Editing Vladimir Harkonnen (section)

==In adaptations==

=== Cancelled 1970s film ===
[[File:Orson Welles in Who's Out There? (1973).jpg|thumb|upright|[[Orson Welles]] was cast as the Baron in Alejandro Jodorowsky's [[Dune (novel)#Early stalled attempts|cancelled adaptation]]]]

In 1975, [[Orson Welles]] agreed to play the Baron in [[Alejandro Jodorowsky]]'s ultimately [[Dune (novel)#Early stalled attempts|unsuccessful adaptation]]. The film's concept art by [[Jean Giraud|Jean "Mœbius" Giraud]] depicts the Baron, as well as Feyd-Rautha and Rabban, in multiple [[Drag queen|drag]] appearances.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Adema |first=Claire |date=February 24, 2020 |title=Check out these incredible, abandoned Moebius drawings for ‘Dune’ |url=https://happymag.tv/check-out-these-incredible-abandoned-moebius-drawings-for-dune/ |website=Happy Mag |access-date=May 13, 2024 |archive-date=June 9, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240609154629/https://happymag.tv/check-out-these-incredible-abandoned-moebius-drawings-for-dune/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In the documentary ''[[Jodorowsky's Dune]]'', the director discussed the casting:

{{Blockquote|text=Orson Welles had a bad reputation ... they said that he liked to drink and eat ... and then he did not finish the movies, he was moody. But I said, "No, Orson Welles is a genius, he is the one." ... Therefore, I sent a secretary to ask... in all the gastronomic restaurants in Paris: "Where does Orson Welles eat?" And we discover a restaurant and then he was eating ... I speak with all the respect, because was for me [he] was an idol. He say, "I don't want to do it. I don't want any more." I say to him, "I will propose something." If you do the picture, even if we pay what you want as an actor, I will hire the chef of this restaurant and you will eat, as here, every day. And he say, "I do it."<ref name="Jodorowsky's Dune">{{cite web|url=https://www.bbfc.co.uk/releases/jodorowskys-dune-film |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151210213550/http://www.bbfc.co.uk/releases/jodorowskys-dune-film |url-status=dead |archive-date=December 10, 2015 | title=''Jodorowsky's Dune'' (12A) | work=[[British Board of Film Classification]] | date=January 14, 2015 | access-date=January 14, 2015}}</ref>}}

===1984 film===
[[File:Valerie Harper Kenneth McMillan Nancy Walker Rhoda 1977.JPG|thumb|upright=.8|[[Kenneth McMillan (actor)|Kenneth McMillan]] plays Vladimir Harkonnen in ''[[Dune (1984 film)|Dune]]'' (1984). He is centre here in 1977, in the TV show ''[[Rhoda]]'']]
Baron Harkonnen is portrayed by [[Kenneth McMillan (actor)|Kenneth McMillan]] in [[David Lynch]]'s [[Dune (1984 film)|1984 film]].<ref name="NYT 1984-12">{{cite web|url=https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9F06E2D71238F937A25751C1A962948260|title=Movie Review: ''Dune'' (1984)|last=Maslin|first=Janet|date=December 14, 1984|work=[[The New York Times]]|access-date=March 15, 2010|archive-date=March 11, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120311010339/http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9F06E2D71238F937A25751C1A962948260|url-status=live}}</ref> The obese and disheveled Baron is overtly unstable, and covered in oozing [[pustule]]s. William Hughes of ''[[The A.V. Club]]'' deemed McMillan's facial prosthetics "very memorable".<ref name="AV"/> Emmet Asher-Perrin of ''[[Tor.com]]'' wrote that "Lynch's attempt is infamous for really leaning on [the] codified aspects of the Baron, to the point where his sore-ridden appearance has been called out as a likely connection to the [[AIDS]] epidemic, which was a prevalent health crisis while the film was in production."<ref name="Tor.com">{{cite web|url=https://www.tor.com/2019/02/05/how-to-handle-the-baron-harkonnen-in-a-modern-dune-adaptation/|title=How to Handle the Baron Harkonnen in a Modern ''Dune'' Adaptation|first=Emmet|last=Asher-Perrin|website=[[Tor.com]]|date=February 5, 2019|access-date=February 5, 2019|archive-date=September 17, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200917050211/https://www.tor.com/2019/02/05/how-to-handle-the-baron-harkonnen-in-a-modern-dune-adaptation/|url-status=live}}</ref> Travis Johnson of Flicks.com.au noted that the Lynch film embraced "the archetype of the depraved gay sadist", which would not be acceptable in 2019.<ref name="Flicks"/> Asher-Perrin added, "Lynch also makes a point of connecting the Baron's desire for men to deviancy and violence, deliberately juxtaposing his assault of a young man with a tender love-scene between Duke Leto and Lady Jessica Atreides."<ref name="Tor.com"/>

===2000 miniseries===
[[File:Ian McNeice.png|thumb|upright|[[Ian McNeice]] plays Baron Harkonnen in the [[Frank Herbert's Dune|''Dune'' miniseries]] (2000).]]
[[Ian McNeice]] plays the Baron in the 2000 [[Syfy|Sci-Fi Channel]] [[miniseries]] ''[[Frank Herbert's Dune]]'',<ref name="NYT Stasio">{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/12/03/tv/cover-story-future-myths-adrift-in-the-sands-of-time.html?src=pm |title=Cover Story: Future Myths, Adrift in the Sands of Time |first=Marilyn |last=Stasio |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=December 3, 2000 |access-date=August 21, 2015 |archive-date=December 22, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222224856/http://www.nytimes.com/2000/12/03/tv/cover-story-future-myths-adrift-in-the-sands-of-time.html?src=pm |url-status=live }}</ref> and its [[sequel]], 2003's ''[[Frank Herbert's Children of Dune|Children of Dune]]''.<ref name="NYT Wertheimer">{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/15/arts/television-review-a-stormy-family-on-a-sandy-planet.html |title=Television Review: A Stormy Family on a Sandy Planet |first=Ron |last=Wertheimer |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=March 15, 2003 |access-date=January 19, 2015 |archive-date=January 19, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150119194500/http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/15/arts/television-review-a-stormy-family-on-a-sandy-planet.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Asher-Perrin notes that the miniseries played down the negative aspects emphasized by the Lynch film, and writes, "[The Baron's] appearance was not altered to make him seem ill, he never physically attacks anyone, and the miniseries paid more attention to the fact that the Baron was a rapist, his preference for men being incidental."<ref name="Tor.com"/> He praises McNeice as a standout among the cast, writing that he "manages to make the Baron Harkonnen—easily one of the most despicable characters in science fiction literature—every bit as conniving and vicious as he needs to be...and every bit as fascinating. McNeice has a superb sense of how to make the baron mesmerizing to watch no matter how odiously he behaves".<ref name="Tor 2000">{{cite web|url=https://www.tor.com/2017/05/09/syfys-dune-miniseries-is-the-most-okay-adaptation-of-the-book-to-date/|title=Syfy's ''Dune'' Miniseries is the Most Okay Adaptation of the Book to Date|first=Emmet|last=Asher-Perrin|date=May 9, 2017|website=Tor.com|access-date=February 20, 2019|archive-date=February 23, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190223074241/https://www.tor.com/2017/05/09/syfys-dune-miniseries-is-the-most-okay-adaptation-of-the-book-to-date/|url-status=live}}</ref> Austin Jones of ''[[Paste (magazine)|Paste]]'' writes, "McNeice commands his role as Baron Harkonnen, capturing the vile indulgence and vanity of a feudal lord".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/tv/frank-herbert/dune-miniseries-2000-syfy/|title=TV Rewind: How Syfy's Forgotten ''Dune'' Miniseries Made the Most of Herbert's Complex Story|first=Austin|last=Jones|date=November 5, 2021|website=Paste|access-date=November 9, 2021|archive-date=April 17, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220417120639/https://www.pastemagazine.com/tv/frank-herbert/dune-miniseries-2000-syfy/|url-status=live}}</ref>

===2021 and 2024 films===
[[File:Stellan Skarsgård 2009.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Stellan Skarsgård]] plays Baron Harkonnen in the 2021 film ''[[Dune (2021 film)|Dune]]'' and its 2024 sequel ''[[Dune: Part Two]]''.]]
Baron Harkonnen is portrayed by [[Stellan Skarsgård]] in the 2021 [[Denis Villeneuve]] film ''[[Dune (2021 film)|Dune]]'' and its 2024 sequel ''[[Dune: Part Two]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/stellan-skarsg-play-villain-legendarys-dune-1174870|title=Stellan Skarsgård to Play Villain in Legendary's ''Dune''|website=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]|first=Borys|last=Kit|date=January 9, 2019|access-date=April 26, 2019|archive-date=April 17, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417082200/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/stellan-skarsg-play-villain-legendarys-dune-1174870|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2019/film/news/stellan-skarsgard-playing-villain-in-dune-movie-1203104276/|title=Stellan Skarsgard to Play Villain in ''Dune'' Movie|first=Dave|last=McNary|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|date=January 9, 2019|access-date=January 11, 2019|archive-date=January 10, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190110073447/https://variety.com/2019/film/news/stellan-skarsgard-playing-villain-in-dune-movie-1203104276/|url-status=live}}</ref> Skarsgård called the role "small but important",<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cinemablend.com/news/2467370/stellan-skarsgard-compares-the-dune-cast-to-the-avengers|title=Stellan Skarsgård Compares the ''Dune'' Cast to the Avengers|date=February 23, 2019|website=CinemaBlend|first=Sarah|last=El-Mahmoud|access-date=April 26, 2019|archive-date=October 20, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211020101213/https://www.cinemablend.com/news/2467370/stellan-skarsgard-compares-the-dune-cast-to-the-avengers|url-status=live}}</ref> and noted, "I had seven hours in make-up every day because I had to be really fat."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://collider.com/dune-movie-details-stellan-skarsgard/|title=Stellan Skarsgard Says Denis Villeneuve Had 'Pretty Free Hands' Directing ''Dune''|first=Perri|last=Nemiroff|website=[[Collider (website)|Collider]]|date=September 16, 2019|access-date=October 30, 2019|archive-date=October 18, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211018120538/https://collider.com/dune-movie-details-stellan-skarsgard/|url-status=live}}</ref> Villeneuve said:
{{blockquote|As much as I deeply love the book, I felt that the baron was flirting very often with caricature. And I tried to bring him a bit more dimension. That's why I brought in Stellan. Stellan has something in the eyes. You feel that there's someone thinking, thinking, thinking—that has tension and is calculating inside, deep in the eyes. I can testify, it can be quite frightening.<ref name="Collider 2020-04">{{cite web|last=Chitwood|first=Adam|date=April 14, 2020|title=Denis Villeneuve Explains Why ''Dune'' Will Be Split into Two Movies|url=https://collider.com/dune-two-movies-sequel-explained-reason-why-denis-villeneuve/|website=[[Collider (website)|Collider]]|access-date=June 4, 2020|archive-date=June 4, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200604204216/https://collider.com/dune-two-movies-sequel-explained-reason-why-denis-villeneuve/|url-status=live}}</ref>}}