Finally some good news! The first image from Blade Runner 2049 director Denis Villeneuve’s highly-anticipated remake of sci-fi epic Dune has been revealed.
The still, first shared by Vanity Fair, shows Timothée Chalamet as young royal Paul Atreides, on his home planet Caladan. Later, he will board a transport ship to the dangerous mining planet Arrakis, where his family will oversee the extraction of ‘spice’, a drug that can extend human life and provide superhuman levels of thought.
Speaking about his character, Chalamet told Vanity Fair: “The immediately appealing thing about Paul was the fact that in a story of such detail and scale and world-building, the protagonist is on an anti-hero’s-journey of sorts.”
He added: “He thinks he’s going to be sort of a young general studying his father and his leadership of a fighting force before he comes of age, hopefully a decade later, or something like that.”
Set for release on December 18, 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. Zendaya plays Chani, who develops a relationship with Paul.
Dune is a pioneering space epic based on Frank Herbert’s 1965 novel of the same name. It has been the subject of many 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.
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,” he 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.
