Denis Villeneuve, director of the upcoming Dune film, says that Dune 2 could film as early as 2022 if the project gets greenlit soon. Based on Frank Herbert’s 1965 influential novel of the same name, Villeneuve’s upcoming movie is the first of a planned two-part adaptation of the story. Dune: Part One, as titled onscreen, covers roughly the first half of Herbert’s book.
Dune, which recently premiered at the 78th Venice International Film Festival and is set to release to theaters on October 22, is not the only film adaptation of Herbert’s novel. Writer and director, David Lynch, first took up the task of bringing Dune to the big screen in his 1984 epic science-fiction film. Unfortunately, Lynch’s adaptation bombed not only at the box office, but with critics as well, of which criticized Lynch’s lack of faithfulness to the source material among other things. However, since its original release, the 1984 adaptation has developed a cult following. Now, a new set of filmmakers are bringing Dune back to the theaters.
During a Dune roundtable Q&A with Villeneuve, the film’s director revealed that Dune 2 could film as early as 2022 if the second part gets greenlit. Since Villeneuve had to know what he was going to include in both parts, he says that the second part is ready to go as quickly as it gets the greenlight. He further elaborates that there will need to be sets and costumes made, which will take months, however, he’s ready to start filming in 2022. View Villeneuve’s full comment below:
“If there’s enthusiasm and the movie is greenlit sooner than later, I would say that I will be ready to shoot in 2022 for sure…I am ready to go and I will say that I am ready to bring it to screen as soon as possible, but with the first film I really had time to make sure that it was exactly the way I wanted it to be and I would love to have the same feeling when I make the second part, so that will be the priority. The quality will be the priority.”
Because of the complex world and story of the Dune novel, Villeneuve has long planned to make the film into a two-part series. When the movie was first announced, Villeneuve told fans, “I would not agree to make this adaptation of the book with one single movie,” with Villeneuve adding that “the world is too complex,” and that it “takes power in details.” Lynch’s 1984 film tried to tackle the lengthy novel in a 137-minute movie, which was simply not enough time to cover every aspect of the story, as evidenced by its critical reception. Learning from that mistake, it seems Villeneuve is on the right path to faithfully portraying the novel.
Unlike Lynch’s 1984 adaptation, Villeneuve’s upcoming film is already highly anticipated by fans and moviegoers. Yet, with Warner Bros. decision to release Dune simultaneously to theaters and HBO Max, there is worry that the film won’t perform financially enough to warrant a second part. Nonetheless, should Dune 2 get greenlit, Villeneuve and his team are ready to start filming as soon as possible.
