Jason Momoa teases Duncan Idaho return for Dune: Messiah
Jason Momoa has teased he will be reprising his role as Duncan Idaho in 'Dune: Messiah'.
Jason Momoa has teased he will be in 'Dune: Messiah'.
The 45-year-old actor portrayed the ill-fated Duncan Idaho in the first 'Dune' movie, though has now confirmed he will be returning for director Denis Villeneuve's upcoming third sci-fi blockbuster.
When the 'A Minecraft Movie' star if he would be involved in 'Dune: Messiah' during an appearance on 'TODAY', he said: "Well, I’m not sure if I’m going to get in trouble or not. But it’s the same thing like 'Game of Thrones', you know what I mean? If you didn’t read the books, it’s not my fault, right?
"I'm making a comeback. You got me in trouble!"
In author Frank Herbert's 1969 book 'Dune: Messiah' – which the 2026 film will be based on – Duncan is resurrected as a ghola, a genetically engineered clone, and plays a critical role in a conspiracy against Paul Atreides (Timothee Chalamet).
The movie will follow the young Atreides 12 years into his reign as the Emperor of the Known Universe as the religious cult he created around himself spirals out of his control – leading to the death of billions as war engulfs the universe.
As well as Momoa and Chalamet, 'Dune: Messiah' will see the return of Zendaya's Chani, Florence Pugh's Princess Irulan, Josh Brolin's Gurney Halleck, Rebecca Ferguson's Lady Jessica and Javier Bardem's Stilgar.
Recently, composer Hans Zimmer revealed he had not yet started to write the music for 'Dune: Messiah'.
He told Collider: "'Dune: Part Two' was written before Denis started shooting because we weren't greenlit for the longest time.
"Have I started writing ['Messiah']? No. Not quite yet.
"Oh, god, it's a very complicated one, but I love working with Denis, so I'm actually going to just focus on that, nothing else, and just really spend the time doing it."
Meanwhile, 'Dune: Messiah' will reportedly enter principal photography in June 2025 – a year earlier than expected as the movie marches towards its December 2026 release.
Villeneuve said he felt "inspired" to make another 'Dune' film after he took a break from the franchise following 'Dune: Part Two', which released in March 2024.
Speaking to TheWrap, the director said: "When I saw 'Part Two' finished, finally, I realised that that was it. I’d done it. I’d done an adaptation of 'Dune'. And that is something that is an incredible privilege. I’m very grateful to have the chance to have done it.
"I think my biggest surprise about this is that I don’t want to run away from Arrakis. I’m still inspired to go back. That’s the thing that I was the most surprised by."
The 'Sicario' filmmaker had initially planned to tackle other projects before revisiting the 'Dune' series for 'Messiah', though found the pull of completing the trilogy too much to resist.
He continued: "I felt that after 'Part Two', I would need a break. I thought that I would want to go write a few films or do a couple of things before going back to 'Dune: Messiah'.
"But the images that kept coming back to my mind, the appetite is absolutely intact. That’s the biggest surprise. I still want to go back to Arrakis."
