Wipe your stills clean, folks—Dune: Part II has reportedly finished filming.
The news comes from Paul Atreides himself, aka star Timothée Chalamet, who posted a picture of himself on Instagram – seemingly in the Wadi Rum desert in Jordan – with the caption: “DUNE 2 WRAPPED (with Desert Dad !!)”
The much-anticipated Denis Villeneuve-directed “Dune” sequel is set to hit theaters on November 3, 2023, suggesting that much of next year will be devoted to post-production by the filmmakers of “Blade Runner: 2049” . However, Chalamet’s comments may simply be referring to his own filming plans.
Initial production on Dune: Part Two began earlier this year, with filming locations including Budapest, Abu Dhabi, Jordan and Italy. To learn how Villeneuve approached principal photography, check out our article on how Dune’s production team brought the world of Arrakis to life in Dune: Part One, which includes insights from Paul Lambert, the film’s visual effects supervisor, production design Supervisor Patrice Vermette and DP Greig Fraser. All three are believed to have returned to Dune: Part II).
In addition to Chalamet, actors reprising roles from the first Dune film include Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Dave Bautista, Charlotte Rampling, Strance Karsgard, Javier Bardem, and Stephen McKinley Henderson. New additions to Frank Herbert’s sci-fi universe include Florence Pugh (Black Widow, Don’t Worry Darling), Austin Butler (Elvis), Léa Seydoux (No Time to Die) and Christopher Walken (The Deer Hunter).
As its title suggests, Dune: Part 2 will pick up directly after the abrupt end of Dune: Part 1, in which Chalamet’s super-powered prince Paul Atreide After surviving the Harkonnen attack on his family, the Fremen allied themselves.
According to the official synopsis of the Alwana brothers, Villeneuve’s sequel will “explore the mythic journey of Paul Atreides as he joins forces with Chani and the Freemans while retaliating against a plot that destroyed his family.” Confronted with the choice between the love of his life and the fate of the known universe, he strives to prevent a terrible future that only he can foresee.”
Pugh, Butler, Seydoux and Walken will play Princess Irulan Corrino, villain Feyd-Rautha, Bene Gesserit Lady Margot and Emperor Shaddam IV, four characters who don’t appear until the second half of Herbert’s novel.
Warner Bros. has high hopes for Villeneuve’s vision for Arrakeen. Dune: A Sisterhood is expected to follow shortly after Dune: Part II, an HBO Max-exclusive spinoff series positioned as a prequel to the first Dune movie. Dune: Awakening — a sprawling MMO video game set in the world of Herbert’s Dune — is also on the way, but no release date has been confirmed yet.
Regardless, Dune’s star-studded follow-up ranks among the most anticipated releases of 2023, and we can’t wait to return to the desert plains of Arakos for more deworming in action.
