Denis Villeneuve is on a sci-fi kick. Before he even had time to take a nice, deep breath after directing the critically acclaimed Arrival starring Amy Adams, he went to work on the Ridley Scott-produced Blade Runner 2049. Is he ready for a sci-fi trifecta? The Hollywood Reporter says he’s being considered to direct the next adaptation of Frank Herbert’s Dune.
Fans may actually be trying to catch their breath, too. We just got our first trailer for Blade Runner 2049, which the director confirmed to ScreenDaily would be rated R. It (thankfully) doesn’t give too much away about the film but seems to match up with the style of Scott’s original. Entertainment Weekly released a few images today featuring Harrison Ford, Ryan Gosling, and Ana de Armas but when it comes to remakes and reboots, everyone is wary. So is the case for Dune, the beloved sci-fi novel (and series).
Back in September, Villeneuve expressed serious interest not just in sci-fi as a genre he wanted to work in but in Dune specifically as a project. At that time there hadn’t been any notable movement in getting another adaptation going since Paramount made an attempt and the director didn’t see it as a reality. Fast forward to November and we learned Legendary had acquired the rights from the Frank Herbert estate for film and/or television productions of his works.
It seems as if someone at Legendary had heard of Villeneuve’s interest. THR doesn’t have much to add at this point except that he’s “in talks” to direct a Dune film with them. Do you think he’s the right person for the job? Or would you like to hold off until you see how Blade Runner 2049 turns out?
