The second part of director Denis Villeneuve’s Dune is set to start production next month. With big names joining the project through the year, the latest in a long line of high-profile actors is Léa Seydoux, who will be playing the role of Lady Margot Fenring from the novels.
Seydoux will be joining the crew after a recent success with Crimes of the Future, which screened recently at the 2022 Cannes Festival. She also recently appeared in French-German drama One Fine Morning, following a big Hollywood splash alongside Daniel Craig in No Time To Die.
Dune: Part One was released in October 2021 to pretty good reactions from critics and audiences and was largely praised for its scope and the visual chops on display. Part One told the story of Paul Atreides (Timothee Chalamet), a young nobleman standing at the forefront of a centuries-long prophecy that kicks off on Arrakis, a hostile and mysterious desert planet.
Caught in the midst of a deadly coup from the rival Harkkonen faction, Paul finds himself drawn closer to the mysteries of the desert, the ‘fremen’ culture of its people, and the latent powers within him.
Chalamet as well as his co-stars Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Javier Bardem, Stellan Skarsgard and Dave Bautista are returning for the sequel.
Joining Seydoux as newcomers are Florence Pugh, Austin Butler and veteran actor Christopher Walken.
What Are The New Roles All About?
Seydoux holds a key role as one of Paul’s earliest allies. A ‘Bene Gesserit’ sister, similar to Paul’s own mother Jessica, Lady Margot helps her sisterhood influence events on a galactic scale while operating under the cover of a minor noble house.
In the first film, her role was somewhat written out. She initially tries to help the Atriedes family discover the Harkkonen’s sinister takeover, but it’s too late. Eventually, we see her aim to seduce and manipulate the Harkkonnens, which she does through Austin Butler’s character, Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen.
Feyd-Rautha’s absence was one of the biggest gaps in the first film’s plot; as the heir-apparent to the Harkkonen throne, he was a skilled combatant and ambitious young ruler who featured heavily in the first novel. That said, its Christopher Walken who seems to have the most interesting role — he will play Padishah Emperor Shaddam IV, a 200+ year old ruler who sits atop the known universe’s complex, almost-feudal political structure. With him responsible for the plans that reduced Paul’s former life to ashes, it’ll be interesting to see how Walken handles portraying the most powerful man amongst the stars.
Florence Pugh also has a solid role as the Emperor’s daughter, Princess Irulan. As the Emperor’s child and eventual wife of Paul, it’ll be exciting to see her act alongside Chalamet, a few years after they appeared together in 2019’s Little Women, for which Pugh received an Academy Award nomination.
Dune: Part Two is set to release on October 20, 2023. Jon Spaihts is returning to co-write the script with Denis Villeneuve, who will direct and produce the sequel.
(Featured Image Credits: Warner Bros. Pictures, Universal Pictures)
