Dune: Part Two is on the way according to director Denis Villeneuve. The filmmaker gave a new interview with Collider this week where he said that the script is “mostly finished” and that the crew is in “full prep.” These aren’t technical terms to tell us where the production is at, but they do give us some clues to be excited about.
Villeneuve assured fans that the sequel to Dune is coming fast in spite of the pandemic and the brief wait for a green light from the studios. He said that working on Part 2 is “similar” to the process of the first, but the goals a different. Now he and his collaborators need to build on the foundation they’ve created without alienating any of the new fans of the franchise.
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“The first one, it was more to make sure that we will land in the world and that the movie will be accepted,” Villeneuve explained. “Now it’s to make sure that we can close that first book, so it’s like there’s some premises that are in the first movie that I need to ignore. So yeah, I think I would say there’s more pressure with the second one in some ways.”
As for the status of the production, Villeneuve did not use any concrete words like “pre-production.” However, he said: “The screenplay is finished mostly, but it’s always a work in progress. It’ll be a work in progress until final cut, but I will say it’s solidified. I have a script in my hands. We are in prep right now.”
Villeneuve added that other parts of his job threaten to distract him from the actual directorial process at times, but he does his best to stay on track. He said: “My crew, we are in full prep for the movie. And with the awards seasons, it’s tricky. My brain is like, it’s like two parts of my brain that don’t connect together… And I’m not complaining.”
Finally, Villeneuve took this opportunity to confirm that Dune: Part Two will use IMAX just as the first installment did. He said: “Definitely. [Cinematographer] Greig Fraser and I, we fell in love with this format, and definitely there be-even probably more-IMAX footage in this movie. Definitely.”
Dune premiered in October of 2021 and adapted about half of Frank Herbert’s novel, while Dune: Part Two will finish the story in that book. Villeneuve has said he hopes to make a third film adapting Herbert’s sequel novel, Dune Messiah. Herbert wrote six Dune novels in total, though it is not clear if Villeneuve intends to take the story that far. Dune: Part Two is expected to hit theaters on Oct. 20, 2023.
