Dune 2 star Timothée Chalamet details the special advice he received in an email from Tom Cruise. Released in 2021, the first half of Denis Villeneuve’s adaptation of Frank Herbert’s classic sci-fi novel introduced Chalamet as the heroic Paul Atreides, placing much of the story’s burden on the shoulders of the young Call Me By Your Name star. Having proven himself more-than-capable of standing at the center of a massive Hollywood epic, Chalamet will now return to complete the story of Paul Atreides, as Villeneuve wraps up his ambitious and visually impressive interpretation of one of the great science-fiction stories.
The Dune: Part Two release date may still be a long way off after the film was delayed to 2024, but Chalamet recently had occasion to discuss his role in the highly-anticipated movie, revealing how a 2022 blockbuster helped inspire him, and how the star of that blockbuster reached out with some important career advice. Speaking to GQ, Chalamet talked seeing Top Gun: Maverick in the theater, and discussed getting an email from Maverick himself that filled with the names of stunt trainers he might want to look up if he needs any help preparing for a future action role. Check out Chalamet’s remarks below:
“Top Gun was just hugely inspiring to me last summer when we were making Dune. Some of the crew were kind of scoffing at going, but I just thought it was one of the greatest films I’ve ever seen. … After I met Tom Cruise, right after finishing the first Dune, he sent me the most wonderfully inspiring email. He basically said, in Old Hollywood, you would be getting dance training and fight training, and nobody is going to hold you to that standard today. So it’s up to you. The email was really like a war cry.”
Could Timothée Chalamet Be The Next Tom Cruise
There are a few similarities between Chalamet and Cruise with regard to career arc. Both became stars at a young age, aided by their heartthrob status, and soon began working with big-name directors (Chalamet with the likes of Villeneuve, and Cruise with legends like Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorsese). Both also received awards consideration relatively early on, Cruise getting his first Oscar nomination at 28, and Chalamet receiving his first at just 22. The two stars’ careers strikingly diverse however when it comes to early box office success. Cruise put up huge hits like Top Gun when he was still young, while Chalamet has mostly worked in smaller movies, eschewing opportunities to join big franchises and make massive blockbusters.
Cruise of course continued to build on his early box office and awards success by becoming one of the biggest names in Hollywood, mixing classic movie star opportunities with the occasional wild artistic swing like Stanley Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut, before settling in for a long run mostly making Mission: Impossible movies. It’s yet to be seen how Chalamet will manage his own career after Dune 2, but if he chooses to go the action-star route, he already has a willing mentor in Cruise. Chalamet however seems more interested in pursuing smaller movies, like his upcoming Bob Dylan biopic, while mixing in the occasional big-budget film like this year’s Wonka.
Key Release Dates
Dune: Part Two
Release Date:2024-03-15
