“Dune: Part Two” returns to IMAX screens this weekend, a move that will likely send Denis Villeneuve‘s sequel over the $700 million global box office barrier. That’ll be a coup for him and Warner Bros. and all but assure Villeneuve makes “Dune: Part Three” as soon as possible (barring a break, of course, and maybe another project first as a creative palette cleanser). So what should “Dune” fans expect from Villeneuve’s third film? The director gave some hints in a new interview with The New York Times.
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In a wide-ranging discussion that included talk about the movie’s powerful women, Fremen sexual culture, and the many changes Villeneuve made to Frank Herbert‘s 1965 novel, Villeneuve hinted that Zendaya‘s Chani will be an integral feature in his upcoming film. “Chani is my secret weapon,” Villeneuve said about his changes to the character. “Frank Herbert was sad to realize that people saw the book as a celebration of Paul Atreides. He wanted to do a cautionary tale against messianic figures, a warning against blending religion and politics. I wrote the second movie trying to be more faithful to Frank Herbert’s intentions than to the book.”
And to be faithful to Herbert’s intentions, Villeneuve knew he needed to dramatically shift Chani’s story. “In the book, Chani is just a follower,” the director continued. “I came up with the idea of her being reluctant. She gives us the critical distance and perspective on Paul’s journey. I wanted to make sure the audience will understand that Paul becomes a dark figure, that his choices are exactly what Chani was afraid of. He becomes the colonizers the Fremen were fighting against. And then the movie becomes the cautionary tale Frank Herbert was wishing for.” As those who’ve seen “Dune: Part Two” already know, Chani recognizes Paul’s dark transformation after his climactic fight with Austin Butler‘s Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen, usurping the galactic throne. Betrayed, Chani flees the scene, an extreme departure from what she does in Herbert’s novel.
For Villeneuve, Paul’s betrayal operates on several levels, and will be the narrative level for his upcoming trilogy-capper. “[Paul] betrayed her in many ways,” he said about the betrayal of Chani. “But the big thing for Chani is that it’s not about love. It’s about the fact that he becomes the figure that will keep the Fremen in their mental jail. A leader that is not there to free the Fremen, but to control them. That’s the tragedy of all tragedies. Like the Michael Corleone of sci-fi, he becomes what he wanted to avoid. And he will try to find a way to save his soul in the third part.”
That’s partially what happens in Herbert’s 1969 sequel “Dune Messiah,” but expect Villeneuve’s adaptation to veer off-course from that book in several ways, particularly when it comes to Chani and her anger toward Paul. “That anger is tremendous,” Villeneuve said. “I don’t want to reveal what I’m going to do with the third movie. I know exactly what to do. I’m writing it right now. But there’s a lot of firepower there and I’m very excited about that decision.” So expect a tour de force performance from Zendaya in “Dune: Part Three,” whenever it arrives.
And sorry, Herbert fans, expect some other bold changes to “Dune Messiah” in Villeneuve’s upcoming film. “There’s so many darlings that you kill,” Villeneuve cheekily opined at the end of the interview. “An adaptation is an act of violence.”