Josh Brolin compared dad 'paunches' with Javier Bardem at the Oscars before Dune: Part Two films in July

Josh Brolin is preparing for a potential Dune 2: Dad Bod edition.

The upcoming Outer Range series star revealed he and fellow Dune actor Javier Bardem reunited in March at the Oscars, and compared their dad "paunches" ahead of filming Denis Villeneuve's sci-fi sequel in July.

"I haven't quite started working on it," Brolin said while grabbing his stomach on Thursday's episode of Live with Kelly and Ryan, going on to explain that he's "not as driven" toward fitness while raising a one-year-old and a three-year-old at home. "We start in July, and now is the time. I was with Javier at the Oscars, and we showed each other each other's paunches, and I said, 'We have to get ready very quickly.'"

He went on to say that he "cut out carbs" to train his body to portray the role of Gurney Halleck, a weapons master of the House Atreides in Villeneuve's Oscar-winning 2021 blockbuster, which he anticipates will be a challenge given that he recently "just got big" for a part in Brothers with Peter Dinklage, where he said he "had eight donuts every morning."

Adapted from the 1965 novel by Frank Herbert, Dune followed Timothée Chalamet's Paul Atreides across violent conflict against the backdrop of the desert planet Arrakis, lifting most of its story from the first half of the book it's based on.

Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac, Charlotte Rampling, and Stella Skarsgård co-starred in the production, which went on to win six Oscars last month. EW previously confirmed that Little Women star Florence Pugh is in talks to play Princess Irulan, and Austin Butler is in early talks to play Feyd-Rautha — a descendant of the nefarious House Harkonnen, a primary rival faction to the House Atreides.

"I've been trained by the house of the mouse at Lucasfilm not to give you any scoops," said Greig Fraser after winning his Academy Award for Best Cinematography at the 94th Oscars ceremony. "But I can tell you that this is a bigger story. I've read the script, and I'm more blown away by this script than I was by Part One. I'm more excited."

EW has reached out to a representative at Dune distributor Warner Bros. for confirmation on Dune: Part Two's production start. The film is expected to be released in theaters in 2023.

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