Dune Editor Joe Walker Is The Voice Teaching You About The Sand Walk [Exclusive]
With "Dune" finally out and available to moviegoers worldwide, fans have absolutely no shortage of topics to dig into and analyze — from its deceptive "Chosen One" setup to potential sequels down the line to the inspirations used in adapting certain characters. The ongoing press tour has provided a great opportunity for even more reveals and fun tidbits, some of which may apply to questions that you may not have even wondered in the first place. The absolute best one of these has to be the information about how Stephen McKinley Henderson's adorable little parasol, the one that he holds as Thufir Hawat ventures out into the harsh Arrakis sunlight to inspect some spice silos, made its way into "Dune." Folks, I'm not exaggerating when I say this may have been my favorite part of the entire movie.
A close second, however, has to be the unexpected reveal as to who provided the voice for the exposition-dumping videos about Arrakis life that Timothée Chalamet's Paul Atreides watches intently during a few scenes. In further proof that editors are some of the most invaluable people working on movies, "Dune" editor Joe Walker admitted to his secret job moonlighting as the posh, professional-sounding voice in those reels.
Exposition, But Make It British
Editors are always a source for some of the most fascinating insights into any given movie, seen most recently in Andrew Weisblum's comments on editing "The French Dispatch." /Film's Jack Giroux spoke with the editor of "Dune," Joe Walker, who is known for editing "12 Years a Slave," "Black Hat," and "Widows" and has also been a regular collaborator with director Denis Villeneuve on films such as "Sicario," "Arrival," and "Blade Runner 2049." But while he provides a wealth of information in the full interview, "Dune" fans may be interested to know that Walker also found himself lending his voice to the narrator of the "filmbooks" that Paul Atreides watches and listens to find out as much about Arrakis life and customs as possible.
How'd that happen? Well, it turns out it was only meant to be temporary. While commenting on how he and Villeneuve chose to establish the Fremen early in the film, Walker said:
"I think the most important thing is to set them up really well with the books. They set up the idea of the Fremen very early, and we had that battle scene at the beginning where you see the culture in some small way at the beginning, and you're seeing it also because it's through a tourist guide. I don't know if you know, but I am the voice of the film for some reason. At first, it was a temp track.
Yeah. I'm Denis' go-to for the voice of British imperialism, I think [Laughs]."
One of my favorite examples of a blockbuster needing a distinguished-sounding voice full of gravitas in order to blatantly dump exposition is Richard Kiley in "Jurassic Park." ("Spared no expense!") This, however, accomplishes exactly the same thing ... but without the need for a famous and expensive actor. After listening to that downright enchanting voice during those scenes in "Dune," I never would've guessed it was anyone less than a professional voice actor. The more you know!
Feel free to pull out this tidbit at your next Halloween party, folks.