Pierre Morel Taking Over New DUNE Adaptation

I don't know about you, but I certainly didn't see this one coming. Peter Berg (Hancock, The Kingdom) was attached to direct a remake of the sci-fi cult classic Dune, but dropped out of the project last October. Now Entertainment Weekly reports [via ComingSoon.net] director Pierre Morel has been hired to take over the project.

Morel is famous for directing the parkour action flick District B-13, last year's breakout hit Taken, and the upcoming John Travolta vehicle From Paris With Love. He has worked extensively with prolific French writer/producer/director Luc Besson on films like The Transporter and Unleashed, but I would have never pegged Morel as someone to take on a beloved sci-fi property.

Dune has seen the big screen before. Back in 1984, David Lynch brought Frank Herbert's 1965 novel to life on screen under some dubious circumstances; Lynch was apparently not pleased with the producers and didn't receive final cut, so on some edits of the movie the infamous "Alan Smithee" is credited as the director. In case you're unaware, "Alan Smithee" is the name director's attribute films to when they don't want to disown a project (read more about that here).

The newest adaptation of the source material was written by Quantum of Solace writer Josh Zetumer, and the studio is currently searching for a new writer to include Morel's vision into the pre-existing draft. I wasn't the biggest fan of Quantum of Solace, so I'm not terribly excited about this project. But at the same time, Morel's involvement tickles my fancy for the sole reason that this project is so far removed from anything he's tackled before.

I haven't read the book nor seen Lynch's film, so I'll leave it up to the readers to comment and let us know if Morel is a solid choice or not. What say you, Dune fanatics?