diff --git a/pkgs/tools/typesetting/tectonic/default.nix b/pkgs/tools/typesetting/tectonic/default.nix
index e7172e608746..1e2c58d60356 100644
--- a/pkgs/tools/typesetting/tectonic/default.nix
+++ b/pkgs/tools/typesetting/tectonic/default.nix
@@ -26,7 +26,6 @@ rustPlatform.buildRustPackage rec {
     owner = "tectonic-typesetting";
     repo = "tectonic";
     rev = "tectonic@${version}";
-    fetchSubmodules = true;
     sha256 = "sha256-xZHYiaQ8ASUwu0ieHIXcjRaH06SQoB6OR1y7Ok+FjAs=";
   };
 
@@ -34,6 +33,8 @@ rustPlatform.buildRustPackage rec {
 
   nativeBuildInputs = [ pkg-config ];
 
+  buildFeatures = [ "external-harfbuzz" ];
+
   buildInputs = [ icu fontconfig harfbuzz openssl ]
     ++ lib.optionals stdenv.isDarwin (with darwin.apple_sdk.frameworks; [ ApplicationServices Cocoa Foundation ]);