There is little doubt that Dune is almost perfect in every way. Well, except for one thing. Fans are greatly disappointed about Zendaya's very limited screentime in the Denis Villeneuve film and believe Chani deserved more considering that she appears in almost every promo for the movie.
In Dune, Chani initially appears in Paul Atreides' visions of Arrakis. By the end of the movie, Paul finally gets to meet the woman of his dreams when he and Lady Jessica arrive in the deep desert. Even then, Zendaya's character barely gets any lines as the Fremen leaders are the ones who deal with the outsiders.
Zendaya's lack of screentime is a complete shock for fans who were expecting to see more of her character. Needless to say, people are complaining about it on social media claiming that Chani deserved better.
It's disappointing to know that Zendaya is barely in Dune. However, her limited screentime makes sense considering that the film only adapted the first half of Frank Herbert's novel. In the book, Chani only plays a larger role after Paul and Lady Jessica arrive in the deep desert. With that in mind, her brief appearance in the film adaptation is understandable and, not to mention, canon.
Although Zendaya only had a small role in Dune, fans can expect to see more of her in the sequel. Villeneuve had previously stated that he plans for Chani to be the main protagonist in Dune: Part Two. The second movie is expected to be told from the character's perspective and that means more screentime.
It will still be a long wait for Chani's return in Dune: Part Two considering that Villeneuve says the sequel won't begin production until Fall 2022. In the meantime, fans can see Zendaya as MJ in Spider-Man: No Way Home, which premieres on December 17, 2021.
Dune is currently screening in theaters and on HBO Max. The sequel, officially titled Dune: Part Two, is scheduled for release in October 2023.
Related: Dune: Part 2 Production Start Date Possibly Set for Late 2022
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