The finale of Denis Villeneuve’s Dune trilogy is almost here, and Dune: Part Three’s latest trailer leaves a lot to be excited about. The new teaser opens with a clearly changed Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) using The Voice on his legal wife, Princess Irulan (Florence Pugh), to pry out information. She spills that there’s an active assassination attempt against him involving his former partner, Chani (Zendaya).
Narration clarifies that it’s been 19 years since the events of the previous movie, during which time Atreides has conquered thousands of worlds as the new Padishah Emperor. He stands on a platform in front of an army in a shot that looks straight out of the propaganda film Triumph of the Will. Meanwhile, Robert Pattinson continues his generational run of playing slimy little guys as he schemes against the Atreides as Scytale.
Other mysteries (for those who haven’t read the novels) include Paul suffering from a strange affliction, the seeming return of the deceased Duncan Idaho, and a girl covered in blood played by Anya Taylor-Joy.
What differences does the trailer tease from the novels?
Based on this latest trailer, there are quite a few differences between Dune: Part Three and the novel it’s based on, Dune Messiah. For one, the 12-year time skip between events of the original novel and Messiah has been extended to 19 years in the film, giving Paul even more time to commit crimes against humanity. There are other small adjustments, but those who’ve recently read the Dune novels will likely spot one major change: It looks like Chani will have a far more active role in the story.
Dune: Part Two ends with Paul and Chani’s relationship in shambles after Paul betrays Chani by marrying Princess Irulan to secure his rule as the Padishah Emperor. This was a significant departure from the ending of the original Dune novel, which concludes with Chani more or less going along with Paul’s political maneuver, even if she’s a bit skeptical that Paul will remain faithful to her.
Based on the trailer for Dune: Part Three, it seems that the initial schism between Chani and Paul was meant to build toward a far deeper divide. “I’ve become the oppressor Chani swore to fight,” Paul narrates in the trailer before Chani calls him a traitor. From the footage, we know that Chani will be involved in the assassination plot against Paul. By contrast, in Dune Messiah, Chani is Paul’s loyal partner.
A common criticism of Dune Messiah is that much of the novel centers on backroom political scheming orchestrated by characters we have little emotional attachment to. By contrast, Villeneuve and co-screenwriter Brian K. Vaughan’s choice to put Chani at the center of this assassination plot has quite a bit of dramatic potential. We’ll see how that major change plays out when Dune: Part Three debuts in theaters on Dec. 18, 2026.
