Stellan Skarsgard to play Baron Harkonnen in Denis Villeneuve's Dune

Denis Villeneuve's upcoming adaptation of Frank Herbert's DUNE has been busy assembling what is shaping up to be an all-star cast, and it seems that Stellan Skarsgard will be the latest addition.

Stellan Skarsgard is slated to play the villainous Baron Harkonnen in DUNE, the leader of a family who previously ruled the planet of Arrakis and harbour a deep resentment towards the Atreides family. Along with the Galactic Emperor, the Harkonnen's plot to destroy them. Several days ago we learned that Dave Bautista (BLADE RUNNER 2049) had signed on to play Glossu "Beast" Rabban, the sadistic nephew of Baron Harkonnen. Timothée Chalamet (CALL ME BY YOUR NAME) is set to star in DUNE as Paul Atreides, the young heir to the Atreides family, who is betrayed and forced to escape into the desert wastelands. Together with the nomadic tribes, Paul discovers his mental abilities and leads an army to overthrow the empire. Rebecca Ferguson (MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – FALLOUT) is also slated to star as Paul's mother, Lady Jessica. Production on DUNE is expected to kick off this spring with the shoot taking place in Budapest and Jordan.

The director's plans for DUNE certainly seem quite ambitious, as he's previously said that he hopes to make DUNE into the STAR WARS movie he never saw. "Most of the main ideas of Star Wars are coming from Dune so it’s going to be a challenge to [tackle] this," Villeneuve said. "The ambition is to do the Star Wars movie I never saw. In a way, it’s Star Wars for adults. We’ll see." The director has also said that his goal is to make DUNE into "two films, maybe more," which would certainly be a good way to ensure Herbert's dense story isn't cut into a million pieces.

Stellan Skarsgard to play Baron Harkonnen in Denis Villeneuve’s Dune