Frank Herbert’s Dune is a giant, pioneering space epic that has launched a thousand failed attempts, with the likes of Arthur P. Jacobs, Alejandro Jodorowsky, and Ridley Scott all unsuccessfully attempting to get it onto the silver screen in the 70s. Even when a movie adaptation was finally completed by David Lynch in 1984, it was a critical and commercial flop.
That said, 30 years later and Dune is returning to the big screen in a new adaptation directed by Arrival and Blade Runner 2049 filmmaker Denis Villeneuve, starring Timothée Chalamet as the protagonist Paul Atreides. Kyle MacLachlan, who played the role in Lynch’s remake, has told IMDb that he’s “very excited to see it”.
“There will be another one, there will be a couple of us out there, running around, there’s plenty of room I think, and Timothée I think will do a fantastic job,” he said. “I’m very much looking forward to the vision Denis has. David Lynch, of course, it’s a very specific vision, so this will be something completely different, I’m sure. Why not have both stand on their own merits?”
Paul Atreides is a young nobleman in a feudal society set in a faraway future, where families face off over a powerful ‘spice’, a drug that can extend human life and provide superhuman levels of thought. Rebecca Ferguson stars as Paul’s mother and concubine of Duke Leto Atreides, Lady Jessica, with Oscar Isaac as the Duke and steward of the planet Arrakis, and Zendaya plays Chani, who develops a relationship with Paul.
Previously speaking to Yahoo! Movies, Villeneuve said his remake of Dune would be more faithful to the 1964 book than Lynch’s version. “David Lynch did an adaptation in the 80s that has some very strong qualities. I mean, David Lynch is one of the best filmmakers alive, I have massive respect for him,” Villeneuve said.
“But when I saw his adaptation, I was impressed, but it was not what I had dreamed of, so I’m trying to make the adaptation of my dreams. It will not have any link with the David Lynch movie. I’m going back to the book, and going to the images that came out when I read it.”
Dune will be released on December 18 this year.
