Tim Blake Nelson ‘Heartbroken’ Over Being Cut From Dune: Part 2

The Ballad of Buster Scruggs actor Tim Blake Nelson is “heartbroken” that his role in Dune: Part 2 was removed from the final cut of the epic sci-fi movie sequel — and it looks like he’ll stay that way considering that director Denis Villeneuve has no plans to ever release the movie’s deleted scenes.

Tim Blake Nelson on Being Removed From Dune: Part 2

“I don’t think I’m at liberty to say what the scene was. I’d leave that to Denis if he wants to talk about it. I had a great time over there shooting it. And then he had to cut it because he thought the movie was too long. And I am heartbroken over that, but there’s no hard feelings,” Nelson told Movieweb. “I loved it, and I can’t wait to do something else with him and we certainly plan to do that.”

It’s unknown what character Nelson played in Dune: Part 2 since the Holes star didn’t disclose that detail and neither has Villeneuve. But the director did address the fate of all those scenes that ended up on the cutting room floor.

Denis Villeneuve Will Not Share Deleted Scenes

“I’m a strong believer that when it’s not in the movie, it’s dead. I kill darlings, and it’s painful for me,” Villeneuve told Collider, confirming that, like his first Dune film, he will not be including any deleted scenes in the Blu-ray release.

“Sometimes I remove shots and I say, ‘I cannot believe I’m cutting this out.’ I feel like a samurai opening my gut. It’s painful, so I cannot go back after that and create a Frankenstein and try to reanimate things that I killed. It’s too painful. When it’s dead, it’s dead, and it’s dead for a reason.”

Also Read: Behind Austin Butler’s Terrifying Transformation Into Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen

Sounds like it’s safe to say that Tim Blake Nelson’s scene will not see the light of day anytime soon. And Villeneuve isn’t happy about it, either.

“It is a painful project, but it is my job. The movie prevails. I’m very, I think, severe in the editing room. I’m not thinking about my ego, I’m thinking about the movie,” the director added.

It’s understandable why Villeneuve felt the need to cut the film down, consider that in its ultimate runtime was still quite long at two hours and 46 minutes.

“For me, the length of the movie is based on what the story needs. Sometimes I’ve made movies in my life that were 75 minutes, and this one is two hours, 45 [minutes], I think, something like that. It’s not, for me, the runtime, it’s about the storytelling, and I felt that I wanted to create a momentum,” he said.

“I wanted an energy in the movie that I was looking for that excited me, and I thought that was the perfect runtime… For me, no matter what is the physical length of the running time, it’s always the experience as you’re watching the movie and how you feel . You can be bored by a five-minute movie, and there are some movies, we know some of them, that are three or four hours that you could live there forever. So, you just have to find the perfect running time, and that’s what I tried to do.”

Dune: Part 2 is now playing in theaters.

Main Image: Timothée Chalamet and Austin Butler duel in Dune: Part 2. Photo credit: Warner Bros. Pictures