Elvis star Austin Butler has become one of the most in-demand actors working today. It is hard to believe the kid who starred in Aliens in the Attic, Ned's Declassified: School Survival Guide, and Zoey 101 would become an Academy Award-nominated actor. Yet following his performance as Elvis, Butler has become a star and someone who has shot to the top of many audiences' attention as one of the best actors working today. Despite losing the Academy Award for Best Actor, his career isn't slowing down and appears to just be getting started.

Update September 11, 2023: This article has been updated following the delay to Dune: Part Two and with more upcoming Austin Butler projects set for the future.

Butler fulfilled his dream of working with Quentin Tarantino, having landed the role of Tex Watson in the 2019 film Once Upon a Time In Hollywood, and from that moment on, he immediately popped as one of the most exciting actors of the new decade. He has projects lined up with Jeff Nicolas and Denis Villeneuve and is likely on every casting director's shortlist for every big project. Here is a look at Austin Butler's upcoming roles and what audiences can look forward to.

The Bikeriders (2023)

Austin Butler in The Shannara Chronicles
MTV Entertainment Studios

The Bikeriders is a drama movie in the works at New Regency. From filmmaker Jeff Nichols (Midnight Special, Loving), the film will feature an ensemble cast that includes Butler alongside Norman Reedus (The Walking Dead), Jodie Comer (Free Guy), Tom Hardy (Venom: Let There Be Carnage), Mike Faist (West Side Story) and Nichols-regular Michael Shannon (Take Shelter).

The movie is said to be inspired by the photography of Danny Lyon featured in the 1967 book of the same name. It's an original story set in the 1960s that follows the rise of a motorcycle club in the Midwest and digs deeper into the members' choices and struggles. The Bikeriders takes us on a journey through unbreakable loyalty, a relationship while being part of a tight-knit Biker gang with shedding light on its difficulties, and a threatening transformation from a crew that shares good old times together to a sinister club and growing danger.

The Bikeriders will offer an authentic look into the grittiness of a motorcycle club and will leave its viewers smelling the fumes and grease of the bikers' culture in the 60s. The film received positive reviews from critics following its premiere at The Telluride Film Festival on August 31, 2023. There is already Oscar talk for the film starting to pop up. Bikeriders is set to open in theaters on December 1, 2023.

Dune: Part Two (2024)

Austin Butler as Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen in Dune: Part Two
Warner Bros. Pictures

The first Dune successfully rebooted the franchise with a stellar cast that includes Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Oscar Isaac, Josh Brolin, Stellan Skarsgård, Dave Bautista, and Jason Momoa. The adaptation of Frank Herbert’s seminal novel hurls audiences into the far future as Duke Leto Atreides (Isaac) accepts the stewardship of the dangerous desert planet Arrakis, the only source of the most valuable substance in the universe, known as "the spice." Denis Villaneuve's masterpiece has gotten a second installment, with the first winning numerous Oscars — and rightfully so.

In the upcoming sequel, Dune: Part Two, Butler plays Feyd-Rautha, the antagonist played by Sting in the original 1984 film. He is the nephew of Baron Harkonnen (Stellan Skarsgard) and brother to Dave Bautista's Glossu Rabban. Butler's role in Dune: Part Two might finally be his chance to move on from the mannerism that he kept after shooting Elvis because his embodiment of Feyd-Rautha is, frankly, the complete opposite. This upcoming movie required him to tap into his fighting skills, delivering a chilling performance, which will certainly have the audience shocked.

Related: Dune: Part Two: Austin Butler's Role, Explained

"We had a blast getting to collaborate on this," Butler recently told Deadline about working with Villeneuve. "It was just so much fun for me, especially playing this role, to get to do something so different from anything I’ve ever done before." Fans of the movies were excited about its planned release at the beginning of November of this year; however, due to the ongoing strikes in the film industry, the date was pushed back. Dune: Part Two will now hit theaters on March 15, 2024.

Masters of the Air (Miniseries)

Air Force men line up in front of a plane in Masters of the Air
Apple TV+

On the smaller screen, Butler is confirmed to co-star in Masters of the Air, the sequel to HBO's critically acclaimed World War II drama Band of Brothers, which tells a story of airmen's brotherhood, heart-breaking losses, and their fight for survival within the 100th Bomb Group, with the series once again being developed by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg.

Consisting of 10 episodes, Masters of the Air will stream exclusively on Apple TV+. No expense will be spared, with the series reportedly costing well over $200 million to produce. The series is being written by John Orloff, who also wrote Band of Brothers. It's based on the Donald L. Miller book Masters of the Air: America's Bomber Boys Who Fought the Air War Against Nazi Germany, and will tell the story of the Eighth Air Force of the United States Army Air Forces during WWII. In the series, which is said to be released in the fall of 2023, Austin Butler will tackle the role of Major Gale Cleven.

City on Fire

Austin Butler

Austin Butler is also said to participate as an actor as well as a first-time producer in Sony-owned 3000 Pictures' upcoming movie City on Fire. It is based on Don Winslow's novel of the same name, which was published in April 2022 and will be centered around the role of Danny Ryan, a young criminal who goes from soldier to leader.

Related: Aliens in the Attic: Remembering Austin Butler as a Kid Actor

David Heyman, producer of all the Harry Potter and Paddington films, is set to produce. City on Fire, the first book in a trilogy, focuses on two criminal empires, one Irish and the other Italian, that fight to control New England. The story draws inspiration from The Iliad, Odyssey, and Aeneid. Currently, no director or screenwriter is attached to the project, but Sony Pictures is likely hoping to get the movie ready for release during awards season in either 2024 or 2025.