This isn’t going to be a particularly large post, but it is a big announcement. According to Variety, the second part of Denis Villeneuve’s science fiction epic has been greenlit by both Warner Bros. and Legendary Entertainment. This is excellent news. As you may or may not know, I went to see Dune over the weekend. The movie covered the first half of Frank Herbert’s beloved book. You can read my review on the film by clicking on the Reviews tab, but what I will say is that Dune was everything I wanted to be. The sense of scale made the film bigger than life. This is a movie that needs to be seen on the biggest screen possible. There had been some concerns over the past month or so that Dune wouldn’t make enough money to get a follow-up film. It’s understandable. Frank Herbert’s book isn’t exactly the most accessible story. It’s very dense with a lot of details surrounding different Houses, politics, religious ideas, and overall world-building. But Denis Villeneuve managed to make a movie that was not only faithful to the original story, but he made it accessible for audiences who weren’t familiar with the source material. One of the issues surrounding the film’s release was in regards to its US release. Why? Dune was not only being released to theaters, but it was also released on HBO Max at the same. HBO Max being Warner Bros. streaming service.
The movie was released first to international audiences last month before hitting the United States on the 22nd of October. Looking at the box office numbers, Dune hit with a 41 million dollar opening, which was to expected during a pandemic, but the international take was closer to 180 million by the end of the weekend, bringing the total numbers 223 million on 165 million dollar budget. In normal theatrical release, the film would have to make back at least 2.5 times its production budget just to break even. But because of the pandemic, those kinds of numbers just aren’t realistic at the moment. Yet, because of word-of-mouth, as well as strong reactions from both audiences and critics, Dune is doing pretty well right now. It’s doing well enough that WB, Legendary, and Denis Villeneuve are comfortable enough with going forward with Part 2. I think it would’ve happened anyway with Discovery buying Warner Bros. But the fact that the project is moving forward less than a week after the film’s domestic opening is really good news. Could you imagine if Warner Bros. had scrapped plans for Part 2? That would’ve been like The Lord of the Rings having the first two movies, but the third film gets canceled for whatever reason. It’s unfathomable. This is only the first half of the story. The real bulk of the narrative happens in the second half when Paul leads the Fremen against their Harkonnen enemies. That is where the action is, and I think that’s what most people are looking forward to seeing.
As someone who grew up with David Lynch’s film from 1984, Denis Villeneuve’s interpretation is nothing short of brilliant. This is epic story-telling unlike anything that I’ve seen since Lord of the Rings. In fact, I would argue that Dune is the movie that truly cements Mr. VIlleneuve’s stature as a master film-maker. Everything that he’s made, I’ve loved. Some are better than others, but they’re all compelling in their own way. Now that Part 2 is greenlit, Denis says that he can begin shooting next year for a possible 2023 release date. It’s going to be a bit of a wait, but it’ll be worth it. While the year isn’t over yet, I’m beginning to think that Dune is going to be my movie of the year. It’s that good. It’s not for everybody, but for those who like high-concept science fiction, this is a dream come true.