After three weeks in theaters, “Dune: Part Two” currently reigns as the top-grossing film of 2024 with $512.1 million globally. That’s about $80 million more total gross than its 2021 predecessor, and guarantees Warner Bros. will greenlight “Dune: Messiah,” right? Not so fast. Empire reports that director Denis Villeneuve wants to make a third “Dune” film, but he needs an extended break from the first (and an idea that makes it “real” and “relevant”).
“I did both movies back-to-back, which makes absolute sense for me,” Villeneuve told Empire in a new interview about a well-needed break from the “Dune” universe. “I felt that it was a good idea to move forward right after “Part One.” We were already designing, writing, etc. But it also meant that for six years I was on Arrakis non-stop, and I think it will be healthy to step back a little bit.”
But Villeneuve won’t discount the chance to make “Dune: Messiah,” so long as it hits some essential parameters. “First, make sure that we have a strong screenplay,” the director continued. “The thing I want to avoid is not having something ready. I never did it, and now I feel it could be dangerous because of the enthusiasm. We need to make sure all the ideas are on paper.” That makes complete sense, considering both the scope of Frank Herbert‘s 1969 follow-up to his “Dune” novel, and the amendments Villeneuve made to Herbert’s original story. If Villeneuve wants to make “Dune: Messiah” right, he may need to incorporate elements of 1975’s “Children Of Dune,” too, given the changes he made to Anya Taylor-Joy‘s Alia, among other things.
That’s an ambitious project to undertake, and “Dune Messiah” is just one of four irons Villeneuve currently has in the fire. But that won’t dissuade the director from returning to Arrakis. As far as Villeneuve is concerned, if he hatches a follow-up that surpasses the story he crafted in “Dune: Part Two,” he’ll direct a third “Dune” film. “If we go back, it needs to be real, it needs to be relevant, if ever I do “Dune: Messiah,” [it’s] because it’s going to be better than “Part Two.” Otherwise, I don’t do it.”
Villeneuve’s words echo similar comments he made during a Q&A about “Dune: Part Two” with Christopher Nolan in February. “I have other stories I want to tell, and I’ll see…,” he teased in that talk. “The first script that’s ready to go in front of cameras [will be the one]. The thing I don’t want to do is make compromises, those books are precious, too important to me. If I bring “Dune: Messiah” to the screen, it has to be with the best screenplay possible, and I want to make sure we don’t compromise.”
And that’s exactly what fans of Herbert’s books want to hear. If Villeneuve can’t make “Dune: Messiah” the way he wants, or with the best possible vision, then he shouldn’t make it all. But let’s let the director take a well-deserved rest before he figures out his next project.