Denis Villeneueve’s Dune introduced audiences to a new sci-fi epic adapted from the source material, which was Frank Herbert’s beloved book series. Villeneuve brought a visually stunning film about warring houses for control over the planet Arrakis. The film starred an ensemble cast of Timothée Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac, Josh Brolin, and Jason Momoa among many others.
The latter played Duncan Idaho, a mentor figure to Chalamet’s Paul Atreides. The character is also an expert swordsman and a trained fighter, sworn to protect House Atreides. Momoa had to learn a specific martial art technique for the film which he never could master but learned enough to look convincing in the film.
Jason Momoa Had to Learn Kali To Portray Duncan Idaho in Dune
Jason Momoa played a pivotal role in Denis Villeneuve’s Dune among the excellent ensemble of actors. The sci-fi epic was a big undertaking and Villeneuve and the whole cast committed to do justice to Frank Herbert’s books and also present a visually stunning film. Momoa played Duncan Idaho and he underwent extensive training to play the part.
Momoa learned the popular Filipino martial arts technique called Kali for the film. He told Indiewire that while he did not fully master the art form, he learned enough to play his part convincingly. He also revealed that his son is also interested in Kali and they bond over it. He said,
“We had to fight numerous people, so a lot of training went into that last battle scene. We did a bunch of stuff like Kali. I never really learned that. My son does that. There’s definitely these intimate moments where I’m signaling to my son. That’s a Kali move, where you put your hand on your heart and put it on your head. That’s to Timothée in the movie, but that’s to my son in real life.”
Unfortunately, Momoa’s character met his demise while defending House Atreides against the invasion by members of House Harkonnen. However, Chalamet has claimed to MTV that Momoa’s character would be back in the third film. They might reveal his return at the end of Part 2. For now, fans should wait for Dune: Part 2 which is releasing very soon.
Denis Villeneuve Claims Dune: Part 2 Was A Challenging Film To Shoot
Denis Villeneuve is gearing up for the release of Dune: Part 2 and he and the cast are currently promoting the film. The director recently sat down with Screenrant to talk about doing a sequel to Dune and the challenges that came with it. The director revealed that writing the second film was difficult and taxing as he wanted it to appeal to fans and general viewers simultaneously.
Villeneuve claimed that the second film has a much bigger scope and action set pieces, making it a much bigger technical challenge to pull off than the first film. Secondly, while writing the film, he had to make sure that people who hadn’t seen Part 1 could still enjoy the film, while also keeping in mind that Part 2 is a seamless continuation of the first film’s events. He said,
“Two things. First, it was technically much more challenging because there’s much more action, and we had the same timeframe to shoot Part 2 and Part 1. And it was more challenging for my crew because it technically was much more complex.
Also, from the screenwriting point of view, I felt that the challenge was to make sure that if someone had not seen Part 1, they will still enjoy Part 2; that Part 2 will be an autonomous movie. Still, it is the direct continuity of Part 1, but to make sure that you can enjoy Part 2 without having seen Part 1. That was one of the challenges in the screenwriting.”
Dune: Part 2 will see the return of Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Stellan Skarsgård, Dave Bautista, and Javier Bardem with Florence Pugh and Austin Butler joining the cast. The film will be released in theaters on March 1, 2024.
Fans can catch up on the first Dune on Max.
