Oscar Isaac on how Denis Villeneuve’s Dune is relevant to today’s climate

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

Next week will feature the release of the much-anticipated trailer for Denis Villeneuve's DUNE, but in the meantime, we'll have to make due with a handful of new images that have been trickling out. We've been fortunate enough to dive into the world of DUNE thanks to several new covers for Empire Magazine as well as a handful of images, and Empire is back with a new pair of images to tide us over.

Like many sci-fi stories, DUNE will have something to say about today's society with its story of exploitation and control of resources. When Duke Leto Atreides (Oscar Isaac) becomes the new governor of Arrakis, he clashes with the Freman leader Stilgar (Javier Bardem) over control of the spice, the most valuable substance in the universe. While speaking with Empire, Isaac touched upon the movie's revelvant themes "It’s about the destiny of a people, and the different way that cultures have dominated other ones," Isaac said. "How do a people respond when it’s at the tipping point, when enough is enough, when they’re exploited? All those things are things we’re seeing around the world right now." You can check out two new images from DUNE below, which feature Isaac as Duke Leto, Rebecca Ferguson as Lady Jessica, and Bardem as Stilgar.

Speaking of Lady Jessica, DUNE director Denis Villeneuve told Empire that he wanted to be sure to show the character as someone who was just as imposing as Duke Leto and Stilgar. "I didn’t want Lady Jessica to be an expensive extra," Villeneuve said. "Something I deeply love in the book is that there was a strong balance between the masculine power and feminine power." The trailer for DUNE will launch online on September 9th at 9am PST. We'll be sure to get that up for you just as soon as it drops.

In addition to Oscar Isaac, Rebecca Ferguson, and Javier Bardem, the sprawling all-star cast of DUNE includes Timothée Chalamet's as Paul Atreides, Stellan Skarsgard as the villainous Baron Harkonnen, Dave Bautista as his sadistic nephew, Glossu "Beast" Rabban, Charlotte Rampling as the Reverend Mother Mohiam, the emperor's truthsayer, Josh Brolin as Gurney Halleck, a troubadour-swordsman, Jason Momoa as Duncan Idaho, a swordmaster in the house of Atreides, Zendaya as Chani, a Fremen who becomes a love interest to Paul Atreides, and David Dastmalchian as Piter De Vries, a twisted Mentat. DUNE will be hitting theaters on December 18, 2020.