Dune's Denis Villeneuve Echoed A Promise To Florence Pugh About Messiah
Like the prophetic Bene Gesserit, director Denis Villeneuve always seems to have his mind partly in the future. When it comes to casting his "Dune" films, based on the novels by Frank Herbert, he's managed to hire some of the biggest stars in the world to play bit parts all by pointing to what comes next. While many actors would jump at the chance to work with Villeneuve or be in that kind of star-studded production, there's also a lot involved and smaller roles might not feel as rewarding for huge, busy stars. So how did he manage to get Florence Pugh to play Princess Irulan in "Dune: Part Two"? By promising her some great things for her future playing the character, all pointing to a third film based on "Dune Messiah."
Of course, this should sound pretty familiar to fans of the first two films who followed production, as Villeneuve promised Zendaya something similar when it came to her character, Chani. You see, both women were set to play characters with very little to do, but the director had something entirely different in mind. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Villeneuve revealed just how he managed to get Pugh to join "Dune: Part Two," and it involved expanding her role in the future, just like he did with Zendaya.
A promise of more Dune
When interviewed, Villeneuve explained that he has big plans for working with Pugh in the future for the "Dune Messiah" film, and that helped get her to sign on for a more limited role in "Dune: Part Two":
"When I approached Zendaya for 'Part One,' I said, 'I'm going to introduce your character, and if it is a second movie, then you will be one of the main protagonists.' And she agreed. I made the same deal with Florence. Her character is introduced in 'Part Two,' but then if there is an adaptation of 'Dune Messiah,' of course Princess Irulan is one of the main characters in that story."
While Irulan is already a central protagonist in "Dune Messiah," it's likely that Villeneuve will expand her role like he did Chani's in "Dune: Part Two," making her just as important as Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet), the "hero" of the first two films. Instead of relegating the female characters to the sidelines as Herbert did, Villeneuve seems intent on giving them agency and a lot more to do. In fact, he's basically setting up the "Dune Messiah" film to be a battle for the ages between Chani and Princess Irulan, putting the fate of humanity in the hands of two powerful women.
Chani, Irulan, and Lady Jessica are all given more to do
Of course, Irulan and Chani aren't the only female figures that Villeneuve decided to expand upon. He also gave Paul's mother, the Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson) a greater role in "Dune: Part Two," fixing something he disliked about the novel. He told Total Film magazine that it bothered him that Jessica was "more in the background" in the back half of the book, and that, as the "main architect" of the story, she needed to be present throughout both "Part One" and "Part Two." More Rebecca Ferguson is always a good thing, and her performance as Jessica is killer, so Villeneuve really knows what he's doing.
Another megastar with the potential for a huge future role in the franchise is Anya Taylor-Joy, who voices the unborn Alia (Paul's younger sister). While her appearance in "Dune: Part Two" is pretty wild, seeing as we hear Alia's voice while focusing on Jessica's womb, it does provide the chance for Taylor-Joy to play Alia in future sequels as she eventually becomes the regent of the Atreides Empire. It will be interesting to see how Villeneuve tweaks the roles of all of these incredible actors, given that his "Dune" movies are, thankfully, doing better by their female characters than the source material.