Denis Villeneuve's Dune Casts Charlotte Rampling

Oscar-nominee Charlotte Rampling has ed the cast of Denis Villeneuve's first brought the book to the screen in 1984, but his version of Herbert's story was a critical and box office flop.

Another attempt at translating Dune from page to screen came in 2000 when Sci Fi Channel aired a three-part miniseries, which was followed by a three-part adaptation of Herbert's sequel Children of Dune. Now, most recently Stellan Skarsgård also ing the cast.

Now, THR reports that Villeneuve's Dune has rounded up another Oscar-nominated actor, adding Charlotte Rampling to the cast. Rampling will play Reverend Mother Gaius Helen Mohiam, a member of the mysterious and powerful Bene Gesserit sisterhood, a religious group whose train their minds and bodies to take on superhuman powers (Rebecca Ferguson's character Lady Jessica belongs to the same sisterhood). In the first Dune novel, Reverend Mother Mohiam comes to test Paul Atreides, and first identifies him as a potential messiah. Later, she travels to the desert planet Arrakis as Emperor Shaddam IV's Truthsayer.

In David Lynch's movie version of Dune, the character of Reverend Mother Mohiam was memorably played by Siân Phillips, while Zuzana Geislerová took on the role in the Sci Fi Channel miniseries. The latest actress to take on the role of the sinister Bene Gesserit "witch," Charlotte Rampling, scored an Oscar nomination for her performance in the 2016 drama 45 Years. Rampling's career stretches back to the late 1960s, but she became a well-known performer beginning in the early '70s, scoring a memorable success in the disturbing drama The Night Porter. She would later appear in everything from Woody Allen's Stardust Memories to Alan Parker's notorious Angel Heart to the Showtime series Red Sparrow.

With the addition of Rampling, the cast of Villeneuve's Dune becomes even more talented and intriguing. Of course, Dune has a huge roster of characters, and only a handful of actors have been named so far. With the film set to go before cameras some time in early 2019, there will doubtless be a flood of casting announcements in the coming days. Of course, Villeneuve plans on breaking Dune into two movies, so a few of the characters may not be cast until the second movie is ready to go into production.