Dune: Part Two Star "Really Honored" to Join Sequel in Key Role
Soon after Dune was released last year, it was announced that the Oscar-winning film would be getting a sequel, and possibly a third installment. Dune: Part Two is currently in production with returning director Denis Villeneuve, and star Timothée Chalamet will once again play Paul Atreides. The movie will also feature the return of more stars from the first film, including Zendaya, but there is also an exciting line-up of newcomers. Not only is Chalamet reuniting with his Little Women co-star, Florence Pugh, but the movie will also feature Christopher Walken as well as Elvis star, Austin Butler. The actor is playing Feyd-Rautha, the favored nephew of Baron Harkonnen (Stellan Skarsgard), leader of the rival house to House Atreides. In the books, he is more cunning than his brutish brother, "Beast" Rabban (Dave Bautista), and he ultimately becomes the primary antagonist to Chalamet's character. During a recent interview with Variety, Butler talked about joining the sequel.
"Well, I just love the first film so much. It was just a cinematic masterpiece. So the idea of getting to be a part of the world is just incredibly exciting. And Denis is one of my favorite filmmakers and just an amazing human being. He's so kind and I'm a fan of every one of those actors in the film, so I felt really honored." He added, "It's really surreal. You feel sort of like a kid in a, you know like in your favorite film, it's like walking onto the set of any film that you admire as a kid. Like walking on to Indiana Jones or something like that ... Movies that really impact you as a kid, that's how I felt."
What Has Timothée Chalamet Said About the Dune Cast?
"Florence is really special," Chalamet shared with Variety. "She's an incredible actor. She was incredible in Dune -- seriously incredible. She brought a gravitas to the role. And I can't believe my good fortune at this young age...between Taylor Russell in Bones and All and Zendaya in Dune. And Austin Butler's in that movie too."
Chalamet added of Zendaya, "She hasn't wrapped yet, and it's amazing. She's bringing exactly what she brought to the first one — which was incredible — but in greater abundance. And she's really become a sister. I'm so grateful to count her as a partner and a sister and a friend, and also to share stories about how amazing it is to work with Luca [Guadagnino], because we worked with him back to back on wildly different projects."
Dune: Part Two opens in theaters on November 3rd, 2023.