Actor Robert Pattinson recently revealed that filming Denis Villeneuve's "Dune: Part Three" turned out to be hotter than expected, UNN reports with reference to Variety.
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As with the first two films in the franchise, much of the final "Dune" film's scenes were shot in the Arabian Desert.
"When I was filming 'Dune,' it was so hot in the desert that I just couldn't question anything," Pattinson told IndieWire. "And it was so relaxing, like my brain really wasn't working. Not a single brain cell of mine was functioning. I just listened to Denis [Villeneuve]: 'Whatever!'"
Pattinson's role in Villeneuve's third and final "Dune" film remains a secret. He is one of the most prominent new cast members of the threequel, alongside relatively new actors Nakoa-Wolf Manoa and Ida Brook, who play Paul and Chani's twin children. Returning cast members include Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Florence Pugh, Jason Momoa, Josh Brolin, Rebecca Ferguson, and Anya Taylor-Joy. The film is based on Frank Herbert's second novel in the "Dune" series, "Dune Messiah."
It seems that with each "Dune" film, there are countless stories about how the actors endure the scorching desert heat where filming took place. Austin Butler, who played the villain Feyd-Rautha in "Dune: Part Two," once told Entertainment Weekly that several people on set suffered heatstroke during the first week of filming the sequel. "It was 48 degrees Celsius and very hot," Butler said.
"It really brings the whole crew together," Butler added. "There's something incredibly comforting about such an uncomfortable environment."
Zendaya told W Magazine that she suffered heatstroke while filming "Dune: Part Two" because her costume was very heavy and she stopped drinking water on the very hot set in the Jordanian desert.
Almost all of the "Dune" cast had to endure the heat during the filming of the space epic, and that's one reason why Villeneuve was grateful he didn't go the usual Hollywood route and shoot both "Dune" films back-to-back without a break.
"Both films were shot in very harsh conditions, and it's very physically demanding, so the break between them was a real blessing," Villeneuve told EW. "Initially, I wanted to shoot both films back-to-back, but now I think I would have died. It was very intense, and seeing how the world reacted to 'Part One' gave me a boost of positive energy to return to the desert."
"Dune: Part Three" will be released on December 18, 2026.