Austin Butler has revealed that one brief moment from Denis Villeneuve's Dune: Part Two that's gained quite a bit of attention online was completely improvised.
Shortly after we're introduced to Butler's Feyd-Rautha in the movie, his uncle, The Baron Harkonnen (Stellan Skarsgård), holds a ceremony to officially name his nephew as his successor. The Baron plants a light kiss on Feyd, and the psychotic warrior responds by grabbing his uncle and kissing him far more aggressively on the lips.
In the book, the Baron is depicted as a twisted predator who appears to harbour incestuous desires for his nephew, which Feyd is well aware of. This kiss may have been a nod to the characters' dynamic on the page, but it also seemed to represent Feyd sizing an opportunity to make it clear that he had no intention of backing down if it came to a power struggle.
During an interview with Access Hollywood, the Oscar-nominated Elvis star confirmed that he improvised the kiss on the day.
“[The kiss] with Stellan Skarsgård? Oh yeah!” Butler said when asked if the moment was on the fly. “He’s game for anything. He’s the best…it’s always about how you’re trying to affect somebody else.”
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"Those hoping for blockbuster escapism might find themselves shook by this faithful, at times borderline depressing adaptation," we said in our review. "But Dune Part Two is Sci-fi spectacle at its finest and most audacious, as Villeneuve builds-upon and possibly surpasses (opinions will vary) his previous film with aplomb."
The saga continues as award-winning filmmaker Denis Villeneuve embarks on Dune: Part Two, the next chapter of Frank Herbert’s celebrated novel Dune, with an expanded all-star international ensemble cast. The film, from Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures, is the highly anticipated follow-up to 2021’s six-time Academy Award-winning Dune.
The big-screen epic continues the adaptation of Frank Herbert’s acclaimed bestseller Dune with returning and new stars, including Oscar nominee Timothée Chalamet (Wonka, Call Me by Your Name), Zendaya (Spider-Man: No Way Home, Malcolm & Marie, Euphoria), Rebecca Ferguson (Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning), Oscar nominee Josh Brolin (Avengers: Endgame, Milk), Oscar nominee Austin Butler (Elvis, Once Upon A Time…In Hollywood), Oscar nominee Florence Pugh (Black Widow, Little Women), Dave Bautista (Guardians of the Galaxy, Thor: Love and Thunder), Oscar winner Christopher Walken (The Deer Hunter,), Stephen McKinley Henderson (Fences), Léa Seydoux (James Bond, Crimes of the Future), with Stellan Skarsgård (Avengers: Age of Ultron), Oscar nominee Charlotte Rampling (45 Years, Assassin’s Creed), and Oscar winner Javier Bardem (No Country for Old Men, Being the Ricardos).
Dune: Part Two will explore the mythic journey of Paul Atreides as he unites with Chani and the Fremen while on a warpath of revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family. Facing a choice between the love of his life and the fate of the known universe, he endeavors to prevent a terrible future only he can foresee.