Anya Taylor Joy confirms role in upcoming sci-fi’s second installment

Anya Taylor-Joy’s hidden part in the Dune sequel was announced online on Thursday, following her discussion of the highly awaited science fiction film at the star-studded Leicester Square premiere in London.

“Yes, you’ll have to see the film,” in video that was uploaded to X.com, she backed down when asked why she had attended the premiere by Yinka Bokinni.

The question of Taylor-Joy’s experience entering the Dune realm was then posed. She replied: “This is a dream come true. The books are incredible, but with this cast and with Denis [Villeneuve], it doesn’t get any better than that.”

Parts of a recent interview with Villeneuve, which was done while Taylor-Joy’s casting was still a major production secret, were published online by EW on Friday in response to the pseudo-reveal.

“I cannot believe that we kept the secret that long,” the film’s director told the magazine. “It required so much work to keep that secret. Everybody signed with their blood.”

When Letterboxd added the movie, which is slated for release on March 1, to the titles in Taylor-Joy’s filmography, the internet began to stir this week. Although the credit has subsequently been taken off from that page, a screenshot of the proof has been circulated.

What is not yet known is whose well-known figure she will portray from this adaptation of Frank Herbert’s renowned epic novel series, which opens nationwide on March 1.

Taylor-Joy soared to Hollywood’s A-list in 2020, the year of her breakout performance, which includes an ensemble role in The New Mutants, the lead role in Emma, and an award-winning performance in the Netflix series The Queen’s Gambit. However, the actor’s 2023 was somewhat quiet; he only received one movie credit, as Princess Peach in the animation The Super Mario Bros movie.

The first volume of the five books Herbert authored for the series, which his son carried on after his death, is covered in the second half of Villeneuve’s Dune two-parter, which stars Florence Pugh, Austin Butler, and Léa Seydoux, among others. The returning ensemble of Dune: Part One features several celebrities, including Josh Brolin, Zendaya, Timothée Chalamet, and others.

When talking about the follow-up on Thursday, Taylor-Joy couldn’t help but gush about her director and extol his virtues: “[It’s] one of the best movies I’ve ever seen in my entire life. Genuinely, Denis has killed it.”