©Courtesy of Warner Brothers

Actor Robert Pattinson is reportedly being considered for a leading role in Dune: Messiah, an upcoming film from Legendary and Warner Bros. A recent article in The Hollywood Reporter suggested Pattinson might be playing the role of Scytate, the Tleilaxu Face Dancer, as depicted in the books by Frank Herbert. The actor is already committed to appearing in Matt Reeves’s The Batman: Part II, which stars shooting later in 2025. Other of his recent projects have included an appearance in Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey and Lynne Ramsay’s Die, My Love. 

Directed by Denis Villeneuve, the two Dune films featured a top-flight cast that included Timothée Chalamat, Zendaya, Florence Pugh, Austin Butler, Jason Momoa, and Josh Brolin. The original Dune, released in 2021, earned $410 million worldwide, while Dune 2 took in more than $714 million after its debut in 2024.

The Dune universe is based on the award-winning series of novels by Frank Herbert. The two Dune films won eight Oscars, and were nominated for fifteen, including Best Picture for both. A prequel television series, titled Dune: Prophecy, set 10,000 years in the past, premiered on HBO and Max in November of 2024

 

The first of the two Dune movies were the third and fourth adaptations of Herbert’s books, following David Lynch’s 1984 film and John Harrison’s 2000 television miniseries. After Paramount was unsuccessful in producing another adaptation, Legendary acquired film and television rights in 2016 and Villeneuve signed on as director.

In adapting Herbert’s saga for a contemporary audience, Villeneuve considered his screenplay “a coming-of-age story but also a call for action for the youth.” He considered his script a social commentary regarding capitalism and the exploitation of natural resources.

Dune: Messiah will reportedly start filming this summer, with a release date by Warner Bros. anticipated on December 18. 2026. Villeneuve has declared this will be his final Dune production.

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