Barry Keoghan talks about his audition for ‘Dune 2’

Rising Irish star Barry Keoghan is winning critical acclaim for his role in Banshees of Inisherin, but was almost cast in ‘Dune 2’.

Just over a year ago, rising star Barry Keoghan tweeted some emojis which people took to mean that he had auditioned for – and possibly won – the role of Feyd Reutha in Dune: Part Two.

Fans of both Dune and Keoghan responded enthusiastically to this, but it ended up not coming to fruition, as Elvis star Austin Butler instead won the role.

In a new interview with the New York Times, Keoghan confirms that he was involved in “a process,” which certainly sounds like an audition, for Dune: Part Two; “Ah, yeah, I really enjoyed that process. Look, I’m a big fan of Dune, and it would have been nice to be part of it. I’m a big fan of Timothée [Chalamet, the star of the franchise] as well. But it wasn’t for me. You have to accept that sometimes. Sometimes it’s not for you.”

In the interview, Keoghan discusses being known as a “scene-stealer,” with him having impactful supporting or ensemble roles in the likes of The Killing of a Sacred Deer, Dunkirk, American Animals, The Green Knight, Eternals, and The Banshees of Inisherin.

Keoghan says; “Well, the aim is to go from being a scene-stealer to being the star of a movie. Am I able to do that? We’re going to see that with Saltburn [coming soon from Emerald Fennell]. It’s my first lead role, and the first time I had to really step up in terms of stamina and just being fully committed. I always want to test myself. I don’t ever want to get to a stage where I think I have it figured out. So the scene-stealing thing — it’s nice, but I don’t want to be known as that. I want people to see me and think, ‘That boy can hold a movie.’”

Keoghan’s turn in Matt Reeves’ The Batman couldn’t even really be described as a supporting role, but surely they wouldn’t tease The Joker if he wasn’t going to have a role in the sequel? Keoghan says; “That would be a dream, I tell you. I already have a back story that I’ve created in case it does happen — a totally fresh way of playing him.”