Denis Villeneuve’s epic blockbuster Dune has finally arrived in UK cinemas, introducing a complex sci-fi universe and teasing a sequel that would complete the story of Frank Herbert’s legendary novel.
Indeed, with the title card flashing up as Dune: Part One at the beginning of the film, it stands to reason that Villeneuve and Warner Bros see the potential for multiple instalments in this potential cinematic franchise.
As a result, it’s hardly surprising that some movie-goers have been expecting to see a post-credits scene at the very end of the movie, which is a practice that has been popularised by Marvel Studios.
However, Villeneuve’s film is a very different beast to the bright family fare of the MCU, so there was never any guarantee that there would be a Dune post-credits scene.
Does Dune have a post-credits scene?
No, there is no post-credits scene at the end of 2021’s Dune movie, breaking from the convention established by the Marvel Cinematic Universe and since adopted by several other franchises.
In an interview with NME, director Denis Villeneuve explained that – even though Dune: Part Two is quite likely to happen as long as the box office is strong enough – he had no desire to tease a sequel at the end of his film
“I don’t like post-credits scenes,” he told. “There is a very specific final emotion that I was looking for with the final frame [of Dune] and I don’t want to mess with that. So no, I don’t use post-credits scenes. I’ve never done that and I would never.”
This is not a surprising opinion for Villeneuve to have, given that the filmmaker recently made some critical comments about the output of Marvel Studios, which strike a similar tone to his arthouse peers like Martin Scorsese.
“Perhaps the problem is that we are in front of too many Marvel movies that are nothing more than a ‘cut and paste’ of others,” Villeneuve told El Mundo. “Perhaps these types of movies have turned us into zombies a bit.”
For a spoiler-filled refresher on exactly where we leave Paul at the end of the movie, read our guide to the Dune ending explained, while we have a full breakdown of the biggest Dune book to movie differences.
Dune is out now in UK cinemas. Check out more of our Film and Sci-Fi coverage or visit our TV Guide to see what’s on tonight.