“Dune: part two” features one of the most star-studded casts in recent memory. From Timothée Chalamet to Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, Dave Bautista and many more, there is rarely a scene in the Denis Villeneuve– a directed sequel that isn't packed with star power. The cast was supposed to be even bigger, however, but the filmmaker had to make some cuts in the final edit that left at least one actor “heartbroken.”
Tim Blake Nelson, a Coen Brothers regular thanks to films such as “The Ballad of Buster Scruggs” and “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” “, was announced as a cast member for “Dune: Part Two” in January 2023. He does not appear in the theatrical release.
“I don’t think I’m at liberty to say what the scene was,” Nelson said recently. told Movieweb about being left out of the sequel. “I'll leave that to Denis if he wants to talk about it. I had a great time there filming it. And then he had to cut it because he found the film too long. And I'm heartbroken, but there are no hard feelings. I loved it and can't wait to do something else with him, and we definitely plan to do that.
Some “Dune” fans believe Nelson filmed a scene starring Count Hasimir Fenring, the husband of Lady Margot Fenring (Léa Seydoux), who is also an advisor to the Emperor (Christopher Walken). The reasoning is linked to another actor that Villeneuve cut from the “Dune” sequel: Stephen McKinley Henderson.
Henderson starred in the original “Dune” film as Thufir Hawat, who serves House Atreides as “Mentat” (which is essentially a human supercomputer in the “Dune” universe). Villeneuve excluded Thufir Hawat from the sequel, which was not an easy decision for the director.
“One of the most painful choices for me was not including Thufir Hawat,” Villeneuve said. Weekly Entertainment. “It's a character that I love, but I decided early on that I would do a Bene Gesserit adaptation. This means that the Mentats are not as present as they should be, but that is the nature of adaptation.
Because Villeneuve distanced his adaptation of “Dune” from Mentat's characters, some fans believe Nelson must have played Hasimir Fenring since he is also a Mentat who plays an important role in the novels. Henderson said on the “It’s Purdue” Podcast last year, he filmed scenes for “Dune: Part Two” alongside Austin Butler.
“What a nice person,” Henderson said. “He’s just the nicest guy and he and Timmy are both great people. And they play such enemies in the film, so it was wonderful to see them off camera. And Austin was so nice to me… I liked Austin so much – a wonderful, wonderful person.
Any fans wondering if these cut actors might appear in a “Dune” directorial are out of luck, as Villeneuve has long been outspoken against such releases.
“I’m convinced that when it’s not in the movie, it’s dead,” he said. says Collider before the release of “Dune: Part Two” in theaters. “Sometimes I'll pull out shots and say, 'I can't believe I'm cutting this.' I feel like a samurai ripping my guts open. It's painful, so I can't go back after this and create a Frankenstein and try to reanimate the things I killed. It's too painful. When it's dead, it's dead, and it's dead for a reason. But yes, it's a painful project, but it's my job. The film wins. I am very strict in the editing room. I don't think about my ego, I think about the film. …I kill darlings, and it's painful for me.
Both Nelson and Henderson are listed in the special thanks section of the end credits.
“Dune: Part 2” is now playing in theaters nationwide.