Director Denis Villenueve is sparing no expense for his big budget take on the classic sci-fi story ‘Dune’ with another massive star about to join the cast…
The upcoming ‘Dune’ film directed by Denis Villenueve is quickly putting together one of the most ambitious ensemble casts in Hollywood history.
Based on the classic science fiction novels by Frank Herbert, ‘Dune’ tells the story of a galaxy filled with planets controlled by noble houses and ruled over by Padishah Emperor Shaddam IV. The Emperor becomes concerned when Duke Leto Atreides of House Atreides starts to gain too much favor with the other noble house, which he believes could eventually lead him being overthrown. To prevent this from happening, the Emperor orders House Atreides to take over control of the desert planet Arrakis, where a valuable spice known as ‘Melange’ is mined. The Emperor plots with another noble house that has warred with House Atreides for centuries to ambush them and destroy the entire family before they could start a coup to take over.
David Lynch made a version of ‘Dune’ back in 1984 that was critically berated at the time but slowly became a cult classic amongst science fiction fans over the years.
Now Villenueve — best known for his work on ‘Arrival’ and ‘Blade Runner 2049’ — is taking a stab at the ‘Dune’ franchise with his own ambitious take on the classic story and he’s assembling a massive ‘A’ list cast for the film.
While not all of the actors listed here have officially signed on, most are either official or deep in negotiations to join the film.
Timothée Chalamet will Paul Atreides, the lead role in the movie.
Stellan Skarsgård as Baron Harkonnen, who is one of the main villains.
Dave Bautista as Rabban
Rebecca Ferguson as Lady Jessica
Charlotte Rampling as Reverend Mother Mohiam
Oscar Isaac as Duke Leto Atreides
Zendaya as Chani
Javier Bardem as Stilgar
Josh Brolin as Gurney Hallec
And the latest addition to the cast is ‘Aquaman’ star Jason Momoa, who is reportedly in talks to play Duncan Idaho.
The crazy part about this cast is there are still several major parts left to fill because ‘Dune’ is a sprawling epic that is expected to take place over at least two films if Villenueve’s vision is realized.
Filming for ‘Dune’ is expected to kick off later this year in Budapest and Jordan but there is no official release date for the film just yet.
