Those who survived Dune will return, with Zendaya playing a significantly larger part. Timothée Chalamet will reprise his role as Paul Atreides, the heir to a noble house who is heralded as a messiah, with Rebecca Ferguson, Javier Bardem, Stella Skarsgard, and Dave Bautista joining him as Lady Jessica, Stilgar, Baron Harkonnen, and Glossu Rabban, respectively (Oscar Isaac’s Duke Leto Atreides sadly died in the first film).
The headlines:
Who’s in the cast of Dune: Part Two?
Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, and Javier Bardem will be back, alongside new additions Florence Pugh and Austin Butler.
When will Dune: Part Two be released?
The hotly anticipated sequel is set to land in cinemas on March 15, 2024.
What’s the plot of Dune: Part Two?
It should pick up where Dune left off, tracking Paul Atreides’s rise to power and his subsequent rebellion against Emperor Shaddam IV.
Is there a trailer for Dune: Part Two?
Yes, there are two! See both in full below.
Also back? Zendaya stars as Chani, a violent Fremen from the desert planet Arrakis who appears in Paul’s visions and crosses his path for the first time at the conclusion of Dune. Despite having only seven minutes of screen time in the sequel, audiences have been promised that the actor would have a larger role in the sequel. If Denis Villeneuve sticks loyal to the original material, Frank Herbert’s best-selling sci-fi novel of the same name, she should be mentoring and protecting Paul, eventually emerging as the story’s romantic protagonist.
When I did the casting for Chani’s character, I met a lot of actresses,” Villeneuve told La Repubblica in August 2021. “Zendaya wanted to audition and today, after shooting the film and seeing what a wonderful actress she is, I’m sorry I auditioned her. It was just because I didn’t know her. However, that day, she impressed me and when she left the studio I knew that Chani was her, the young desert tiger. I am honored to present two such explosive talents on screen [Chalamet and Zendaya] and I can’t wait to shoot the second part of Dune to get them back together knowing that in the next chapter Zendaya will be the [female] protagonist of the story.”
Florence Pugh and Austin Butler are in talks to join the cast
On March 8, 2022, it was reported that Florence Pugh was being courted to play Princess Irulan, the Emperor’s daughter who marries Paul for political reasons. Pugh and Chalamet have, of course, previously played a couple in Greta Gerwig’s heartwarming adaptation of Little Women. Then, on March 10, came more news: Austin Butler, who shot to fame after playing the titular King of Rock ‘n’ Roll in Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis, was in talks to play Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen, the nefarious nephew of Baron Harkonnen and his chosen heir.
What about the other luminaries who have landed on Arrakis? Christopher Walken will play Emperor Shaddam IV, the ruler who felt threatened by Leto Atreides and thus conspired with House Harkonnen to send him and his family to the desert planet; Léa Seydoux as Lady Margot, a member of the Bene Gesserit and an ally of Paul; Swiss actor Souheila Yacoub as Fremen squad leader Shishakli; and Tim Blake Nelson in an unspecified role.
It should have epic battles and Chalamet and company riding sandworms
Fans of Herbert’s novel have pointed out that Dune only covers about two-thirds of the book, leaving plenty of material for the sequel. The first film ended with Paul joining the Fremen to bring peace to Arrakis, so assuming the second film picks up where the first left off, we should see Paul rise to power. When word of his greatness reaches Baron Harkonnen and the Emperor, they amass fleets around the desert planet, and Paul leads the Fremen into battle on giant sandworms under the cover of an electric storm.
According to the official synopsis, “this follow-up film will explore the mythic journey of Paul Atreides as he unites with Chani and the Fremen while on a warpath of vengeance against the conspirators who destroyed his family.” Faced with a choice between the love of his life and the fate of the known universe, he attempts to prevent a terrible future that only he can foresee.” We can hardly wait.
The first official trailer was released on May 3, following an explosive teaser. It begins with Chalamet and Zendaya viewing Arrakis’ dunes before the epic battle begins. Cue scenes of Florence Pugh as Princess Irulan, Austin Butler as the otherworldly Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen, Léa Seydoux as the intriguing Lady Margot, and Chalamet for the first time riding a sandworm. It will undoubtedly give you goosebumps.
On June 29, a second teaser was released, this time including more intense fight sequences, including an epic clash between Paul and Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen.
The release date was pushed back and then pushed ahead
Collider announced on November 7, 2021, that filming on Dune: Part Two will begin on July 18, 2022, with the picture set to hit theatres on October 20, 2023. That was eventually pushed back to November 17, and then to November 3, 2023. However, due to the continuing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, the picture was postponed once again until March 15, 2024 on August 24, 2023.
Additional Dune films may also be in the works.
Although Villeneuve has stated that he wants to present the tale in two parts, he has also stated that he “always envisioned three films” and would be interested in adapting Herbert’s 1969 sequel Dune Messiah next. We can only hope he doesn’t stop there.