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Denis Villeneuve’s Dune assembled a star-studded cast, bringing together Hollywood’s most talented actors. The stunning sci-fi adaptation of Frank Herbert’s novel brought actors like Zendaya, Timothee Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, and others to the big screen. However, viewers missed a chance to come across the Beetlejuice Beetlejuice star Jenne Ortega in the role of Chani.
In a recent interview with Buzzfeed, Jenna Ortega was asked if she had any surprising auditions. She revealed that she auditioned for Dune when she was 15. She said, “I auditioned for Dune when I was about 15.” Ortega added “I remember just being a big fan of that film and the franchise and everything like that and being really excited for that interview because Denis is one of my favorite filmmakers. I think it was Chani. I think it was Zendaya’s, but they weren’t saying that. Everything was very secret.”
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Chani’s role was ultimately given to Zendaya in 2019, who was 26 years old at the time. While Ortega had already starred in plenty of big projects like Scream, Wednesday, and Miller’s Girl, she started acting when she was a child. In a throwback interview with the New York Times, Jenna Ortega shared that “there’s time I regret” becoming an actor at a young age, but ultimately, she “wouldn’t change anything.”
