The first trailer for Dune: Part 3 has arrived, and it gives us our best look yet at the epic conclusion of Denis Villeneuve’s trilogy, which stars Timothée Chalamet’s Paul Atreides, Zendaya’s Chani, Robert Pattinson’s villainous Scytale, Anya Taylor-Joy’s Alia Atreides, Jason Momoa’s Hayt, and many more.
Dune: Part 3 Trailer Breakdown: Who’s Who and How the Story May Differ From Dune Messiah
Dune: Part Three is set to be released in theaters the same day as Avengers: Doomsday on December 18, 2026, and it takes place 17 years after the events of the second film. It is also an adaptation of Frank Herbert’s novel, ‘Dune: Messiah.’
The footage kicks off with Paul and Chani discussing the name of their future child.
“If we have a girl, what will we name her?” Chani asks.
“Her name should be Ghanima,” Paul responds. “She will need to be strong, like her mother.
“What if it’s a boy?” Chani says.
“I would name him Leto, so he would have the wisdom of his grandfather,” Paul says.
That last line feeds into the rest of the trailer, because we see Paul struggling with his actions in Dune: Part Two and the holy war that followed. Paul says that the more he fights, the more enemies fight back. He even asks his mother, Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson), how his father, Leto, did it.
“Your father never started a war,” she responds, stating the Paul is in uncharted waters here and going against all who have come before.
As reported by Variety, we learned more about the film during a trailer launch event, including that this third part will feel different from the others.
“If the first movie was more of a contemplation, like a boy exploring a new world, and the second one being a war movie, this one is more action-packed and tense,” Villeneuve said.
“[Paul is] dealing with the consequences of having too much power, and he is trying to figure out how to get out of this cycle of violence,” Villeneuve explained. “As an Emperor who can see the future, he’s kind of invincible. But there are people trying to overthrow him.”
Dune: Part 3 Character Posters
Despite all of this, Paul and Chani’s love will remain the “heartbeat” of the film.
Pattinson also talked a bit about Scytale, saying, “you can’t really tell whose side he’s on. That’s kind of what makes him quite interesting. I wouldn’t say he’s 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 of it is quite extraordinary.”
For more, read more about what else to expect from Dune: Part 3, our explainer of the ending of Dune: Part 2, and some of the other biggest movies coming out in 2026.
Adam Bankhurst is a writer for IGN. You can follow him on X/Twitter @AdamBankhurst, Instagram, and TikTok, and listen to his show, Talking Disney Magic.
