Director Denis Villeneuve Teases ‘Dune: Part 2’ Updates

The Oscar-nominated filmmaker said “Dune: Part Two” will be “more cinematic” than the first movie.

Before Dune has a chance to win any of the 10 Oscars it’s nominated for this year, director Denis Villeneuve is already teasing details for the sequel to the sci-fi epic starring Timothee Chalamet and Zendaya.

Production for Dune: Part 2 is set to return to the deserts of Jordan this fall–where the $165 million first movie was filmed–with Villeneuve telling Deadline, “It’s going to be another beautiful journey in the desert again.”

“It’s the journey where Paul Atreides and his mother, Lady Jessica, make contact with the Fremen culture and meet with the Fremen,” the filmmaker teased about Part 2. “It’s Paul’s journey against the enemy.”

The director then added to the anticipation that that the sequel will be even better than the critically-acclaimed first movie, saying: “It’s a movie that will be more cinematic.”

In regards to the HBO Max spinoff series Dune: The Sisterhood, Villeneuve said that he’s strictly focused on the Dune movie sequel and after that with the film franchise.

“The TV series is a work in progress, it’s moving forward,” Villeneuve told Deadline. 

Dune is up for 10 Oscars and is the only nominee this year to gross triple digits at the box office, with more than $400 million so far. Villeneuve is nominated for Dune in the Best Picture and Adapted Screenplay categories.

Dune 2 is expected to arrive in theaters in October 2023.