Here’s what to expect from Denis Villeneuve’s Dune movie, including its release date and storey details. The upcoming movie is far from the first time Frank Herbert’s classic sci-fi novel has been adapted for the screen since it was published in 1965. A previous Dune movie was directed by David Lynch and released in 1984, but flopped at the box office and was widely criticized for its often incomprehensible storytelling. It’s gone on to attain cult status in the decades since then, in spite of Lynch’s disowning of the theatrical trimmed and outspoken lack of interest in anything else Dune-related.

Dune was later changed as a TV miniseries by writer-director John Harrison in the 2000 s( for what was then the Sci-Fi Channel ). Reviews were far kinder to Harrison’s version than Lynch’s, but even then many Dune fans agreed the storey was hindered by the budgetary and VFX a limit to television at the time( not to mention, perfectly acceptable, yet otherwise unremarkable play and writing ). The sheer scale of the world-building in Herbert’s source material alone clears it an unwieldy fit for adaptation, as filmmakers ranging from Alejandro Jodorowsky to Peter Berg have discovered in their own miscarried attempts to adapt Dune both before and after Lynch and Harris took their shots.

Related: How Dune Changed Sci-Fi Movies (& Denis Villeneuve Can Do It Again )

All the same, the most recent Dune movie has parties evoked, and for fair intellect: it’s being directed by Villeneuve, a filmmaker who’s previously delivered two of the most critically-acclaimed sci-fi the characteristics of the 21 st century( Arrival and Blade Runner 2049 ). More than that, Warner Bros. is giving no overhead with this new adaptation and hopes to build a multi-platform franchise around Villeneuve’s film, including a spinoff Tv sequences for HBO Max. Of trend, that’s not the only reason everyone’s keeping a close seeing on the movie.

Tentatively, Dune is scheduled to open in theaters on December 18, 2020, but the time is still far from being a done deal. With the daily number of brand-new COVID-1 9 instances on the rise across the U.S. and no vaccine in sight, it’s become increasingly likely the largest movie theater markets in the country won’t be able to safely reopen until early/ mid 2021. Due to its high costs( thought to be in the same $150 -2 00 million assortment as Blade Runner 2049 ), Dune needs to be able to screen theatrically in those areas if it’s to have any hope of turning a profit. This further rules out the idea of the cinema proceeding instantly to VOD on its current time. Either way, expect WB to hold onto that December 18 blot until they have no other choice but to finally postpone Villeneuve’s brand-new sci-fi project to sometime next year.

Villeneuve’s Dune will simply change the first half of Herbert’s source material, with the intention being to tackle the rest in a sequel( should the first movie gross fairly at the box office to warrant it ). Per its synopsis, the movie takes plaza in the distant future and tells the story of Paul Atreides, a “brilliant and gifted” young man whose powerful lineage premises verify of the planet Arrakis: a dangerous wasteland and the only source of Melange or “The Spice”, a treasured element that affords its consumers aspects like prolonged life and, more importantly, heightened mental cleverness necessary for interstellar navigation. From there, the members of House Atreides are forced to defend themselves and protect their newfound empire against their antagonists in a deadly recreation of politics and doctrine. Villeneuve has likened Dune to “Star Wars for adults”, but a better analogy are likely to be classical mythology and melodrama( a la Beowulf) in space.

For newcomers, Dune’s biggest selling quality are likely to be its direct. Actors were already lining up with study alongside Villeneuve after his efforts on Arrival and Blade Runner( not to mention, his acclaimed startling thrillers Hostages and Sicario before them ), so the chance to adapt Herbert’s idolized romance was predominantly the icing on the cake. As a decision, the film boasts a star-studded lineup led by Timothee Chalamet as Paul Atreides, Rebecca Ferguson and Oscar Isaac as Paul’s parents( Lady and Duke Leto Atreides ), Josh Brolin as warrior/ Paul’s mentor Gurney Halleck, Stellan Skarsgard as Baron Vladimir Harkonnen( the head of House Harkonnen and Leto Atreides’ sworn enemy ), and Zendaya as Chani, a member of Arrakis’ native beings the Fremen. The film’s roster of talented persona performers leads even deeper than that, with Jason Momoa, Charlotte Rampling, Javier Bardem, Dave Bautista, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Chang Chen, Sharon Duncan-Brewster, and David Dastmalchian playing key supporting roles.

NEXT: Why Dune’s Reshoots Shouldn’t Have You Worried

Read more: screenrant.com