Over the past few months, ARRIVAL and BLADE RUNNER 2049 director Denis Villeneuve has been busy assembling one hell of an ensemble cast for his much-anticipated adaptation of DUNE. Based on the 1965 sci-fi novel by Frank Herbert, DUNE plans to shoot on location in the Hungarian capital of Budapest, and in Jordan. Set to lead Villeneuve's version of Herbert's classic story is Oscar nominee Timothée Chalamet (CALL ME BY YOUR NAME, LADY BIRD), who'll be joined by Oscar Isaac (EX MACHINA, A MOST VIOLENT YEAR), Zendaya (SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING), Rebecca Ferguson (MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE- FALLOUT, LIFE) and Dave Bautista (HOTEL ARTEMIS, GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY) for the film. What? Is that not star-studded enough for you? Well, what if I told you that AQUAMAN's Jason Momoa, Oscar winner Javier Bardem (NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN), Oscar nominee Charlotte Rampling (15 YEARS, SWIMMING POOL) and THOR actor Stellan Skarsgård are also a part of the mix? See, now we're talkin'!
Furthmore, if top-talent casting announcements aren't your bag, you might be interested to know that iconic film composer Hans Zimmer has signed on to arrange the score for DUNE. His appointment to the project marks another collaboration with Villeneuve, after Zimmer co-composed the score for BLADE RUNNER 2049 with Benjamin Wallfisch.
DUNE's director of cinematography, Greig Fraser, celebrated the film's first day of full-production earlier this afternoon with a gushy post to his Instagram account, which you can view for yourself below:
Chalamet will act as young nobleman Paul Atreides for Villeneuve's take, a character who finds himself at the heart of a war fought over control of a drug called "the spice," a powerful substance capable of providing its user with a myriad of effects.
Here's the official synopsis for DUNE:
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.
Villeneuve co-wrote the screenplay himself alongside Eric Roth (THE INSIDER, FORREST GUMP) and Jon Spaihts (PASSENGERS, DOCTOR STRANGE).
On a scale of 1 to 10, how excited are you to check out Villeneuve's version of DUNE? I would think that after delivering his 2016 smash ARRIVAL, and 2017's mesmerizing sci-fi noir BLADE RUNNER 2049, that Villeneuve is the perfect filmmaker to bring Herbert's story of drugs, desperation and deception to untold amounts of new eyeballs. Sound off in the comments section and let us know if you're pumped for this one.