The star of the 1984 version of Dune, Kyle MacLachlan, says that he is excited to see Timothée Chalamet's version of Paul Atreides in the latest adaptation of the famous 1965 sci-fi novel by Frank Herbert. The 2021 adaptation, which got pushed back by over a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, finally arrives in theaters this week. The film boasts a talented ensemble cast alongside Chalamet which includes the likes of Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac, Josh Brolin, Zendaya, Jason Momoa, Javier Bardem, Dave Bautista and Stellan Skarsgård, who plays villain Baron Harkonnen.
The story revolves around young nobleman Paul Atreides, son of Duke Leto Atreides, who is thrust into a war against long-standing enemies the Harkonnens for the desert planet Arrakis and its resources. There have been myriad adaptations of the iconic novel over the decades since it was published but none have truly succeeded in capturing the essence of Herbert's intricate work. This includes the 1984 version directed by the legendary David Lynch which starred Twin Peaks alumni Kyle MacLachlan.
MacLachlan recently took to Twitter to share his excitement for the new Dune film, and especially, Chalamet's portrayal of the protagonist Paul Atreides. He mentioned that he's excited to see Chalamet "walk without rhythm and become Muad'dib" which serves as a callback to the 1984 version. He also expressed his enthusiasm at Herbert's classic novel being "introduced to a new generation" of movie fans. He went on to post a set of photos that display figurines and artwork of his version of Paul alongside Chalamet's 2021 version and Zendaya's character Chani accompanied by Herbert's novels in the background.
The 1984 Dune adaptation that saw Kyle MacLachlan (in his film debut) play Paul Atreides appeared to have quite a controversial behind-the-scenes process as director David Lynch stated that studio interference had restrained his artistic control and changed the final cut, which even led Lynch to disown Dune. However, the above post does show that the American actor was able to put the disappointment of his debut feature behind him. It also indicates that he continues to be a fan of Herbert's work and will give full support to his successor Chalamet to go one step further.
It's quite clear that MacLachlan has banished the ghosts of his past from the failed adaptation of Dune and is very much looking forward to a clean slate and a bright future for what could potentially be the next big sci-fi franchise. With the announcement of a sequel looking increasingly likely and the cast yet to be announced, maybe MacLachlan could get a shot at redemption, even if it is in a smaller role. Early reviews of the latest iteration of Dune directed by French-Canadian filmmaker Denis Villeneuve suggest that the long-lasting trend of negative reviews will be broken. The highly-anticipated sci-fi tentpole currently holds a certified fresh score on Rotten Tomatoes of 85% which bodes well for the film.
Source: Kyle MacLachlan
