Director Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part Two is all set to introduce Feyd Rautha but Villeneuve is making sure that he doesn’t repeat the mistakes that were made in David Lynch’s 1984 film adaptation. Played by Austin Butler, Feyd Rautha will get a better backstory in this movie. Lynch’s version of the character seemed like a joke but Villeneuve will make sure that fans get a spine-chilling backstory of this character this time.
Since none of the Harkonnen characters in Villeneuve’s Dune movies have any hair, Feyd Rautha will also get a bald treatment. In a recent interview, Villeneuve explained that Harkonnens want to erase their past, so naturally, they will get rid of everything that reminds them of that past. With the help of a latex bald cap, Butler was transformed into the terrifying Feyd Rautha.
Denis Villeneuve explained why Austin Butler’s Feyd Rautha in Dune: Part Two
Director Denis Villeneuve recently appeared for an interview with Vanity Fair and explained why actor Austin Butler‘s character, Feyd Rautha, is bald in Dune: Part Two. The director believes the Harkonnens are a community that doesn’t like hair so Feyd Rautha will also be bald in this movie,
“I loved the idea that Harkonnens are a society that doesn’t like hair. […] They remove everything. They want to be as far away from any part of their past as possible, where they are coming from. There’s a will of purity.”
It is believed that Feyd Rautha in David Lynch’s 1984 film adaptation was wasted as the character had much more potential. Villeneuve hopes to fix all those mistakes, especially with Feyd Rautha’s backstory. Musician Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner a.k.a Sting played Feyd Rautha in David Lynch’s adaptation but his iteration of the character seemed silly, childish, and out of place.
Austin Butler wore a bald latex cap to play the part
Butler’s transformation into Feyd Rautha was done using a bald latex cap and artificial eyebrows. Although there’s still time until the film’s release, some people are already comparing the actor’s performance to Heath Ledger’s Joker. The actor explained how the idea was executed (via SlashFilm),
“There’s two caps on my head. […] One that goes over the hair, and then there’s the sculpted cap that attaches kind of where my eyelids were, right at the crease of my eyelids. That goes all the way back.”
Dune: Part Two has been in production for a while now and the filming was wrapped up in December 2022. However, several setbacks led to the film’s delay, particularly due to the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strike. The film is all set to release in the United States on March 1, 2024. Apart from Butler, the film also features Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Florence Pugh, Dave Bautista, Christopher Walken, and Léa Seydoux.
