Dune 3 Reportedly Filming Way Sooner Than Expected (But There May Be a Problem)

Denis Villeneuve’s big screen Dune saga has been an enormous success both critically and commercially. Despite the day-and-date streaming release of the first Dune, the movie still managed to perform well at the box office. Dune: Part Two, released exclusively in theaters last year, made more than $700M at the global box office. To top it all off, both films have earned Best Picture nominations at the Oscars. On the backs of two massive winners, Villeneuve is aiming to complete the trilogy by adapting Frank Herbert’s sequel, Dune Messiah, but fans have expected a bit of a wait for the film that will complete the story of Paul Atreides.

As it turns out, the wait may not actually be as long as originally expected. There was a lot of talk of Villeneuve making his next movie or two before coming back to the sands of Arrakis for Dune 3. He has recently said he’s ready to return to Dune, however, and a new report indicates that the director could begin shooting his Messiah adaptation as early as this summer, a year before production was rumored to begin.

According to Deadline‘s Baz Bamigboye, there were rumblings at this year’s pre-BAFTA party about the future of Dune Messiah. The writer was apparently told at the event that Villeneuve’s third (and likely final) Dune film is set to go into production in June 2025. It had been previously believed that the film would enter production in the summer of 2026, so this is wonderful news to the ears of movie fans everywhere.

There is one major issue with this timeline, however, and it revolves around one of Dune‘s biggest stars. Zendaya has starred in both Dune movies as Chani, a revolutionary leader who is in love with Timothee Chalamet’s Paul. The character plays a key role in Herbert’s Dune Messiah, so one would assume that she’d be an important part of Villeneuve’s film adaptation.

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The problem is that Zendaya’s 2025 calendar is looking incredibly full. She has a role in Christopher Nolan’s new movie, The Odyssey, which is currently filming. Production on Euphoria Season 3 is also underway, and Zendaya is also set to reprise the role of MJ in Marvel’s fourth Spider-Man movie, which is being directed by Destin Daniel Cretton.

So Dune Messiah makes four major projects for Zendaya in the first half of 2025, should the film actually go into production in June. That’s a difficult schedule to manage and could create some availability issues for Zendaya. That doesn’t mean it’s impossible by any stretch, but it will be a tricky situation to navigate.