Now that he's achieved the unprecedented, and delivered a Blade Runner sequel that stands shoulder to shoulder with the original, illustrious director Denis Villeneuve is turning his sights toward another lofty endeavor. A new adaptation of Frank Herbert's seminal science-fiction novel, DUNE.
Dune published in 1965, was first adapted to the silver screen in 1984 by auteur director David Lynch, that film only had a passing resemblance to the novel however and was received less than warmly upon it's release. Since then there have been a number of low budget TV miniseries and various on again, off again feature film projects.
It seemed that Frank Herbert's novel, would never get it's proper due on film.
Then in 2016, when Legendary Entertainment acquired the rights to the story of Paul Atreides; steward of the desert world Arrakis and future messiah, it was announced that Arrival director Denis Villeneuve would helm the project, with The Curious Case of Benjamin Button scribe Eric Roth on scripting duties.
While much is still unknown about the project at this point, while speaking at Rendez-Vous du Cinema Quebecois, Villeneuve revealed that "Dune will probably take two years to make. The goal is to make two films, maybe more." This is unsurprising if you're familiar with the source material, as any piece of genre fiction that requires a glossary is sure to be a large undertaking.
It's unclear however, if Villeneuve means that those two films will be adapting solely the first book, or if the plan is to dip into the many sequels and prequels that Herbert and his son wrote. With at least two years until the film is released, only time will tell.
What do you think? Are you excited for Villeneuve's DUNE? Are you happy there'll be more than one entry? Who would you like to see play Paul? Leave your thoughts below.