# The new "Dune" adaptation **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [April 14, 2020, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788 "2020-04-14T18:15:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2020, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788/1 "2020-04-14T18:15:42Z")
Due in December 2020! A great sf director (with _Arrival_ and _Blade Runner 2049_ under his belt) and an all-star cast. Here are some pics from the set, and short interviews: > **[A First Look at Timothée Chalamet in Dune](https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2020/04/a-first-look-at-timothee-chalamet-in-dune)** > > Part one of our preview of Denis Villeneuve’s adaptation of the epic sci-fi novel. > **[Behold Dune: A New Look at Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, and More](https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2020/04/behold-dune-an-exclusive-look-at-timothee-chalamet-zendaya-oscar-isaac)** > > Feuding royals. A deadly planet. Before Star Wars or Game of Thrones, there was this legendary story. The Wiki article: [Dune (2021 film) - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dune_(2020_film)) I’m psyched - and you? ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2020, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788/2 "2020-04-14T19:08:31Z")
I’m prepared to be disappointed, because it’s such a hard novel to adapt and so many ways it can go wrong. But Villeneuve is great, and I can’t think of a single casting decision that is disappointing. So who knows. ---
**Author:** ![Driver8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5a626/32.png) [@Driver8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Driver8)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2020, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788/3 "2020-04-14T19:17:02Z")
Yeah, it doesn’t have a great track record. That said, Denis Villeneuve is amazing and has earned my trust. I loved his Blade Runner 2049 adaptation and pretty much everything else he’s done. So … I’m cautiously optimistic. This could be great. ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2020, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788/4 "2020-04-14T19:26:57Z")
I must not fear the latest adaptation Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear of the new adaptation I will permit myself to watch it . And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I (and the book) will remain ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2020, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788/5 "2020-04-14T19:27:01Z")
I am really looking forward to it. It is a hard novel to adapt but I think Villeneuve is pretty much the perfect choice to bring it to life. Looking at his previous works like _Enemy_ and _Arrival_ when taken into account that he is supposedly a life long fan of the book, I am excited. Everyone who has seen any part of it has raved about it. The one thing that does worry me, is that the first book is going to be made as a two parter. That is smart in the sense that the material is too dense to fit into one movie but the second part is going to be green-lit based on the success of part one. The movie did have a prime release date in December with no Star Wars or Marvel competition. Now, with Covid-19 movies are getting their release dates changed and now Dune could face some stiff week 2 competition. ---
**Author:** ![sohvan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/96bed5/32.png) [@sohvan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sohvan)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2020, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788/6 "2020-04-14T19:27:12Z")
Arrival and Blade Runner 2049 were two of my favorite movies from 2010s, so I’m optimistic. Too bad about Blade Runner bombing in the box office, though. It deserved better. ---
**Author:** ![carlb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carlb/32/5930_2.png) [@carlb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carlb)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2020, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788/7 "2020-04-14T19:28:58Z")
Add me to the, “cautiously optimistic,” crowd. Not crazy about some of the costuming, but that’s very, very minor in the grand scheme of things. Paul is a tricky character, given that he’s so young, but Chalomet seems like a great choice. The other casting seems good as well, particularly Stellan Skarsgard; he’s talked recently about wanting the Baron to be less cartoonish than in the previous adaptations, which is really the way to go. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2020, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788/8 "2020-04-14T19:37:42Z")
I was not a fan of the Alan Smithee versions. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2020, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788/9 "2020-04-14T22:00:25Z")
Every network is looking for the next Game of Thrones and I always figured this could be it. I am hopeful, though. I would love for them to do a good job. Did they film both halves of the movie all at once or do we have to wait years for the followup? ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2020, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788/10 "2020-04-14T22:18:12Z")
It’s gonna suck. Mark my words. Nothing good will come of this. ---
**Author:** ![Yodalicious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yodalicious/32/8195_2.png) [@Yodalicious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yodalicious)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2020, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788/11 "2020-04-14T22:28:11Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > It’s gonna suck. Mark my words. Nothing good will come of this. It’s not gonna suck. Mark my words. If a single person, who hasn’t read the book, comes out of the theater wanting to read it, than something good came of it. ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2020, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788/12 "2020-04-14T22:30:24Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > Did they film both halves of the movie all at once or do we have to wait years for the followup? According to IMDB (and **Ike Witt** above), they filmed the first part only. They’ll make part 2 only if the first one is successful. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2020, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788/13 "2020-04-14T22:36:18Z")
Other than some casting choices, the Lynch/“Smithee” version sucked. But I am a fan of the ScyFy miniseries. A version that appears to be made with skill is always worth checking out. The trouble is, as I age, I find my alliances shifting. I do not think the Fremen are anywhere near the good guys the book seems to cast them as. They are mujahdin if not Taliban. And it’s hard to put the later books out of my mind, how we know with Cassandra-like ability that the entire world is doomed. Fortunately, no matter how successfully, the Dune books will never get the Harry Potter treatment. They’ll never film any of the later books. They’ll just keep remaking the first, over and over… ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2020, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788/14 "2020-04-14T23:05:55Z")
> [@Yodalicious](#): > > It’s not gonna suck. Mark my words. If a single person, who hasn’t read the book, comes out of the theater wanting to read it, than something good came of it. You hate people that much? ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2020, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788/15 "2020-04-14T23:22:40Z")
> [@TroutMan](#): > > According to IMDB (and **Ike Witt** above), they filmed the first part only. They’ll make part 2 only if the first one is successful. Ugh. I’ll see it, but I wish they’d made the entire thing. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2020, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788/16 "2020-04-14T23:41:12Z")
And we still don’t know who is playing Feyd-Rautha. ---
**Author:** ![ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chockfullofheadygoodness/32/511_2.png) [@ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2020, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788/17 "2020-04-14T23:55:11Z")
> [@TroutMan](#): > > According to IMDB (and **Ike Witt** above), they filmed the first part only. They’ll make part 2 only if the first one is successful. Oh great, just like Ralph Bakshi’s _Lord of the Rings_. If it flops,Rankin-Bass can do the second half. _Where there’s a sonic whip, crack There’s a Weirding Way_ ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2020, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788/18 "2020-04-15T00:29:54Z")
> [@Hypno-Toad](#): > > And we still don’t know who is playing Feyd-Rautha. Gordon Sumner is available I hear. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2020, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788/19 "2020-04-15T00:45:03Z")
I wonder if they’ll tone down Baron Harkonnen’s pederasty. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2020, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788/20 "2020-04-15T03:51:00Z")
The director has said he doesn’t want the Baron to be a caricature. Dunno how that plays out. Two key Imperial roles still aren’t cast, I guess. Any suggestions? For the Emperor, I’d say: Ian McKellen Patrick Stewart Charles Dance Michael Fassbender Michael Gambon And for Princess Irulan, maybe: Alicia Vikander Margaret Qualley Rachel Brosnahan Naomi Scott Saoirse Ronan [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-dune-adaptation/851788.md?page=2)