The first trailer for Dune: Part Three is finally here and immediately shows that victory comes at a price. Set 17 years after the events of the second film, the story follows Paul Atreides (Timothee Chalamet) as he rises to power, only to face the consequences of becoming both emperor and messiah.
What does the Dune 3 trailer reveal about Paul’s journey?
The teaser begins on a gentler note, showing Paul and Chani (Zendaya) imagining a future together. “If we have a girl, what should we name her?” she asks. Paul suggests Ghanima, while Chani says that a boy should be named Leto in honor of his grandfather. It’s a rare moment of calm, and it doesn’t last.
You can quickly see the burden Paul is carrying. “War feeds itself,” he says. “The more I fight, the more enemies fight back.” He turns to Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson) and asks how his father dealt with it. Her answer is blunt. “Your father never started a war.” This line cuts through the myth of Paul.
The cast of Dune 3 has some familiar and new faces
The trailer teases a wide cast including Stilgar (Javier Bardem), Paul’s sister Alia Atreides (Anya Taylor-Joy), Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson) and Duncan Idaho (Jason Momoa), who is seen dying in the first Dune film, but this time he’s back.
We also get our first look at the film’s antagonist, Scytale (Robert Pattinson), who appears with a cold gaze and striking blonde hair. There are flashes of large-scale battles and political tensions tied to Paul’s decisions after taking power at the end of Dune 2.
Everything builds up to an exciting final moment. Paul, who now has a great haircut, prepares for another fight. “I’m not afraid of dying,” he says. “But I can’t die yet.” At the end you can also see Chani charging towards an unknown opponent.
With a release date of December 18, 2026, Dune 3 positions itself as the final chapter of a story that has already achieved massive box office success and critical acclaim.
The Dune universe has also expanded to television, with the prequel series Dune: Prophecy already released and set 10,000 years before Paul Atreides’ rise to power.
