Denis Villeneuve’s Dune is set to premiere at Venice Film Festival this week (September 3), but the director is already looking ahead to a potential sequel (and even a third instalment). Though the follow-up is yet to be officially announced, Villeneuve is apparently already hard at work on a Dune Part 2 script, which would see Zendaya’s Chani take on an “important role”.

Now, Timothée Chalamet — who plays Dune’s main protagonist, Paul Atreides — has also discussed the “huge role” that Zendaya is likely to play in a second Dune film.

“I don’t know if there’s a script yet, but just based on the book, along with Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson), they have a lot to do together, let’s put it like that,” Chalamet says, in an interview with Deadline.

Going on to praise the all-star Dune cast (which also includes Josh Brolin, Jason Momoa, Oscar Isaac, and Charlotte Rampling), Chalamet says that Zendaya’s presence “was a total breath of fresh air, and she’s one of my favorite parts of the movie”.

“The moment she pulls the mask down, it felt properly showstopping and powerful,” he adds of the Euphoria star. “I was hiding behind the camera, counting my lucky stars, because I was there in month two of the shoot, and here was a total powerhouse just coming in for the first time.”

“This was before I’d seen Euphoria and Malcolm & Marie. She’s doing such incredible work and is just trailblazing her own path, and she’s so, so cool.”

Villeneuve has previously explained that he plans to split Dune’s source material, the 1965 book of the same name by Frank Herbert, into two parts because of its epic, complex story. “I would not agree to make this adaptation of the book with one single movie,” he says. “The world is too complex. It's a world that takes its power in details.”

Seemingly, this is also what left the Blade Runner 2049 director feeling only “half-satisfied” with David Lynch’s adaptation. The ill-fated 1984 film saw the studio cram almost 600 pages into a two-hour cut, which Lynch hated so much that he ended up having his name struck from the credits. “I’m a big David Lynch fan, he’s the master,” says Villeneuve. “But his take… There are parts that I love and other elements that I am less comfortable with.”

Chalamet is already working on his next film, playing a young Willy Wonka in a prequel to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. He’s also set to star alongside Taylor Russell, Chloë Sevigny, and more in Luca Guadagnino’s upcoming cannibal film, Bones & All.