When it came time to introduce Apple TV+ viewers to the irascible MI5 agent Jackson Lamb, Oscar winner Gary Oldman had the idea to open the streamer’s “Slow Horses” series with a fart. Lamb’s flatulence signaled his utter contempt for decorum and dignity from the start, and viewers immediately knew what they were in for. What does all this have to do with “Dune”? Well, those interested in the storied history of flatulence in Hollywood might also be intrigued by an even more practical use of their intestinal gas: a non-diegetic fart, if you will.
Take Josh Brolin, who plays House Atreides Warlord Gurney Halleck in “Dune” and its sequel. According to Sharon Duncan-Brewster, Brolin took it upon himself to wait until he and the actor were seated in one of the practical ornithopters built for “Dune” to let loose. As Duncan-Brewster said The Hollywood journalist, the scene in question involved her, Brolin, Oscar Isaac, and Timothée Chalamet’s characters venturing onto the plains of Arrakis to rescue a stranded spice-gathering team. “These are the big boys and girls of Hollywood […] That was also the one scene that stuck in my head, ‘You have to do this right, Sharon,'” the actor explained.
You can understand that being surrounded by some of the biggest names in Hollywood may have been more than a little intimidating. Fortunately, Brolin’s expert use of gas made things a little easier on Duncan-Brewster:
“My friend Josh Brolin tended to fart a lot when we were in the ornithopter. So I don’t know if it had to do with exercise or diet, but that’s one of the things that always made me laugh.”
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