ahead.

Will There Be A Dune: Part Three? Denis Villeneuve | Credits:...

This post contains spoilers for "Dune: Part Two."

"Dune: Part Two" makes a lot of changes to the source material. It skips over the book's two-year time jump, it lets Chani have a moral backbone, and it removes an entire storyline about Paul having an infant son who tragically dies in a Harkonnen attack. But when it comes to one major, game-changing reveal from the book, the movie stays faithful: Jessica is the Baron Vladimir Harkonnen's secret daughter, and Paul is his secret grandson. 

The exact details of how this all came to be are fuzzy; the "Prelude of Dune" novels (not written by Frank Herbert) technically provide an explanation, but many fans don't consider it canon. Based off what Herbert himself actually wrote, Jessica's heritage was a discreet decision made by the Bene Gesserit, a powerful group of witches who have been secretly running a 10,000-year breeding program in...

Anya Taylor-Joy joined the already star-studded cast of Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi epic Dune: Part Two. The film already has present-day A-listers such as Timothee Chalamet, Zendaya, Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, Rebecca Ferguson, Christopher Walken, and more. Taylor-Joy’s cameo was a tight secret, which was only revealed after the film premiered last month.

Anya Taylor-Joy plays the role of Alia Atreides, the unborn daughter of Lady Jessica and sister of Paul Atreides in Dune: Part Two. Her brief cameo is reportedly part of a vision and sets her up for a potential adaptation of the second novel Dune Messiah. If Villeneuve chooses to adapt the sequel novels, he might have to explore a disturbing relationship between Taylor-Joy’s Alia and Jason Momoa’s Duncan Idaho. Spoilers ahead.

Anya Taylor-Joy’s Cameo Was A Well-Kept Secret

Anya Taylor-Joy in The Queen’s Gambit

Denis Villeneuve’s Dune franchise has boasted of...

Major spoilers for "Dune: Part Two" follow.

"Dune" fans recently got a surprise when it was revealed that Anya Taylor-Joy has a secret role in "Dune: Part Two," Denis Villeneuve's massive blockbuster follow-up to his 2021 sci-fi epic "Dune." There was no word on who Taylor-Joy was playing in the film, just that she was lurking somewhere within the movie's 167-minute runtime. Now that the cat is out of the bag, and critics (like yours truly) have had a chance to see the film, we can finally talk about who Taylor-Joy is playing in "Dune: Part Two," and what it all means.

First thing first: if you're an Anya Taylor-Joy fan hoping to see a lot of her, I have some disappointing news: she only appears in the film during one brief scene. Her voice is heard later. And that's it! It's a very quick cameo. In fact, it's so...

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Quick Answer: Viewers can watch Dune online on Max, Prime Video, and on Netflix.

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Fans of Frank Herbert’s sci-fi saga Dune can finally see the Denis Villeneuve-directed blockbuster’s second chapter, which hits theaters nationwide this weekend. But if you want to catch Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Oscar Isaac, and an all-star cast in the 2021 Oscar-nominated film before heading to the theater, moviegoers...

The Dune world that filmmaker Denis Villeneuve has brought to life is unarguably nothing short of incredible. For what it’s worth, it’s at least ten times better than the first live-action adaptation of the novel series of the same name back in 1984. This is why it’s only understandable that fans don’t want this newly established saga to end so soon with Dune 3 being the last part.

The flawless Dune universe

If the movie does end up in a trilogy, as Denis Villeneuve said, then Dune 3 will inevitably conclude Timothée Chalamet’s story as Paul Atreides if going by the book, Dune: Messiah. And as heartbreaking as it may be to admit it, Villeneuve’s Dune saga needs to be wrapped up with the third film because the next books in order aren’t the best for live-action adaptations.

SUGGESTEDTimothée Chalamet’s Dune: Part Two Poised to...

The Dune series of novels is author Frank Herbert’s genius literary work that got a fitting cinematic adaptation through prolific director Denis Villeneuve. The first film that came out in 2021 was a blockbuster success that justified Herbert’s creation through spectacular visuals and stunning world building. Villeneuve’s Dune 2 therefore comes with the highest of expectations with fans eager to see the director’s magic touch again.

Denis Villeneuve and Timothée Chalamet on the sets of Dune

While Herbert wrote a total of 6 novels in the Dune series, the Sicario filmmaker has only touched the tip of the iceberg with the second installment while revealing that he will bring the narrative a full circle with a 3rd and final film. Fans though, are now hoping that he will change his mind and continue developing on the franchise.

SUGGESTEDDenis Villeneuve Desperately Wants to Avoid One Mistake With Dune 3 That...

Young Paul Atreides strides across the sands of Arrakis, the planet that will become the setting of his ascension. Although he has never before left his watery home planet of Caladan, the Fremen of Arakis seem to know him. “Lisan al-Gaib,” they shout at the sight of him, calling him a messiah. Although the Mentat Thufir Hawat dismisses the Fremen’s behavior as “Harkonnen’s rules,” Paul suspects the truth. His mother’s religious order, the Bene Gesserit have been seeding prophecies about him, preparing them for allegiance.

Although the above scene occurs early in Dune, it also points to a major theme across all of the Dune novels written by Frank Herbert. Paul is no mystical messiah, no god made flesh, but rather a product of social and political engineering, designed by the Bene Gesserit to create compliancy in the people.

While making the long-awaited Dune: Part Two, director...

“There exists no separation between gods and men; one blends softly casual into the other.” So reads the epigraph to the second chapter of Frank Herbert’s Dune Messiah, a quote attributed to the fictionalp Proverbs of Muad’dib. The same might be said of the separation between entries in the Dune saga, at least the first three books: Dune (1965), Dune Messiah (1969), and Children of Dune (1976). These three books tell the story of Paul Atreides, the man who becomes a leader, a messiah, and a tyrant.

For his adaptation of Dune, director Denis Villeneuve already separated the first book into two halves, with the first part releasing in 2021 and the second coming on March 1 of this year. However, many have wondered if the Canadian director would continue to work through Herbert’s oeuvre, at least for the first book’s immediate sequel.

Villeneuve has confirmed to Vanity Fair that Dune:...

Denis Villeneuve has been quite vocal about his intention to make a third “Dune” movie, which would be based on Frank Herbert’s second novel in the series, “Dune Messiah.” Warner Bros. has not yet given the official greenlight on “Dune 3,” but, should the studio move forward, it will most likely mark Villeneuve’s final installment in the franchise despite Herbert’s literary series continuing with various sequels such as “Children of Dune,” “God Emperor of Dune,” “Heretics of Dune” and “Chapterhouse: Dune.”

“’Dune Messiah’ should be the last ‘Dune’ movie for me,” Villeneuve confirmed to Time magazine in a new interview ahead of the theatrical release of “Dune: Part Two.”

The director said last December that “Dune Messiah” is “being written right now,” adding: “The screenplay is almost finished but it is not finished. It will take a little time … There’s a dream of making a third movie...

Like the piscine Guild Navigator who gets wheeled out in a tank at the start of the movie, David Lynch‘s adaptation of the Frank Herbert novel Dune is neither fish nor fowl. Lynch gets to play with some rather dense world-building, but Herbert’s critique of charismatic leaders gets pushed to the side while the demands of ’80s sci-fi fantasy don’t allow the director to create what would later become his signature dream states. As a result, Lynch’s Dune pleased no one, least of all Lynch himself. And while the film has its fans, especially in light of Denis Villeneuve‘s more faithful blockbuster, it remains an outlier in both Lynch’s oeuvre and in the history of Dune adaptations.

Still, the legend goes that if studio meddling and post-production issues not come to bear, Lynch would have been able to put more of his stamp on the sequel Dune II.

This article contains potential spoilers for Dune 2.

For longtime fans of Frank Herbert‘s most famous novels, the new Denis Villeneuve films are a kind of gift. As he made clear in 2021, Villeneuve is a Dune fan first, and a filmmaker second. “To me, reading Dune is like a paradise,” he said two years ago just before the launch of Dune: Part One. “The book stayed with me all these years.” Now, with Dune: Part Two just around the corner, we’ve been given a tantalizing new trailer for the film, one that showcases just how much of Herbert’s original work Villeneuve has managed to get into the second part of his sci-fi epic.

But if it’s been a while since you’ve read the original novel, it might feel like this trailer is almost giving too much away.

We see what appears to be the Fremen...

Much like Muad’Dib, the Lisan al Gaib of Arrakis, Denis Villeneuve has a vision: An elegant, self-contained trilogy consisting of three films. The first two are a dual adaptation of Frank Herbert’s seminal (and gargantuan) science fiction novel, Dune; the third film would meanwhile be a single adaptation of arguably Herbert’s darkest text, the slender second volume in the Atreides saga, Dune Messiah.

To fans of Herbert’s novels, this should sound like good and better news—the start of an epic series of films that bring all of Herbert’s books to the screen. Yet more than once Villeneuve has insisted his plan is to only adapt the first two of Herbert’s novels while leaving the remaining four books in the original series, including fan favorite Children of Dune, unadapted. And while speaking with Empire magazine, the filmmaker has revealed why.

“If I succeed in making a trilogy,...

Director Denis Villeneuve is hopeful of making Dune a trilogy and is teasing the possibility of “Part Three” coming alive.

“If I succeed in making a trilogy, that would be the dream,” Villeneuve told Empire. “Dune Messiah was written in reaction to the fact that people perceived Paul Atreides as a hero. Which is not what he wanted to do. My adaptation is closer to his idea that it’s actually a warning.”

On the third installment of the Dune film series, Villeneuve said, “I will say, there are words on paper.”

Dune: Part Three would be a sequel to Frank Herbert’s original novel Dune which was published in 1965. Dune: Part Two wraps up the story of Herbert’s novel and the potential third film would be based on Dune Messiah, which was published in 1969.

Villeneuve said that the third part would wrap up the franchise as after the...

Denis Villeneuve still wants to explore the world of Arrakis after “Dune: Part Two.”

In a recent interview with Empire, the director shared his hopes for a third installment in the sci-fi epic film series, saying, “If I succeed in making a trilogy, that would be the dream.”

On his “Dune: Part Three” progress, Villeneuve teased, “I will say, there are words on paper.”

“Dune: Part Three” would be based on “Dune Messiah,” the direct sequel to “Dune” author Frank Herbert’s 1965 original novel. Herbert wrote five sequels in total, including “Children of Dune” and “God Emperor of Dune.” Following Herbert’s death in 1986, his son Brian published several prequel novels and sequels in the “Dune” universe.

“’Dune Messiah’ was written in reaction to the fact that people perceived Paul Atreides as a hero,” Villeneuve explained. “Which is not what he wanted to do. My adaptation [of ‘Dune’] is closer to...

A spicy rumor about the Dune film franchise is rising from the sands of Arrakis. Industry insider Daniel Richtman said that Warner Bros had signed Timothée Chalamet for Dune 3. While this is not a confirmation of production plans for another movie in Denis Villeneuve’s presentation of Dune, it’s not the first time we’ve heard rumblings that a third film is a possibility.

Previously, Dune writer Jon Spaihts confirmed a third film could happen. “There are a few tantalizing strands that lead into the future and suggest that we might not be done in this universe, despite the fact that the ending of ‘Dune’ as a novel, which will be the ending of the second film, is a very satisfying conclusion,” Spaihts told The Playlist early last year. “There are a number of ways in which the book also sounds ominous notes, and there are hints of foreboding...

A beginning is a most delicate time — especially if you’re about to become the most famous historian in all of galactic history. Dune: Part Two will feature several characters who did not appear in Dune: Part One, and perhaps the most prominent is the person who will make sure that the story of Muad’Dib survives for all time. As Princess Irulan, Florence Pugh will make her mark on what is possibly the most complicated and pivotal character in all of Dune. It’s been 20 years since we’ve seen Princess Irulan preparing to do the thing she’s so good at — writing actual books in the Dune universe.

In the new trailer for Dune: Part Two, we see Irulan recording her notes about whether or not Paul Atreides is still alive on Arrakis. What we don’t see in the trailer are the two things that will define...

“Dune: Part Two” has already made waves during pre-production, with Florence Pugh and Austin Butler being eyed to join the cast, as well as returning star Javier Bardem hinting at a sandworm showdown for his sci-fi hero. The film is expected to begin production by the end of this summer from Legendary Entertainment.

But that might not be all we see from the “Dune” universe in the coming years. Writer Jon Spaihts, who is also nominated alongside Villeneuve and Eric Roth for Best Adapted Screenplay at the 94th Academy Awards, revealed to The Playlist that while the “Dune: Part Two” script is set, he is already thinking of a third film installment as well as the planned HBO Max spin-off series, “Dune: The Sisterhood.”

Based on the Frank Herbert novels, the “Dune” series spans six books, with a seventh partially completed before Herbert’s death.

“‘Dune Messiah’ is the next book,...

If I had never seen the first trailers for Dune, had never become absolutely besotted with Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya as a sci-fi power couple, had never found myself weirdly intrigued about the idea of giant sandworms, I probably would never have found myself online ordering a copy of the original 1965 novel that started it all. And I definitely wouldn't have found myself slogging through it weeks later, my brain tangled in knots over the complicated-enough-to-cry plots and intricate world-building.

Dune has more than earned its place in the science fiction pantheon; it's a masterpiece, don't get me wrong. But for the first 50 to 100 pages, you'd be forgiven for wanting to dig Frank Herbert out of his grave and beg him to explain Wtf is going on.

The easiest way to put it is that Herbert is not here to help you read his book. He's created this elaborate universe,...

When people think of “Dune” adaptations, three projects most likely come to mind: David Lynch’s maligned “Dune” from 1984, Alejandro Jodorowsky’s failed attempt in the 1970s (immortalized in the documentary “Jodorowsky’s Dune”), and Denis Villeneuve’s upcoming 2021 version. But there’s a fourth adaptation that often goes overlooked: John Harrison’s 2000 miniseries for Syfy (known then as Sci Fi Channel) titled “Frank Herbert’s Dune.” The series was a ratings bonanza for Syfy and won two Emmys, leading to the 2003 sequel miniseries titled “Frank Herbert’s Children of Dune.” That’s where James McAvoy enters the picture.

Long before “The Chronicles of Narnia” and “Atonement,” McAvoy was cast in a main role for “Frank Herbert’s Children of Dune” miniseries, which adapted the events of Herbert’s novels “Dune Messiah” and “Children of Dune.” McAvoy played Leto II Atreides, the son of original “Dune” hero Paul Atreides and Chani (played by Timothee...

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While release schedules might be in flux, there are still hundreds of films and TV shows coming out in 2021 — and because Hollywood loves nothing more than existing (and proven) intellectual property, plenty of those projects are based on books.

If you’re one of those people who likes to read the book before you watch the movie, this list is for you — we’ve rounded up a few of the highest-profile literary adaptations hitting screens this year and included synopses, links to where you can read the books, and where you’ll be able to watch said projects when they come out. Now get to reading!

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“House of Gucci”

Book: “The...

Exclusive: Signature Entertainment has picked up a raft of film and TV content for the UK market, including Drake Doremus drama Endings, Beginnings with Shailene Woodley, Jamie Dornan, Sebastian Stan and Matthew Gray Gubler, and Jake Gyllenhaal-produced Sundance horror Relic.

The company has also struck deals for classic library titles including Muriel’s Wedding, Luc Besson action pic Taxi and cult sci-fi series Children Of Dune via separate pacts with TF1 and Sonar Entertainment.

Toronto premiere Endings, Beginnings, from Parasite producer Cj, charts a turbulent and passionate love triangle. Acquired from UK sales outfit Protagonist, it will get a day and date theatrical release in August.

Well-received horror Relic sees Emily Mortimer (The Bookshop) star as a daughter haunted by a manifestation of her mother’s dementia. Acquired from Film Constellation, the film will be released in the UK later this year.

Meanwhile, Signature has struck a deal with TF...

WarnerMedia’s streaming service has given a straight-to-series order to the sci-fi project “Dune: The Sisterhood.”

The series hails from Legendary Television, with Legendary also producing the upcoming “Dune” film reboot from director Denis Villeneuve. Warner Bros. is distributing the film.

Set in the universe of Frank Herbert’s epic “Dune” novel series, “Dune: The Sisterhood” is told through the eyes of a mysterious order of women known as the Bene Gesserit. Given extraordinary abilities by their mastery of the body and the mind, the Bene Gesserit expertly weave through the feudal politics and intrigue of The Imperium, pursuing plans of their own that will ultimately lead them to the enigmatic planet Arrakis, known to its inhabitants as Dune.

Villeneuve will direct the pilot with Jon Spaihts set to write. Spaihts and Villeneuve also co-wrote the screenplay for the film reboot along with Eric Roth. Villeneuve and Spaihts will executive produce with Brian Herbert,...

Denis Villeneuve has become one of the most prominent voices in science-fiction cinema thanks to critically-acclaimed projects “Arrival” and “Blade Runner 2049,” but his next undertaking in the genre is bound to be his biggest: “Dune.”

The iconic novel has proved to be one hell of a challenge for directors in the past. Alejandro Jodorowsky infamously tired and failed to adapt “Dune,” while David Lynch succeeded but lost creative control in post-production and ended up hating the theatrical version that was released. Can Villeneuve deliver cinema’s first genuinely great “Dune” movie? Here’s everything fans need to know about the upcoming film.

The Source Material

“Dune” was created by author Frank Herbert, whose 1965 science fiction novel won the Nebula Award for Best Novel and tied for the Hugo Award. Hebert wrote five sequels: “Dune Messiah,” “Children of Dune,” “God Emperor of Dune,” “Heretics of Dune,” and “Chapterhouse: Dune.” The...

New arrivals join svp worldwide acquisitions Seth Needle, marketing director Abbey Warner in Sundance.

Heading into Sundance Screen Media on Thursday (24) announced the hire of Michael Messina as executive vice-president, distribution and Lisa Burgueno as vice-president, digital distribution.

Messina has consulted for Screen Media since early 2018 and will now oversee Us distribution, sales, and marketing for the company’s slate of films and series. Burgueno will oversee transactional partnerships and media planning across digital and on-demand platforms.

They join Seth Needle, senior vice-president of worldwide acquisitions, and Abbey Warner, director of marketing, on the ground in Park City.

Last year...

New arrivals join svp worldwide acquisitions Seth Needle, marketing director Abbey Warner in Sundance.

Heading into Sundance Screen Media on Thursday (24) announced the hire of Michael Messina as executive vice-president, distribution and Lisa Burgueno as vice-president, digital distribution.

Messina has consulted for Screen Media since early 2018 and will now oversee Us distribution, sales, and marketing for the company’s slate of films and series. Burgueno will oversee transactional partnerships and media planning across digital and on-demand platforms.

They join Seth Needle, senior vice-president of worldwide acquisitions, and Abbey Warner, director of marketing, on the ground in Park City.

Last year...