Denis Villeneuve - one of the biggest blockbuster directors of our time with films like Sicaro, Blade Runner 2049, Arrival and most recently Dune under his belt - has long said he wants to make a Dune trilogy. The second Dune film, Dune: Part Two, the follow-up to 2021's Dune, was recently delayed and will premiere next year. They are both based on Frank Herbert's first Dune book.
Villeneuve's dream, according to a recent interview with Empire, would be to finish with a third film based on the second Dune book, Dune Messiah. This is what he said about this:
"If I succeed in making a trilogy, that would be the dream," said Villeneuve. "Dune Messiah was written in reaction to the fact that people perceived Paul Atreides as a hero. Which is not what he [Herbert] wanted to do. My adaptation [of Dune] is closer to his idea that it's actually a warning."
He also revealed that he has actually already started working on the script for the third film - which has not yet been greenlit by Warner Bros. - but unfortunately had to put the project on hold temporarily due to the ongoing strike in Hollywood.
Villeneuve concluded with: "[But] I will say, there are words on paper."
This would be his last Dune film, Villeneuve has previously claimed.