Robert Pattinson's Experience on 'Dune 3' Set: A Desert Adventure
Robert Pattinson recently shared an intriguing insight into his time on the set of Denis Villeneuve's 'Dune: Part Three'. In an interview with IndieWire, Pattinson revealed that the desert filming conditions were far more intense than he anticipated. Similar to the first two installments, the latest 'Dune' film required a significant portion of its scenes to be shot in the vast Arabian desert.
"When I was filming 'Dune', it was so scorching hot in the desert that I couldn't question anything," Pattinson recounted. "It was incredibly relaxing, almost like my brain wasn't functioning. I had no working brain cells, and I was entirely focused on Denis [Villeneuve]'s instructions. Whatever he wanted!"
Pattinson's role in the third 'Dune' movie remains a closely guarded secret. He is one of the most prominent new additions to the cast, joining relative newcomers Nakoa-Wolf Momoa and Ida Brooke, who play Paul and Chani's twin children. The 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'.
This isn't the first time the 'Dune' franchise has faced the harsh desert conditions. Austin Butler, who portrayed the villainous Feyd-Rautha in 'Dune: Part Two', recalled a similar experience in an interview with Entertainment Weekly. During his first week of shooting the sequel, the heat stroke affected several crew members.
"It was a sweltering 110 degrees," Butler described. "I was wearing a bald cap, and the set was between two soundstages, each with 200-foot walls of sand. It felt like a microwave. People were passing out from heat stroke, and that was just my first week."
Despite the challenges, Butler found a sense of camaraderie among the crew. "It really bonds the entire crew," he added. "There's something humbling about enduring such an uncomfortable environment."
Zendaya also shared her experience with heatstroke during the filming of 'Dune: Part Two'. Her heavy costume and the scorching Jordan desert set led to her neglecting to drink enough water. "I was terrified of peeing or pooping in the suit on set," she explained, referring to the Fremen warriors' body armor. "The bathrooms were far away, and we had to hike to the locations. If you needed to use the bathroom, it took at least 10 minutes to get out of the costumes. I didn't want to drink too much water. One day, I didn't drink enough, and I had a heatstroke. I felt terrible. I called my mom on the bathroom floor, and she asked if I had drunk water. I hadn't, and I learned my lesson."
The 'Dune' cast faced the harsh desert temperatures throughout the filming, which is why Villeneuve expressed gratitude for not following the typical Hollywood approach of filming both 'Dune' films back-to-back without a break. "Both movies were made in harsh conditions, and it's physically demanding," Villeneuve told EW. "Having a break between them was a blessing. My initial thought was to shoot both movies back-to-back, but I'm glad I didn't. It was intense, and the positive response to 'Part One' gave me the energy to return to the desert."
'Dune: Part Three' is set for release on December 18, 2026, and promises to continue the epic space adventure, leaving fans eager to see how the cast and crew will tackle the challenges of the desert once again.
