It didn’t take long for the success of Dune to result in a sequel. Just a few days after its domestic release, Dune: Part Two was confirmed. Fans of the original novel are aware that the film did not fully cover all the pages, but Denis Villeneuve, the film’s director, is ready to complete the story with the upcoming film.
The Canadian film director revealed to Empire about his decision to split the original novel into two, which saw him maneuvering and adjusting parts of the story. He had his heart set on a sequel even while filming the first film, and promises “more Harkonnen stuff” for the follow-up, as well as the introduction of new characters in the sequel:
Some new characters will be introduced in the second part and a decision I made very early on was that this first part would be more about Paul Atreides and the Bene Gesserit, and his experience of being in contact for the first time with a different culture. Second part, there will be much more Harkonnen stuff.
Villeneuve also spoke about how the anticipated second movie is coming along:
We are supposed to shoot by the end of the summer. I will say it is mostly designed. The thing that helps us right now is that it’s the first time I’ve revisited a universe. So I’m working with the same crew, everybody knows what to do, we know what it will look like. The movie will be more challenging, but we know where we are stepping. And the screenplay is written. So I feel confident. Frankly, the only big unknown for me right now is the pandemic.
This means Stellan Skarsgård and Dave Bautista, members of House Harkonnen, will have some more screen time in the second installment. The film has raked in several awards nominations, including the Best Picture nomination at the upcoming Oscars. It’s going to take a while for the sequel to get here though, as Dune: Part Two is slated for an Oct. 2023 release.