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WIRE Buzz: Rebecca Ferguson talks Dune; Watchmen unveils pilot script segment; more
Rebecca Ferguson is having quite a run. The actress was recently lavished with praise for her villainous role in the Stephen King adaptation Doctor Sleep from Mike Flanagan and now she’s on her way to a genre project even more iconic than The Shining sequel. Ferguson is one member of director Denis Villeneuve’s Dune — and she’s spilling the details on what the newest Frank Herbert adaptation has in store for her character.
Coming Soon spoke to Lady Jessica portrayer Rebecca Ferguson about what it’s like playing the mother of Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet). The film “completely and utterly honors the strength of Jessica — the Bene Gesserit that she is — even though she is a concubine and her rights are not as high as the king or what her son becomes,” Ferguson said of the seemingly-superpowered acolyte. “Denis was very much aligned with creating empowerment and powerful moments for her where they were needed.”
“I think Frank Herbert…when he wrote it he didn’t really live in an understandably equal environment,” the actress said of the 1965 source novel. “And the book is great! It has beautiful moments in it. It’s not really where we are or where we should be.” So Villeneuve looks to give Herbert’s original material a bit of a modern facelift, at least in terms of its gender politics. The noble houses can always evolve, right? Whatever it takes to control the spice.
Dune makes its way to our solar system on Dec. 18, 2020.
Next, as the internet at large desperately tries to unravel all the mysteries of HBO’s new Watchmen show (and collect all the Easter eggs referring to the original comic), show creator Damon Lindelof is dropping even more teases. This time, they were behind the scenes and about one of the series’ most intriguing characters.
Jeremy Irons’ maybe-Ozymandias has been sequestered into scenes of his own...with his two loyal servants, of course. So who is “The Blonde Man”? Well, Lindelof has released four pages of script introducing him...and shedding zero light.
Check it out:
Even the pilot’s script is confused about what is going on. Like “swearing up a storm in the middle of the text” confused. That provides some comfort of course, but only time will tell if Adrian Veidt comes back to our reality.
Watchmen airs Sundays on HBO.
Finally, Austrian filmmaker Jessica Hausner’s English debut (and Cannes Palme d'Or competitor) Little Joe finally has a trailer.
The oddball film starring Emily Beecham, Ben Whishaw, Kerry Fox, and Kit Connor follows some botanical scientists and their seemingly magical creation: a therapy flower that makes you truly happy. And, of course, this flower isn’t all great. It’s up to something.
Take a look:
As soon as the word “infects” is thrown around, it’s clear that this sci-fi is quickly becoming horror. Is anyone else getting extreme Invasion of the Body Snatchers vibes? Just look at this creepy poster, too:
Little Joe spreads to theaters on Dec. 6.
