‘Dune 3’ will be Denis Villeneuve’s last installment in the franchise, but it could go on without him

Denis Villeneuve has established himself as a master of modern moviemaking, particularly within the sci-fi genre, with successes like “Arrival,” “Blade Runner 2049” and the “Dune” franchise.

The Canadian director shows no signs of slowing down, and the scale of his projects only continues to grow.

In a recent interview on Vanity Fair’s “ Little Gold Men ” podcast, Villeneuve discussed his future plans, including what’s next for Paul Atreides, the protagonist of Frank Herbert’s “Dune” series, on which his “Dune” films are based.

When asked if he planned to continue the franchise, Villeneuve explained that he originally intended the films to be a duology, which has concluded, but he is open to continuing the story beyond that point.

“First, it’s important that people understand that for me, it was really a diptych,” he said. “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,” he continued. “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.”

In addition to working on a potential third “Dune” film, which would adapt Herbert’s second book, “Dune Messiah,” Villeneuve is also working on two other projects: “Rendezvous with Rama,” a sci-fi story by Arthur C. Clarke about an alien spacecraft that appears in Earth’s solar system, and an epic about Cleopatra.

The future of the ‘Dune’ franchise

“Dune Messiah,” the second book in the series, is set 12 years after the events of the first two movies.

When asked how he would handle the challenge of aging up the cast, Villeneuve responded, “I know how to do that.”

While Villeneuve is interested in directing a third movie, he indicated that his involvement with the franchise would likely end there, although he is open to other directors continuing the series.

“Listen, if ‘Dune: Messiah’ happens, it will have been many years for me on Arrakis, and I would love to do something else,” he said. “I think that it would be a good idea for me to make sure that, in ‘Messiah,’ there are the seeds in the project if someone wants to do something else afterwards, because they are beautiful books.”

However, he acknowledged the difficulties in adapting the later books in the “Dune” series.

“They become more and more esoteric. It’s a bit more tricky to adapt, but I’m not closing the door. I will not do it myself, but it could happen with someone else,” Villeneuve said.

When could ‘Dune: Messiah’ come out?

According to The Hollywood Reporter , Warner Bros. announced that an untitled Villeneuve film would be released in theaters on Dec. 18, 2026.

Although it will be produced by Legendary Entertainment, the studio behind the “Dune” films, it has not been confirmed whether this project will be “Dune: Messiah.”

It could potentially be an adaptation of Annie Jacobsen’s Pulitzer Prize finalist “Nuclear War: A Scenario,” which Legendary is reportedly in talks with Villeneuve to direct, per Variety .

“The thing I envy in my past is that before nobody cared about what I was doing next,” Villeneuve said in his “ Little Gold Men ” interview. “No, I’m joking, but it was easier to stay under the radar, and I don’t like to have a lot of projects on the stove — I like to do one thing at a time. I have too many things right now.”