4 min readLos AngelesUpdated: Mar 18, 2026 09:28 AM ISTDune 3 trailer: Timothee Chalamet and Robert Pattinson debut their new looks.Dune 3 trailer: After witnessing the overwhelming reception of his 2024 space opera sequel Dune: Part Two, director Denis Villeneuve decided against his original plan of taking a detour from his three-part adaptation of Frank Herbert’s 1965 seminal book. He decided to finish the story he started in 2021 with Dune, and began working on the third instalment at once.On Tuesday, Warner Bros dropped the first teaser trailer of Dune: Part Three, which is touted as an “epic conclusion” to Villeneuve’s Dune trilogy. The footage starts with happier times when Timothee Chalamet’s ruler Paul Atreides and Zendaya’s Chani are mulling over their future baby’s name. He says if it’s a daughter, he wants it to reflect her mother’s strength. And if it’s a boy? “I would name him Leto. So he would have the wisdom of his grandfather,” says Chani, referring to Paul’s late great father, played by Oscar Isaac.Dune 3 takes a 17-year leapBut life had other plans for the couple. As the film takes a 17-year leap, we see their worlds change and how. Those upto speed with the book would recall that Paul ditches Chani for Florence Pugh’s Princess Irulan in order to usurp more political power and expand his kingdom. The ruler in him takes over, as the husband and the father take the backseat.Robert Pattinson as antagonistWith Hans Zimmer’s haunting score dominating the background, we see bodies fall and decompose, and shots being fired across the landscape, as a full-blown war takes off. “War feeds on itself. The more I fight, the more enemies fight back,” Paul tells his mother, Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson), as Florence’s and Robert Pattinson’s characters are introduced in the trailer. The latter looks unrecognisable, with his silver hair and a lean, mean avatar as Scytale.“I’m trying my best to protect my family. How did father do it?,” asks Paul, as Rebecca gives him much-needed advice: “Your father never started a war.” As Paul goes to war for power, and war within for perspective, familiar faces return to chip in their bits. These include his loyal sister Alia Atreides, played by Anya Taylor-Joy, who had a cameo in Dune: Part Two; Javier Bardem’s Stilgar; and even Jason Momoa’s Duncan Idaho, Paul’s mentor who’s seen getting killed in the first instalment itself.Also Read — ‘Aamir Khan tujhe 6 mahina god mein bithaega, will then say no’: What Aditya Chopra told Kunal Kohli before FanaaThe twist in the tales comes at the end of the 2 minute 29 second trailer when Paul, now sporting a buzzcut, ascends a high dais to address millions of his subjects. “I’m not afraid to die, but I must not die right now,” he says, as if he has one more battle to fight. In the final shot, Chani is seen showing a fleeting glimpse of concern before she charges at a silhouette with a dagger. Is that Paul? Are Paul and Chani at war 17 years after they were planning what to name their baby?Story continues below this adAbout Dune triologyVilleneuve’s triology is the third adaptation of the Dune books, after David Lynch’s 1984 movie and John Harrison’s 2000 miniseries. While the first instalment of Villeneuve’s trilogy earned over $400 million, the second film amassed over $700 million at the global box office. Dune: Part Three is slated to release in cinemas on December 18.Click for more updates and latest Hollywood News along with Bollywood and Entertainment updates. Also get latest news and top headlines from India and around the World at The Indian Express.© IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd