2020 may be the year of epic trailers. Thanks to the pandemic, many blockbusters such as No Time to Die and Fast 9 pushed back their release dates to late 2020 or 2021. Most of the country still hasn’t seen Tenet, but trailers for Christopher Nolan’s movie and Wonder Woman 1984 are keeping the excitement alive. After today, add Dune to 2020’s epic year of trailers.
Without knowing anything about Dune, it’s tough to watch that trailer and not be excited about a sci-fi adventure. Based on the 1965 book from Frank Herbert, Dune is known as the “grandfather of science fiction.” It inspired popular franchises like Star Wars and Star Trek. I have not read the book (I’m hoping to change that before the film comes out), but from the summaries I read, it’s a story about family, betrayal, and the most valuable resource in the world, “the spice.” Below is the official summary from Warner Bros.
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.
There are many reasons as to why I’m excited for Dune. First of all, who doesn’t love a giant sci-fi epic? However, the people involved, most notably the director and cast, are why my excitement is through the roof. Denis Villeneuve serves as director, which makes my confidence skyrocket. There’s a case to be made that Villeneuve was the greatest director of the 2010s. From Prisoners to Blade Runner 2049, that’s an unbelievable five movie stretch. Villeneuve is a master of beautiful visuals, high-octane action sequences, and tension-building scenes. You can count on all of those three aspects to be included in Dune.
Then, there’s the cast. To say this cast is stacked would be an understatement. Is loaded a better word? Whatever adjective you use, multiply it by ten.
To be honest, you had me at “Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya.” But, if Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Oscar Isaac, Jason Momoa, and Javier Bardem play major roles in the film, I guess I’ll take that, too. Seriously, the 1994 Dream Team and Avengers have company in terms of the greatest cast of characters ever assembled.
Dune‘s text is considered sacred by fans, which is why it’s been such a difficult process adapting it to the screen. The most notable adaptation is 1984’s Dune from David Lynch. The film was a box office failure but has developed a cult following since. It’s a tough book to adapt because it’s hard to tell the entire story in one movie, which Villeneuve realized right away. In a panel with Stephen Colbert, Villeneuve said they will need to shoot two movies in order to cover the entire novel. The first Dune movie will only cover half of the novel.
Dune was scheduled to arrive in late December, but that’s up in the air since the trailer did not have a release date. In fact, Wonder Woman 1984 may move from its October release date to Dune‘s December date, which would push back the sci-fi epic to 2021. Whenever the film comes out, I’m all in. Take all of my Apple stock and convert it to Dune stock.
Are you excited about Dune? Leave your thoughts in the comments or tweet us, @unafraidshow.
