Jason Momoa, if you hadn't noticed, is a much bigger man than Timothée Chalamet. In Dune: Part 3, however, size doesn’t matter.
Chalamet plays Paul Atreides in Dune: Part 3, which takes place 20 years after the events of the previous movie. Atreides is well established as the most powerful being in the universe, a messianic, totalitarian leader who can stab people real good.
Momoa kind of returns as a clone of his previous character from Dune: Part 1, Duncan Idaho, who doesn’t share any of his DNA dad’s memories or personality traits. “It’s probably the weirdest character I’ve ever had to navigate, because I know I was hired to play Duncan for a certain reason, then I had to figure out how to play a guy who doesn’t know who the guy is,” Momoa said in an interview with NY Times.
“It was very challenging. I’m not the most subtle actor, or human, so it was probably my most subtle performance. I haven’t seen it yet. I don’t know which takes he used.”
While Idaho and Atreides were close friends in Part 1, there’s more of a strain to that relationship in Part 3 and the pair come to blows. According to Momoa, it was challenging to wrap his head around the logistics of losing to Chalamet.
“And another thing too, working with Tim, I have to fight him,” Momoa explained. “[His character Paul] is at a whole other level, and better than me as a fighter. And you know, realistically, how do we put that together?”
Chalamet cut in to say that was “a polite way of putting” that Momoa could take him in a fight in real life. “He’s a better actor,” Momoa said. “I’m better at fighting. But he’s really fast. I was super impressed: Just because you’re a great actor, it doesn’t mean that you’re able to dance. Ultimately, it’s a dance.”
Elsewhere in the lead up to launch, we’ve had a look at Dune: Part 3’s horrific popcorn buckets. One comes with two sandworm holes for double the fun, and the other comes with a thumper that actually moves up and down.
Dune: Part 2 surpassed the previous movie in the trilogy at the box office, generating almost $500 million. Dune: Part 1 grossed $433 million worldwide during its entire theatrical run. Dune: Part 3 is scheduled to release in cinemas on December 18, 2026, with early IMAX preview screenings beginning on December 14, 2026.