DUNE Art Director Says That Denis Villeneuve's Adaptation Is the New LORD OF THE RINGS

Fans of Frank Herbert’s Dune are incredibly excited about director Denis Villeneuve’s upcoming adaptation. All we’ve seen from it so far are a few photos that have been shared. What we’ve seen looks great, but we’re all waiting for that first trailer to be released so we can actually see what exactly this movie is going to entail. That trailer may be coming later this month.

While we wait for a trailer to drop, the supervising art director on the film, Tom Brown, builds the hype even more, saying that these Dune films will be the new Lord of the Rings. While talking with KIDS FIRST! Film Critics, Brown said:

“I think what [director] Denis Villeneuve is doing is what’s called a seminal version of this story. I don’t think it will be topped, to be perfectly honest. The sheer scale of it is going to be daunting. But I do think it’s going to be extremely special. I heard in the paper the other day that they’re looking at the new Lord of the Rings, and I firmly believe that. I think it’s going to be up there with those kinds of films, really.”

Well, that would be pretty incredible if Dune actually did end up matching the epic awesomeness of The Lord of the Rings. I still have yet to see a film to reach the bar that The Lord of the Rings set. I’d totally like to see Dune do that! Do you think that Villeneuve’s Dune has that potential?

Brown also talked about keeping the film more grounded in reality in some ways saying that is one of the things that makes it so compelling:

“The great thing about this is that it’s so realistic. It’s not like anything they’ve seen before. The attitude that Denis and [production designer] Patrice [Vermette took] was, what would happen if these things could actually fly? Unlike a lot of spaceships that just sort of lift off and fly, these have an incredible realism to them. Even though some of the spaceships are the size of skyscrapers, others are two-seater vehicles.”

I can’t wait to see some actual footage of this stuff! Enough talk, show us some footage! Here’s the synopsis for the film:

A mythic and emotionally charged hero’s journey, Dune tells the story of Paul Atreides, a brilliant and gifted young man born into a great destiny beyond his understanding, who must travel to the most dangerous planet in the universe to ensure the future of his family and his people. As malevolent forces explode into conflict over the planet’s exclusive supply of the most precious resource in existence—a commodity capable of unlocking humanity’s greatest potential—only those who can conquer their fear will survive.

The film’s cast includes Timothée Chalamet as Paul Atreides, Oscar Isaac as Duke Leto Atreides, Josh Brolin as Gurney Halleck, Rebecca Ferguson as his mother Jessica, Jason Momoa as Duncan Idaho, Stellan Skarsgard as Baron Harkonnen, Zendaya as Chani, Jason Momoa as Duncan Idaho, Javier Bardem as Stilgar, Charlotte Rampling as Reverend Mother Mohiam, David Dastmcalchian as Piter De Vries, Chang Chen as Dr. Yueh, and Dave Bautista as the Baron’s nephew Rabban.

Dune is currently slated to hit theaters on December 18th.