Despite a scorching op-ed written by director Denis Villeneuve after it was announced that Dune would be included in the highly controversial decision by Warner Bros. to release its entire 2021 film slate on HBO Max the same day as theaters, the film performed admirably at the box office. More importantly, Dune‘s success secured a green light for Dune: Part Two just a few days after the first film’s release, and from the sound of things, Villeneuve seems to be much happier with his relationship with Warner Bros. now.
For starters, Dune: Part Two has been guaranteed an exclusive 45-day theatrical window, which was key to Villeneuve, who told The Hollywood Reporter, “The theatrical experience is at the very heart of the cinematic language for me.” Notably, earlier in the year, Villeneuve was concerned that the HBO Max move had killed the Dune franchise before it even started, but now he’s talking about possibly even coming back for a third movie. Via THR:
“If things go well with Part Two, I could foresee the idea of maybe doing … Dune Messiah. That would make sense to me,” Villeneuve says when asked about his career plans. “After that, I think that I will make some other movies — let’s call them big movies, regarding their ambition and scope. And later on, when I’m too tired to do that, I will go back to some smaller projects. But for now, I have the energy to do this.”
Of course, before Villeneuve starts figuring out how to tackle the third installment in Frank Herbert’s epic sci-fi series, he has to get to work on Dune: Part Two, which starts filming in Fall 2022, according to the director. However, he assures Dune fans that the production won’t take nearly as long because a lot of the groundwork was laid down making the first film, but he and cinematographer Greig Fraser will still be pushing the sequel’s visual style.
“I don’t want to have the impression that we are just repeating ourselves,” Villeneuve said.
(Via The Hollywood Reporter)