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Dune: Part Two – Timothée Chalamet On Playing Beloved Characters

Dune: Part Two star Timothée Chalamet describes the difference between playing beloved characters compared to original characters.



Article Summary

  • Timothée Chalamet opens up on the pressure of playing iconic roles like Paul Atreides.
  • Chalamet reflects on challenges adapting characters who hold a cultural and emotional place.
  • Co-star Austin Butler commends Chalamet's bravery in taking on treasured characters.
  • Success of 'Wonka' and anticipation for 'Dune: Part Two' suggests Chalamet's portrayals resonate.

People are very protective over the things they cherish, which has been the reality of things for as long as the arts have existed. When you adapt a piece of art, you run into the potential that what you do with your adaptation doesn't quite align with what people had in their heads, and they will reject it. They will see it as a personal slight, even an attack on something that means a lot to them, which is a risk that actors who take on beloved roles have to contend with. In the span of about three months, Timothée Chalamet is bringing two beloved characters to the big screen. In December, he played a young Willy Wonka in Wonka; next month, he will return as Paul Atreides in Dune: Part Two, and he's also been cast as Bob Dylan in a biopic. Collider asked Chalamet which of three roles was his "I can't believe this is happening" moment. He explained the difference between adapting a beloved character and working on original IP.

"All three," Chalamet replied. "There's something about when you embark on a story that is 100% original, and you're really shining your flashlight into the dark and just going. Willy Wonka, Paul Atreides, and Bob Dylan these are dangerous characters because, I said a lot on the Willy Wonka press tour, people are rightfully very protective of them because they already exist in a significant cultural, if not emotional place for many people, and they don't want you to go near it. Understandably. I feel like that about some roles or characters in public imagination, but… That's the end of that thought. I guess I'm still gonna do them."

Dune: Part Two - Timothée Chalamet On Playing Beloved Characters
L-R: © 2023 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. All Rights Reserved. Photo Credit: Courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures. TIMOTHÉE CHALAMET as Paul Atreides in Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures' action adventure "DUNE: PART TWO," a Warner Bros. Pictures release. | © 2023 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. All Rights Reserved. Photo Credit: Jaap Buittendijk. TIMOTHÉE CHALAMET as Willy Wonka in Warner Bros. Pictures and Village Roadshow Pictures' "WONKA," a Warner Bros. Pictures release.

So far, Chalamet seems to be keeping people relatively happy with his portrayals of these characters. Obviously, we haven't seen him as Dylan yet, but Wonka was pretty well-received overall and made a ton of money at the box office. Dune was quite similar in that his portrayal was received well and did well commercially. There is a ton of hype for Dune: Part Two, and Chalamet did this interview with his co-star Austin Butler, who said, "You're brave" to Chalamet's response to adapting beloved characters—says the man who played Elvis.

Dune: Part Two – Summary, Cast List, Release Date

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: End Game, Milk), Oscar nominee Austin Butler (Elvis, Once Upon A Time…In Hollywood), Oscar nominee Florence Pugh (Black Widow, Little Women), Dave Bautista (the Guardians of the Galaxy films, Thor: Love and Thunder), Oscar winner Christopher Walken (The Deer Hunter, Hairspray), Stephen McKinley Henderson (Fences, Lady Bird), Léa Seydoux (the James Bond franchise and Crimes of the Future), with Stellan Skarsgård (the Mamma Mia! films, Avengers: Age of Ultron), with 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. Dune: Part Two is slated for a March 1, 2024, worldwide release from Warner Bros. Pictures.


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Kaitlyn BoothAbout Kaitlyn Booth

Kaitlyn is the Editor-in-Chief at Bleeding Cool. Film critic and pop culture writer since 2013. Ace. Leftist. Nerd. Feminist. Writer. Replicant Translator. Cinephillic Virtue Signaler. She/Her. UFCA/GALECA Member. 🍅 Approved. Follow her Threads, Instagram, and Twitter @katiesmovies.
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