Legendary composer Hans Zimmer has provided an update on Dune: Messiah, the third installment in Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi franchise. Zimmer scored both the 2021 and 2024 entries and even won the Oscar for his work on Dune: Part Two, and it has already been confirmed that he will return to compose the music for the third and final film under Villeneuve, Dune: Messiah. It was reported a few weeks ago that Dune: Messiah would begin filming this summer, with most of its leading ensemble expected to return. However, during a recent Q&A with Collider’s own Steve Weintraub for Hans Zimmer & Friends: Diamond in the Desert, Zimmer provided an update on Dune: Part Three that comes as a bit of a shock, considering its production timeline:

"Dune 2 was written before Denis started shooting because we weren't greenlit for the longest time. Have I started writing [Messiah]? No. Not quite yet. Oh, god, it's a very complicated one, but I love working with Denis so I'm actually going to just focus on that, nothing else, and just really spend the time doing it."

After winning the Oscar for Best Original Score for his work on Dune: Part One in 2021, Zimmer wasn’t even nominated for his work on Dune: Part Two due to a technicality. The Academy declared that his Part Two score was too similar to his Part One score, and therefore, it would be ineligible to contend for an Oscar. Director Denis Villeneuve was the first to break his silence on this near the end of 2024, saying that he “didn’t accept” Zimmer’s work not even being eligible. Zimmer also spoke up not long after, highlighting that Dune: Part One and Part Two are two halves of one whole — parts of one story — and that it wouldn’t make sense to have entirely new themes for the second chapter. Still, the Academy held firm, and the award for Best Score went to The Brutalist.

Some of Hans Zimmer’s most famous work came from composing the score to the original Gladiator film starring Russell Crowe and directed by Ridley Scott, but he did not return for the sequel and was instead replaced by Harry Gregson-Williams. He even worked with Christopher Nolan on all three chapters in his Batman franchise and on Inception and Interstellar. Zimmer also worked with Denis Villeneuve before the two teamed up for Dune on Blade Runner 2049, the legacy sequel starring Ryan Gosling and Harrison Ford, and he scored both the animated and live-action versions of The Lion King.

Dune: Messiah will reportedly begin filming this summer. Stay tuned to Collider for future updates and coverage of the film and watch Dune: Part Two on Max.