Dune: Part Three first look reveals a darker, more intense Paul Atreides

After decades of pining for a solid, faithful adaptation, fans of Frank Herbert's Dune were finally treated to the film series of their dreams thanks to visionary director Denis Villeneuve. Over the course of two epic movies, Villeneuve brought Herbert's dark sci-fi universe to life. But the saga's not over yet. This December we'll get to watch the end to Villeneuve's trilogy, aptly titled Dune: Part Three. And now, we have our first look at the movie.

Dune: Part Two brought events to the end of Herbert's seminal novel, where Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) secured his new place as the emperor of the known galaxy by forming a marriage alliance with Princess Irulan (Florence Pugh). The film leaves off on the chilling image of his armies of Fremen warriors spilling forth from the desert world of Arrakis to wage a holy war across the stars.

Destiny has always weighed heavy on Paul Atreides, and in Herbert's second book, Dune Messiah, we see the toll it takes. Dune: Part Three is leaning into the dark imagery that accompanies Paul's journey, as we can see in the very first image of Chalamet from the movie:

Dune: Part Three will not have a happy ending

Dune Messiah picks up around 12 years after the end of the first book, with Paul now secure in his position and the empire buckling under the weight of the war his people have waged. He's made far more enemies for himself, as well as had a few kids with Irulan, much to the discomfort of his Fremen lover Chani (Zendaya). It's not clear whether Dune: Part Three will keep that time jump, but so far Villeneuve's series has remained extremely faithful to the books, so at the very least I would expect it to follow the events and themes of the novel either way.

In addition to Chalamet, Zendaya, and Pugh, Dune: Part Three will also see the return of cast members Josh Brolin as Gurney Haleck and Rebecca Ferguson as Lady Jessica. We'll also get the return of Jason Momoa as Duncan Idaho — but don't expect him to be quite the Duncan Idaho you remember from the first film. The Batman star Robert Pattinson has also been cast as Scytale, a lead villain for the film who will be doing his best to undermine Paul's rule (via Variety).

Dune: Part Three release date

Now that this image is out and filming has wrapped, it's only a matter of time before we see more from Dune: Part Three. The current rumor is that the film will debut its first trailer attached to Project Hail Mary, the upcoming Ryan Gosling sci-fi film based on the novel by Andy Weir. Either way, we'll be back on Arrakis sooner rather than later.

Dune: Part Three debuts in theaters on December 18, 2026.