Austin Butler is in negotiations to play Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen in Dune: Part Two, Deadline reports.
Butler would join a star-studded cast that already includes Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Stellan Skarsgård, Javier Bardem, and Dave Bautista. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Florence Pugh is being linked to the character Princess Irulan.
Butler’s career is set to take off with the release of the Baz Luhrmann-directed biopic Elvis later this year where he plays the iconic singer. Some probably remember him from the short-lived MTV series The Shannara Chronicles, while others may recognize him as Tex in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.
Feyd-Rautha is the younger nephew of Baron Vladimir Harkonnen, played by Skarsgård in 2021’s Dune, who becomes an adversary of Chalamet’s character Paul Atreides.
Despite getting subjected to a day-and-date release, Dune made a respectable $400 million worldwide, eclipsing the $100 million domestic mark, a feat not seen too often during the pandemic era. It earned 10 Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, and a slew of nods in the technical categories. Meanwhile, Denis Villeneuve was left out of the Best Director category.
Production on Dune: Part Two is expected to start in the fall, but THR warns that the war in Ukraine could complicate matters, or at least lead to relocation since the first film was partially shot in nearby Hungary and the initial hope was to continue filming there.
Dune: Part Two is currently slated to hit theaters on October 20, 2023.
