‘Dune: Part Three’ Will be Shot on IMAX Cameras

Director Denis Villeneuve will shoot Dune: Part Three — which is scheduled for release in December 2026 — on IMAX cameras.

Filming for Villeneuve’s third Dune film is expected to begin soon — with Linus Sandgren reportedly taking over as cinematographer from Greig Fraser for the next installment in the series.

According to a report by Variety, the film, which is officially titled Dune: Part Three, will feature sequences shot using IMAX cameras. However, Villeneuve’s movie won’t be shot entirely in IMAX.

IMAX CEO Richard Gelfond shared the update during an appearance on CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street,” where he spoke more broadly about current and upcoming IMAX releases. During the interview, Gelfond was also asked about Amazon MGM’s decision to hire Villeneuve to direct their reboot of the James Bond franchise after he completes the Dune trilogy. Gelfond praised the director and expressed his hope that Villeneuve will continue working with IMAX on future projects, including the next James Bond movie.

During the segment, Gelfond appeared to suggest that Dune: Part Three would be shot entirely with IMAX cameras.

“From a personal point of view, I was really happy. I like him. I think he’s a genius filmmaker,” Gelfond tells CNBC about Villeneuve’s hiring.

“He’s so creative. He’s making the next Dune with IMAX cameras, he’s filming the whole thing. So we haven’t started talking yet, but I’m praying that that’s the case with Bond.”

But an IMAX spokesperson later clarified to The Wrap that Gelfond had misspoken and that the third Dune movie will include IMAX-shot scenes, but not the entire film.

As The Wrap notes, the size and cost of IMAX cameras, along with the technical skill required to use them, means filmmakers typically reserve the format for select scenes that benefit from a larger visual scale. Ryan Coogler’s Sinners followed this model, with key scenes filmed using IMAX 70mm and the rest using Ultra Panavision 70mm.

However, Christopher Nolan’s upcoming film The Odyssey — which has a release date of July 2026 — is set to make cinematic history as the first major Hollywood feature to be shot entirely using IMAX film cameras. With an estimated production budget of $250 million, it is poised to be the most expensive film of Nolan’s career.