We are just moments before the official trailer drop of the highly anticipated follow-up to Denis Villeneuve’s adaptation of Dune, with Dune Part Two. Vanity Fair would first whet the appetites of fans who are looking forward to the new interpretation of the character who was first portrayed by Sting with an iconic look in the David Lynch 1984 incarnation of Dune. In the Vanity Fair pic, we are only given a hint of his look with a silhouette of the assassin wielding two edged weapons. Variety now provides us with a closer look at Austin Butler as Feyd-Rautha in the upcoming epic sci-fi.
The look for Feyd-Rautha has been altered in this updated incarnation of the character. Even those who haven’t seen Lynch’s Dune have likely seen an image of Sting in the role sporting spiked hair and especially showing off an oiled-up lean build as he wears a metal speedo. In Villeneuve’s version, Butler is displaying nearly the opposite image with a completely hairless look.
Variety’s description of the character reads, “Feyd-Rautha is the evil nephew of Baron Harkonnen (Stellan Skarsgård) and the brother of the sadistic Glossu Rabban, played by Dave Bautista in Villeneuve’s film franchise. The two brothers are in competition to become the Harkonnen family’s successor on the planet Arrakis.”
The breakout star of last year’s Baz Luhrmann hyper-musical biopic, Elvis, gained acclaim and even an Oscar nomination for his performance. Butler will now parlay his new rising status into this action sci-fi epic, joining an already impressive cast with fellow newcomers Florence Pugh and Christopher Walken. This first look into the character comes from the trailer teaser which flashes images of the characters featured in this installment.
As Villeneuve describes his new interpretation of the character, “He’s someone Machiavellian, much more cruel, much more strategic, and is more narcissistic. Rabban wants to please. He wants to please the baron. He wants to shine in front of his uncle, but there’s something touching about Rabban because he’s a bad strategist. He’s not very intelligent. Rabban finds himself, at the end of part one, in the position where he doesn’t have the brain to be able to manage and control all these operations. Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen is a very clever, very charismatic figure, and much more brilliant.”
One thing audiences are curious about is if Butler has been able to shake the Elvis voice that the actor has admittedly been stuck with long after completing the King of Rock & Roll biopic. Butler has been seen in interviews since its release having the reminiscence of the southern drawl still present. Will there be a hint of Elvis in Feyd’s speaking voice? Hopefully we will see in the trailer later today.