Robert Pattinson confirmed he’s set to take on one of his most dynamic roles yet in Dune: Part Three.
Pattinson, 39, reflected on his jam-packed schedule while filming multiple projects back-to-back in a joint interview with Die My Love costar Jennifer Lawrence with IndieWire on Monday, November 3. It was then that he let some details about filming the upcoming Dune installment slip.
“It’s actually really nice. When I was doing Dune it was so hot in the desert that I just couldn’t question anything,” he told the outlet of being exhausted by work at times. “And it was so relaxing, like my brain actually wasn’t operating, I did not have a single functioning brain cell. And I was just listening to Denis [Villeneuve]: ‘Whatever you want!’”
Pattison was also asked if he will be playing a “villain role” in the film, to which he simply responded, “Yes.” Lawrence, 35, chimed in telling Pattinson, “You’re a busy boy. You just shot that, you have it coming out.”
It was first reported by multiple outlets in April that Pattinson was being eyed for the role of Scytale in Dune: Part Three, based on the 1969 Frank Herbert novel Dune Messiah. At the time, an offer had yet to be extended to Pattinson, per The Hollywood Reporter. However, fans were quick to hop on board with the casting speculation, with photos of Pattinson arriving to film Dune: Part Three in Budapest circulating X in July.
“What a legendary run of films Pattinson is about to go on. 🔥,” one X user wrote in a post on the platform in July, as a second user said, “Can’t wait to see him in dune!! he is such a great actor and one of my favorites.”
Villeneuve’s iteration of the franchise kicked off with 2021’s Dune starring Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac, Josh Brolin, Stellan Skarsgård, Dave Bautista, Jason Momoa and Javier Bardem. Dune: Part Two followed in 2024, with cast additions including Austin Butler, Florence Pugh and Christopher Walken.
Robert Pattinson Francois Durand/Getty Images
Pattinson made his interest in the Dune franchise known several years prior to joining the trilogy.
“There’s only been two movies — well, three now — where I wanted to do a sequel: the Apes movies, Sicario and Dune,” he told Variety in March 2022. “I saw both of the Apes movies in the cinema and I just thought what he could do with mo-cap was just so unbelievable. If he could do that with a monkey’s face, then he can get a performance out of me as well.”
Dune: Part Three will be premiering in theaters late next year. The Twilight actor also pointed out that he has another movie, Primetime, coming out in 2026. The crime drama is directed by Lance Oppenheim and also stars Phoebe Bridgers, Merritt Wever, Sean Bridgers, Skyler Gisondo and Matthew Maher.
“Money troubles?” Lawrence playfully asked Pattinson when he brought up Primetime, to which he responded, “The strike really affected me! I will never let that happen ever again.” (The 2023 WGA strike lasted for 148 days as screenwriters lobbied for better pay, residuals and the regulation of AI, halting Hollywood productions before reaching a tentative agreement.)
