WWE Legend Batista Featured in New Trailer for 'Dune' Movie

Actor Dave Bautista, known as "The Animal" Batista during his WWE career, was featured as the character Glossu "Beast" Rabban in a trailer for the movie Dune that released on Thursday.

Bautista is part of a star-studded cast that features Zendaya, Timothee Chalamet, Josh Brolin, Javier Bardem, Oscar Isaac and Rebecca Ferguson, among others.

Dune, which is an adaptation of the 1965 science-fiction novel of the same name by Frank Herbert, is a futuristic look at humanity, with Paul Atreides (Chalamet) and Duke Leto Atreides (Isaac) as the main characters.

In May, Bautista told Collider's Vinnie Mancuso he was "blown away" when he read the movie's script and thinks his performance in the film, which is directed by Denis Villeneuve, will "have people looking at me differently":

"We tracked that movie for months because I wanted to be a part of it so bad. I never reached out, because I don't want to be that guy, like 'Hey, Denis, is there a part for me?' I never wanted to be that guy. But he actually called me, he didn't say anything like 'so there's this part…' He just straight up asked me if I would come and play this part. I was so taken aback I didn't even know what to say, except for, obviously, 'yes.'

"Moments like that really gauge how far I've come, as an actor. There's a lot of pride in it for me that a director like Denis would call like that and offer me a role in a film that I know is going to be enormous. Because people have been waiting for this for years and years and years. And people are so passionate about the novels. So for him to offer me such an integral part of this film, for me, it was a personal statement. I can't purchase that type of emotion, that sense of pride. These are the few moments in life where I get that, where I feel like my life is worth something, I did something with my life. My life means something."

It's the latest headline role for the 52-year-old former WWE Superstar, who starred in movies like Blade Runner 2049 and Army of the Dead, and he also played the character Drax the Destroyer in several Marvel films.

Bautista announced his retirement from WWE in 2019.

He was scheduled to enter the WWE Hall of Fame as part of its 2020 class, but the ceremony was postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and a scheduling conflict prevented him from making the 2021 induction, so he'll be honored at a future event.

Dune is set for an Oct. 22 theatrical release in the United States.