‘Dune: Part Three’ Reportedly Greenlit as Denis Villeneuve Wraps up Script

The Dune trilogy is growing more and more likely with rumors that the third installment has already been greenlit. Dune: Part Two is one of the most anticipated movies of 2024, and fans are well aware that director Denis Villeneuve has a plan in place for Dune: Part Three – if Warner Bros. is on board. On Wednesday, The Insneider reported the first rumor that WB has secretly greenlit the third movie.

Villeneuve took a big risk by adapting Frank Herbert’s seminal 1965 sci-fi novel Dune into two movies without any guarantee that he’d get to make them both. The success of Dune: Part One in 2021 convinced Warner Bros. to invest in a sequel, which premieres on March 15 in theaters. Meanwhile, Villeneuve has said that he is interested in making a Part Three based on Herbert’s follow-up novel, Dune Messiah. Again, there was no promise from the studio on this, but Villeneuve has admitted that he and his co-writers have already begun writing the script, and even said that it is “almost finished” according to a report by Variety.

That makes it sound like Villeneuve is pretty confident that Dune: Part Three will be made, and The Insneider suggests that he may know something we don’t. Anonymous sources said that Dune: Part Three has been secretly greenlit and scheduled for release in 2027, though it may not be announced publicly until after Part Two comes out. The studio is reportedly hoping for a $100 million opening weekend for Part Two.

Still, that rumor should be weighed against Villeneuve’s words in his recent press tour. He reportedly said that he does not necessarily want to make Part Three immediately after Part Two, saying: “I don’t know exactly when I will go back to Arrakis. I might make a detour before just to go away from the sun. For my mental sanity I might do something in between, but my dream would be to go a last time on this planet that I love.”

Villeneuve has been very consistent about ending his film series after adapting Dune Messiah, which is a disappointment to some fans. Herbert originally wrote six novels in the series and some of the most interesting elements aren’t introduced until the third book. However, Warner Bros. is already investing in the franchise beyond Villeneuve’s movies with the series Dune: The Sisterhood for Max. It’s possible that other filmmakers could step in to finish Herbert’s story down the line.

For now, fans can look forward to Dune: Part Two on Wednesday, March 1 only in theaters. Dune: Part One is streaming now on Max and Netflix.