BLADE RUNNER 2049 Director Denis Villeneuve Is in Talks to Direct DUNE
It looks like director Denis Villeneuve may get his wish of directing Dune. A few months ago, the Blade Runner 2049 director expressed his dream of directing Dune saying:
"I’m always looking for sci-fi material, and it’s difficult to find original and strong material that’s not just about weaponry. A longstanding dream of mine is to adapt Dune, but it’s a long process to get the rights, and I don’t think I will succeed."
Today it's being reported by Variety that he's currently in talks with Legendary Pictures to make it happen. So, it looks to me like there's a good chance that he will succeed at landing the gig. Legendary recently acquired the rights to Frank Herbert's classic sci-fi novel to develop a film and possible TV series.
The story is set in a distant future and follows Paul Atreides, "whose family accepts control of the desert planet Arrakis. As the only producer of a highly valuable resource, control of Arrakis is highly contested among the noble families. After Paul and his family are betrayed, the story explores themes of politics, religion, and man’s relationship to nature as Paul leads a rebellion to restore his family’s control of Arrakis."
Villeneuve is the talented director behind films such as Prisoners, Sicario, and Arrival. It seems like if anyone took on a new Dune film and had a good chance of doing it properly it would be Villeneuve. I'd actually be really interested to see what he does with this property.