Austin Butler has opened up about the intense physical preparation required for his role in the forthcoming Dune sequel.
The Elvis star revealed that the training sessions would cause him to “throw up every time”.
In the film, a sequel to Denis Villenueve’s 2021 sci-fi blockbuster Dune, Butler will play Feyd-Rautha, the younger nephew of the villainous Baron Harkonnen (Stellan Skarsgård).
During an apperance on the YouTube series Hot Ones, Butler was asked about his preparation for Dune: Part Two.
“Yeah, I mean, [my trainer] basically just worked me until I would throw up every time,” he said.
For the film, Butler worked with Duffy Gaver, a fitness expert who previously worked with Chris Hemsworth for Marvel’s Thor films.
“Duffy, I found him because he’s this sort of legend. He was a Navy Seal and he trained Brad Pitt for Troy. And he’s the nicest guy as well. But he also doesn’t really count reps.
“He just goes for it and you're just going and you're like, ‘How many of these am I going to do?’ And once you get to the point where you're dying and you can hardly do another, he goes ‘Alright, do ten more.’
“Because he’s so tough, you don’t want to let him down,” Butler recalled. “You’re just pushing your body to the absolute limit of what it can do.”
Butler is one of several new additions to the cast of Dune: Part Two. He joins newcomers Florence Pugh, Christopher Walken, Léa Seydoux, and Tim Blake Nelson alongside the returning original cast, which included Timothée Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin and Zendaya.
Next month, Butler is competing for a Best Actor award at the 2023 Oscars for his role in the Elvis Presley biopic Elvis.
The 31-year-old actor will go up against stars such as Brendan Fraser (The Whale) and Colin Farrell (The Banshees of Inisherin).
