Subscribe for full access to The Hollywood Reporter
Subscribe for full access to The Hollywood Reporter
Director Denis Villeneuve explains why he won't release scenes he removed from 'Dune 2,' while at least one actor who was cut from the film says he's disappointed at being left out.
By James Hibberd
Writer-at-Large
The blockbuster Dune: Part Two is nearly three hours long, but it could have been even longer. And director Denis Villeneuve says that any cut scenes will not be seen by the public.
“I’m a strong believer that when it’s not in the movie, it’s dead,” the director told Collider when asked if he will release deleted scenes from the film for its upcoming Blu-ray release. “Sometimes I remove shots and I say, ‘I cannot believe I’m cutting this out. I feel like a samurai opening my gut. It’s painful, so I cannot go back after that and create a Frankenstein and try to reanimate things that I killed. It’s too painful. When it’s dead, it’s dead, and it’s dead for a reason. But yes, it is a painful project, but it is my job. The movie prevails. I’m very severe in the editing room. I’m not thinking about my ego, I’m thinking about the movie … I kill darlings, and it’s painful for me.
“I’ve made movies in my life that were 75 minutes, and this one is two hours, 45 [minutes], I think, something like that,” Villeneuve added. “It’s not the runtime, it’s about the storytelling, and I felt that I wanted to create a momentum. I wanted an energy in the movie that I was looking for that excited me, and I thought that was the perfect runtime … You can be bored by a five-minute movie.”
Villeneuve joins a list of directors who generally decline to release deleted scenes — such as Christopher Nolan and Martin Scorsese.
At least one actor who was entirely cut from the film: Tim Blake Nelson (The Ballad of Buster Scruggs) in an undisclosed role. Nelson told Movieweb, “I don’t think I’m at liberty to say what the scene was. I’d leave that to Denis if he wants to talk about it. I had a great time over there shooting it. And then he had to cut it because he thought the movie was too long. And I am heartbroken over that, but there’s no hard feelings. I loved it, and I can’t wait to do something else with him and we certainly plan to do that.”
Internet sleuths have speculated that Nelson might have been cast as Count Hasimir Fenring, an assassin and adviser to the Emperor (Christopher Walken), who is married to Lady Fenring (Léa Seydoux). The character has a larger role to play in future Dune books, so perhaps he may appear in Dune: Messiah should Warner Bros. greenlight another sequel (which seems rather likely given the film’s $80 million opening weekend box office). Nelson will next be seen in Captain America: Brave New World.
There was another actor who didn’t make the film: Stephen McKinley Henderson played the House Atreides Mentat Thufir Hawat in Dune: Part One. He was officially announced as among the cast when filming began in July 2022, though curiously, Villeneuve recently suggested the decision was made earlier.
“One of the most painful choices for me on this one was [to not include] Thufir Hawat,” Villeneuve told Entertainment Weekly. “He’s a character I absolutely love, but I decided right at the beginning that I was making a Bene Gesserit adaptation. That meant that Mentats are not as present as they should be, but it’s the nature of the adaptation.”
So instead, the audience is left to assume Hawat was killed during the invasion. Interestingly, Count Fenring is also a Mentat, which could help explain why Nelson was cut.
Villeneuve has said he wants to make a Part Three based on Frank Herbert’s novel Dune Messiah and is actively working on script.
Sign up for THR news straight to your inbox every day
Get the scoops first! Breaking news and interviews on comics, sci-fi, horror and more
Subscribe for full access to The Hollywood Reporter
Send us a tip using our anonymous form.

source