By now, we've all seen them: those sandworm-inspired Dune: Part Two popcorn buckets that unfortunately resemble a certain sex toy, but we're not the only ones. Yes, even the Dune 2 cast and crew—and also, uh, Ryan Reynolds?—have seen and hilariously commented on those NSFW novelty buckets, including leading lady Zendaya, who critiqued the vessel's lack of functionality, and Josh Brolin, who said he'd rather "starve" than stick his hand in one. It even got the Saturday Night Live treatment, with host Ayo Edebiri crooning about the containers in a parody ballad.
Now the two men at the center of the epic sci-fi sequel, director Denis Villeneuve and actor Timothée Chalamet, are putting in their two cents on the limited-edition promotional items. While sitting down for a joint February interview with The New York Times, the filmmaker relayed his first reaction upon seeing the sandworm-inspired souvenir:
I don't want to make stupid jokes right now that will I regret tomorrow morning. But I will say this. When I saw it, I went, 'Hoooooly smokes.' What the fuck]!? At the same time, it created a lot of fun online. So maybe it's positive? It's some kind of …impressive design.
Chalamet joked about what the creator of the Dune 2 popcorn bucket must've thought when the designs started to go viral online:
I can't tell if someone is at home right now going, 'My design worked perfectly and everyone's talking about it.' Or if someone's brutally offended by the response.
The director and actor had a funny exchange in which they tried to pin each other as being "personally involved in the design process" of the poorly thought-through popcorn container, but Villeneuve did diplomatically admit:
At the end of the day, it seems that bucket brought a lot of laughter and joy.
That is certainly did. Here's just a snapshot of what movie fans have said about the popcorn buckets on Twitter:
- "Just fyi if you ate out of the Dune popcorn bucket you have to get a tattoo of a line at the highest point of your forearm where the edge of bucket got up to." - @ChefJonKung
- "I've heard the complaints and slander but I still don't believe I'll truly know peace until my hand enters the Dune popcorn bucket" - @waystarroyhoe
- "Why would a guy need a date when he has the Dune popcorn bucket?" - @scrumble_eggs
- "Oomfs (literally 2) keep on sending me pictures and videos of the dune popcorn bucket and say they think of me when they see it WHAT DID I DO TO DESERVE THIS" - @wndanct
Truly, watching the Dune 2 crew hilariously contend with the controversial, fleshlight-looking marketing tool throughout this high-profile press tour has been as enjoyable as the movie's first ten minutes.
Moviegoing fans can grab one of those saucy sandworm buckets for themselves when Dune: Part 2 hits the 2024 movie schedule on Friday, March 1. They'll be on offer at at theaters in the states for $20 to $30 a pop and they'll no doubt become collectors' items—buckets from early-bird screenings have already hit eBay and are selling for close to $100 apiece.
If there's a third Dune movie, as director Denis Villeneuve has planned, who knows what kind of marketing ploys they'll Team Dune will whip up next. Until then, you can watch the first Dune film starring Timothée Chalamet, Oscar Isaac, Rebecca Ferguson, Zendaya and more, now streaming to those with a Max subscription or a Netflix subscription.
