Denis Villeneuve's Dune was a major achievement in filmmaking and a huge gift to sci-fi fans the world over. One of the many big standouts in the film was the new design for the sandworms. Recently, Javier Bardem, who plays Stilgar in the film, expressed his biggest wish involving the gigantic creatures.

Bardem spoke with Deadline after landing a SAG nomination for outstanding male performance for his role in Being the Ricardos while also touching on Dune: Part Two. As for the highly anticipated sequel, he wishes to ride one of the sandworms. “The only thing I’m asking is that I get to ride a sandworm,” Bardem said while laughing. “Denis told me he’s going to try to make that happen."

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And it appears that Bardem will get his one wish, as Stilgar does ride one of the worms in Frank Herbert's 1965 novel. “That does happen in the book, by the way. Stilgar teaches Paul [Atreides] how to take the desert power, which is to domesticate those huge animals in order to use their force, their strength, and their huge size against the Harkonnen. Hopefully, that will happen,” Bardem added.

Paul fleeing from a sandworm in Dune

When it comes to other details surrounding the sequel, other than it is set to cover the second half of the novel, Bardem is still unsure of where the story is headed and what Villeneuve is ready to cook up in his version of the source material. “I haven’t read anything yet, so I’m not sure what’s coming up next for me in ‘Dune.’ I know as much as you do at this point. I hear there are scripts but I haven’t read anything,” Bardem shared. “I cannot wait to put myself into the hands of Denis Villeneuve again. I love the guy."

While filming for the sequel is still months away (scheduled to begin this July), the film is already gearing up to be one of 2023's biggest and promising releases. Director Denis Villeneuve has teased that fans can expect an even more fun and epic film (also filled with plenty of sandworms). With much of the cast and crew, like the incredible cinematographer Greig Fraser, set to return, there's no doubt that Villeneuve will once again create a memorable and visually stunning conclusion.

As for those who missed Dune in theaters or on HBO Max or still have yet to read the book, there is still plenty of time to catch up. Dune follows the Atreides family accepting the stewardship of the dangerous desert planet Arrakis (also referred to as Dune), which contains the most valuable substance in the universe known as the "spice." The first film's cast was one the year's best ensembles, which featured big names like Timothée Chalamet as Paul Atreides, Rebecca Ferguson as Lady Jessica, Oscar Isaac as Duke Leto Atreides, Josh Brolin as Gurney Halleck, Jason Momoa as Duncan Idaho, Zendaya as Chani, Javier Bardem as Stilgar, Stellan Skarsgård as Baron Harkonnen, and Dave Bautista as Glossu Rabban.

Dune: Part Two is set to release in theatres on October 20, 2023.

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Source: Deadline