‘Dune: Part Three’: Denis Villeneuve Calls Epic “Love Story” Sequel Set 17 Years Later “Tense Action-Packed Thriller” That’s “More Muscular”

We couldn’t be more excited by the prospect of Denis Villeneuve‘s “Dune: Part Three” going in a much more bleak and dark direction than most audiences are likely expecting. The French-Canadian filmmaker is telegraphing the major difference in tone while speaking at a recent special event (via The Hollywood Reporter) connected to the trailer’s drop today, sharing his impression on the upcoming installment, and is describing it as more of a “thriller” than the two previous movies.

“It’s a very different movie than the first ones. It’s a good idea to come back to those world, not by nostalgia, but by urgency. If the first movie was contemplation, a boy exploring a new world, and the second one is a war movie, this one is a thriller. It is action-packed and tense. More muscular,” Villeneuve said of his third movie in comparison to the other two.

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That thriller element mentioned by Villeneuve likely has not only to do with all-out war across the galaxy being part of the story, but also that there is an elaborate plot to assassinate Paul Atreides, which is expected to involve the new off-world face-dancer (a nice way of saying he can shapeshift) villain, Scytale, portrayed by Robert Pattinson.

This plot was highlighted by Villeneuve (via Deadline), but adds that we’ll still see the continuation of a love story: “We will follow people trying to overthrow him. And it’s a quite intense story. But at the heart, it’s still a love story. The heartbeat of the film is still the relationship between Paul and Chani…So there’s a time gap, 17 years, 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. And of course, he’s an emperor who can see the future, so he’s kind of invincible.”

“Dune: Part Three” is based on Frank Herbert‘s second novel (we assume with elements of “Children of Dune” in the mix, as we already known that Paul and Chani’s twins are in the movie and are already being teased in the trailer) and takes place 17 years after the events of “Dune: Part Two,” with an impressive cast that features Timothee Chalamet, Zendaya, Florence Pugh, Javier Bardem, Ana Taylor-Joy, Pattinson, Isaach De Bankolé, Charlotte Rampling, Rebecca Ferguson, and Jason Momoa.

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After the recent trailer tease, audiences will have to be extra patient as we won’t be able to see “Dune: Part Three” until December 18. Given that it’s going up against “Avengers: Doomsday,” we’ll keep our fingers crossed that Warner Bros. moves up that release (might be tricky after securing an IMAX run over the holidays).