Timothee Chalamet and Zendaya's real friendship helped Dune 2 shoot

Denis Villeneuve says the real life friendship between ‘Dune: Part Two’ stars Timothee Chalamet and Zendaya was a huge help when they were shooting the movie.

The 56-year-old director reunited his cast to make the second part of the film, and he’s revealed the two actors grew close while working on ‘Dune’ and the subsquent promotional tour – and it helped them when making the sequel because they “weren’t afraid” to dive into “intimate” scenes.

Villeneuve told Deadline.com: “When we did Part One, I remember that very quickly there was chemistry being that were born between both actors.

“And that in between when we were doing the promotional tour of Part One, they became real friends.

“And that, of course, tremendously helped me because the whole movie is based on their love story.”

Chalamet plays Paul Atreides with Zendaya as his love interest Chani, and Villeneuve is convinced the pair’s strong real life connection helped them onscreen.

He added: “The whole structure of the movie is embedded in their love story. And through their relationship, we see all the drama that is being unfolded and all the tension.

“That intimacy, that friendship, that strong friendship between Timothee and Zendaya helped me because they were not afraid to go into more intimate scenes.

“So it was very easy for me to work with them. I don’t know if I was surprised [by the result], but I would say I was moved, many times.

“Many times, like where I felt I knew that I had a movie. There’s specific moments where I said, okay, okay, I’m okay. We nailed it.

“I felt the connection between both when they were like getting closer together or when they were growing apart. I felt the tension and I was very deeply happy with both.”

The movie also stars Austin Butler and Florence Pugh and Villeneuve previously hailed his young cast as the “future of cinema”.

When asked if he has faith in the next generation of movie stars, Villeneuve told The Hollywood Reporter: “It’s difficult to talk about this because it’s in motion and we don’t have distance. Maybe we will see the impact in 10 years, but yes, I believe in this new generation.

“They are very open, very wise, very skilled and very playful. Timothee, Zendaya, Florence and Austin play with the red carpet, and it’s stunning how they own that space.

“They are very authentic. They are not products. They are artists who own their own identities. They also receive an incredible amount of demand and curiosity from young people.

“These actors bring out a lot of passion in teenagers and young adults, and I love the fact that they are bringing young people to the theatres. So they are the movie stars of the future, and they will talk to the new generation. This is the future of cinema.”