9 Non-Spoiler Things We Learned About ‘DUNE: PART THREE’ and its Teaser Trailer
Courtney Howard // Film Critic
After bringing to life Frank Herbert’s space odyssey DUNE over the span of two epic, exquisitely made features, filmmaker Denis Villeneuve couldn’t shake the feeling he still belonged in the universe of sandworms and spice. There was more of the compelling, complex tale to tell and more spaces to explore. He “felt a responsibility to finish the story.” And with a cast and crew who were game to play again in the sprawling sandbox the auteur loving crafted for them, it was a no-brainer to continue adapting the author’s on-going saga of Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) as found in Dune Messiah.
DUNE: PART THREE picks up 17 years after the events in DUNE: PART TWO, finding Paul grappling with unimaginable power, the love of his life Chani (Zendaya) and a jihad he unleashed.
HOT DAMN! That is breathtaking. The amount of times I audibly screamed when watching this in IMAX, seated next to my colleagues, was too numerous to count. The shot of Alia Atreides in the white gown blowing in the breeze took me out both times they cycled through the teaser for us. Though it doesn’t give too much information away, what’s there serves to raise goosebumps and lots of interest in returning to this galaxy with a visionary director, spectacular ensemble and masterful craftsmen at the helm.
At the film’s recent global, virtual trailer release event, Villeneuve, Zendaya, Javier Bardem, Anya Taylor-Joy and Robert Pattinson shared a few details with us journalists about the making of and what to expect from our new favorite chapter in the DUNE Trilogy – and what Chalamet, who beamed in via a taped introduction, calls “a true act of cinema.”
DUNE: PART THREE is Different Than the Other Two Films
Inspired by Herbert’s Dune Messiah, Villeneuve says, “It’s a good idea to come back to this world, not by nostagia, but by urgency – to go there with a critical eye and not be self-indulgent. It will be a very different DUNE movie, with a different tone, with a different pace. If the first movie was more of a contemplation and the second one being a war movie, this one is a thriller. It’s more action-packed, dense and muscular than the two others. It gives a new sight on what happens to Paul Atreides. There’s a 17-year time gap where we see Paul dealing with the consequences of having too much power and him trying to figure out how to get out of this cycle of violence. He can see the future and he’s kind of invincible. We will follow people who are trying to overthrow him. At the heart, it’s still a love story. The heartbeat of the film is still the relationship between Paul and Chani.”
Linus Sandgren is the New DP Capturing This Chapter, Shooting on Film, IMAX & Digital
Since the world has changed in those almost two decades since we last left Paul, Villeneuve states he, “wanted to see things through a new pair of eyes,” like Sandgren’s. “The climate on Arrakis is still a desert planet, but there are differences, and we are visiting new sets, new places, I brought the camera in areas of the planet you guys have not seen before. We are visiting new planets as well.” He continued, “We decided to shoot most of the movie on film. I haven’t shot on film in years. We shot the movie on 65mm film, most of it. A big part of it was shot on IMAX film – a first time for me. But we kept the desert in digital, because I like the brutality of the digital IMAX. The movie is meant to be an IMAX experience, to be seen on the biggest screen possible.”
Hans Zimmer is Back Composing the Score
Villeneuve mentions, “Hans is working on the music already. But it’s going to be different. It’s something that Hans is very excited about and approaching it with the same spirit as the first 2 films. I insist it’s a DUNE movie, but it will be different.”
Dune Messiah is Villeneuve’s Favorite Book of the Series
Villeneuve says, “It’s a very dark book. It is one of my most personal films, if not my most personal film. It’s very close to me and contemporary. It’s the story of Paul and Chani and them struggling with their relationship, having the burden and incredible pressure from the world around them. For Paul, it’s having to find a way out of this cycle of violence. There’s something about the way their love and the way their relationship evolves that is very personal to me.”
Zendaya Wished For More Scenes With Florence Pugh Before Filming Part 3
Florence Pugh, who plays Paul Atreides’ wife in this next episode, beamed into the theater to ask Zendaya what she likes about her character Princess Irulan. She answered, “I love Florence Pugh. We said the last time, during the press tour, that we only got one scene together and we were far away. I was like, ‘I hope we get more!’ She’s phenomenal – and you’ll have to see for yourself what happens cause it’s quite the journey.”
Stilgar’s absolute devotion
Javier Bardem elucidates, “It’s a different reality, after [Paul] being in power for so long. He’s in the contridiction to this loyalty to the idea that he strongly fought and believed back in the day and the result of that idea of something he thinks or feels. It’s a great analogy about the idea of power and having the power.”
Anya Taylor-Joy Connected With the Sibling’s Relationship
Taylor-Joy explains, “Alia has a very intense blessing/ curse situation. She carries the weight and the wisdom of generations and generations in her head. She’s never in a singular conversation. It’s kind of everything, everywhere, all at once. The one thing she really feels most strongly about is her love and devotion to her brother. That’s the only person who’s made her feel like she makes sense. He’s understood her from before she was even born and she will do anything for him, to various degrees of insanity.
Robert Pattinson is a Huge DUNE Fan
Pattinson says, “I absolute adore these movies. I think I was talking to [Zendaya] on the set of THE DRAMA and I was like, ‘Can I get into one of things?’ and it was a very unexpected call a few months later. And I kind of think you [looks at Zendaya] had something to do with it. They’re such a towering achievement and the cast is so incredible. Denis is a master. When you see the scale and scope and ambition of these movies. On set, you get why they feel like this on screen. It’s extraordinary.” His character Scytale, is a fan favorite from the books. However, the actor was tight lipped on giving more information about his character drive. “He’s an unusual character in the book. You can’t really tell what side he’s on, which makes him interesting. He’s not a conventional bad guy, as such. He might even be a good guy? Who knows. I will also find out when I see the movie. It’s an extremely fun character to play. And the look for him is [laughs] quite extraordinary.”
Duncan Idaho is Back…But How?!
Readers of Herbert’s second novel in the series already know how and why he returns into Paul’s life. However, the director was tight lipped about these details. “Duncan Idaho (Jason Momoa) was killed in the first one, but suddenly he comes back in third one,” Villeneuve explains. “Herbert created this charismatic character and our heart was broken seeing him fallen in the first one. And he comes back just at the right moment in this story. It’s an important comedback. Paul is struggling with his identity and there’s this strong Atreides figure coming back from the past… what a tremendous impact, is all I can say.”
DUNE: PART THREE opens in theaters and IMAXⓇ on December 18.
