As much as “Dune” received rapturous acclaim from practically all corners, there were still a few stick-in-the-muds (raises hand) who simply couldn’t get very emotionally involved in the actual story of Paul (Timothée Chalamet) arriving on the desert world of Arrakis along, suffering through the fall of House Atreides at the hands of the Harkonnens, and joining up with Zendaya’s Chani and the rest of the Indigenous Fremen people. The lack of any real screen time devoted to Paul and Chani certainly didn’t help, but audiences can look forward to that changing in a major way this time around. Denis Villeneuve goes on to explain the major shift in perspective that “Part 2” will depict:

“The first movie was more contemplative — a young man discovering a world. Here, it’s a war movie.”

He added:

“At the very core is a Love Story between Paul and Chani. How Paul will gain her trust, how she will open her heart to him, and how they will find a way to free Chani’s world from the Harkonnen grip. It’s a much more emotional movie.”

The official trailer definitely went out of its way to put Paul and Chani’s growing romance at the forefront of the action, even as we were treated to much more expansive sequences of spectacle — all with the foreboding future of Paul’s prophetic destiny hanging heavy over their heads. That’s something Paul remains well aware of even as he seeks to avenge his fallen father, the Duke (Oscar Isaac). According to Villeneuve, “He’s trying to find a way to avoid that ominous future — that’s the burden upon his shoulders.”

Unfortunately, we’ll have to wait to see how that goes. Everything will be perfectly fine, I’m sure! “Dune: Part 2” arrives March 14, 2024.