Jason Momoa Reflects on Getting Beat Up by Timothée Chalamet in Dune: Part 3

Jason Momoa, if you hadn't noticed, is a much bigger man than Timothée Chalamet. In Dune: Part 3, however, size doesn’t matter. Chalamet plays Paul Atreides in Dune: Part 3, which takes place 20 years after the events of the previous movie. Atreides is well established as the most powerful being in the universe, a messianic, totalitarian leader who can stab people real good. Momoa kind of returns as a clone of his previous character from Dune: Part 1, Duncan Idaho, who doesn’t share any of his DNA dad’s memories or personality traits. “It’s probably the weirdest character I’ve ever had to navigate, because I know I was hired to play Duncan for a certain reason, then I had to figure out how to play a guy who doesn’t know who the guy is,” Momoa said in an interview with NY Times. While Idaho and Atreides were close friends in Part 1, there’s more of a strain to that relationship in Part 3 and the pair come to blows. According to Momoa, it was challenging to wrap his head around the logistics of losing to Chalamet. “And another thing too, working with Tim, I have to fight him,” Momoa explained. “[His character Paul] is at a whole other level, and better than me as a fighter. And you know, realistically, how do we put that together?” Chalamet cut in to say that was “a polite way of putting” that Momoa could take him in a fight in real life. “He’s a better actor,” Momoa said. “I’m better at fighting. But he’s really fast. I was super impressed: Just because you’re a great actor, it doesn’t mean that you’re able to dance. Ultimately, it’s a dance.”