Florence Pugh says her Dune 2 character is "one of the quietest characters" she has ever played
Feb. 16, 2024Exclusive | The star says she was excited to portray Princess Irulan due to her “calculated” nature
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If you thought the cast forDunewas stacked then wait until you see the sequel, with several big names joining the all-star line-up for the highly anticipatedPart Two. One of these is none other than Florence Pugh, the Oscar-nominated star of hit films includingLittle Women,Oppenheimer, andDon’t Worry Darling.
In the upcoming sequel, she portrays Princess Irulan, a character from sci-fi author Frank Herbert’s beloved novel who was previously played by Candyman star Virginia Madsen in David Lynch’s 1984 movie adaptation. As the daughter of the Emperor (played by Christopher Walken), Irulan is central to the politics at play – if you recall, the first film saw the Emperor put House Atreides up against House Harkonnen, setting everyone on the path to war.
Pugh explains that, in a way, she is still learning about Irulan, teasing that we could potentially see more of her in the future: “I think that excited me the most, to see someone that was planning. You don’t necessarily know what they’re planning for, but they are aware and they are planning. That’s a very exciting character to get to work with, because you’re trying to figure out where her loyalties lie, where her wisdom ends, and what her abilities are. And it may not be loud, and it may not be feisty, and it may not be gobby like my usual characters always are. But she’s definitely intelligent. That’s been a really nice fine line to play. We’ll find out more about Princess Irulan, I’m learning about her as well.”
Whilst a third film is yet to be officially confirmed, director Denis Villeneuve hasexpressed interestin adapting Herbert’s follow-up novel Dune Messiah for the big screen. Irulan does feature in that book, so we may see Pugh portray the princess once more. Only time will tell.
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Dune: Part Two releases in US and UK theaters on March 1. The above is just a snippet of our interview, available inthe latest issue of SFX magazine, which features the upcoming blockbuster on the cover and is available on newsstands from Wednesday, February 21. For even more from SFX, sign up to ournewsletter, which delivers all the latest exclusives straight to your inbox.
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I’m the Editor of SFX, the world’s number one sci-fi, fantasy and horror magazine – available digitally and in print every four weeks since 1995. I’ve been editing magazines, and writing for numerous publications since before the Time War. Obviously SFX is the best one. I knew being a geek would work out fine.
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