Dune: Everything you need to know

From Digital Spy

It's been 35 years since David Lynch released his vision of Frank Herbert's Dune and we're finally getting another take on the classic sci-fi novel.

Denis Villeneuve is in the director's chair this time around, with Legendary confirming his appointment in February 2017. He's certainly got the pedigree for it, having built up an impressive body of work so far with the likes of Arrival, Sicario and Blade Runner 2049.

Villeneuve has co-written the latest draft of the script with Eric Roth and Jon Spaihts and with filming set to start in spring, casting news has been coming thick and fast since the start of 2019.

So what do we know about the latest version of Dune so far?

Dune release date: When can we expect it?

For a while, it looked like Fantastic Beasts 3 was going to be Warner Bros's big November 2020 release, but it's now been confirmed that Dune will be released on November 20, 2020.

"Finally, your patience is being rewarded…," tweeted author Frank Herbert's son Brian, who will be an executive producer on the movie.

That doesn't rule out any potential delays with production of course, but with filming set to start in Budapest and Jordan in the coming months, everything should be on track for that release date.

Dune cast: Everyone's in it

It's fair to say that Legendary Pictures has gone all-out with the casting on this latest version of Dune as it stars pretty much all your favourites.

The first couple of names linked to the movie were Timothée Chalamet in the lead role of Paul Atreides, with Mission: Impossible's Rebecca Ferguson as his mother Lady Jessica Atreides.

Then it felt like new casting announcements came every day during January and February 2019, featuring prominent names from the likes of Marvel, DC and Star Wars, so we'll round them all up for you below and who they're set to be playing:

• Stellan Skarsgård – Baron Vladimir Harkonnen, head of House Harkonnen

• Dave Bautista – Glossu Rabban, nephew of the Baron

• Charlotte Rampling – Reverend Mother Mohiam, the emperor's truthsayer

• Oscar Isaac – Duke Leto Atreides, head of House Atreides and Paul's father

• Zendaya – Chani, Fremen warrior and Paul's love interest

• Javier Bardem – Stilgar, Fremen leader

• Josh Brolin – Gurney Halleck, loyal Altreides warrior

• Jason Momoa – Duncan Idaho, swordmaster for House Atreides

• David Dastmalchian – Piter De Vries, a twisted Mentat

We'll keep you up-to-date on all the latest casting news as there are sure to be plenty more names added before filming starts.

Dune plot: How much of the book will be covered?

Just in case you've stumbled on this with no idea what Dune is about and all the different Houses, here's a quick summary of the plot.

Set in the distant future where various houses control different areas, the book follows Paul Atriedes, whose family runs the planet Arrakis. It might be desolate, but it does contain "the spice", a drug that extends life and mental abilities.

This means that Arrakis is hotly contested by other noble families and after Paul's family is betrayed by the former stewards of Arrakis, House Harkonnen, Paul is set on a path of rebellion to help his family regain control.

Unlike Lynch's adaptation, which covered the entire book in one go, Villeneuve said in March 2018 that "the goal is to make two films, maybe more".

This was confirmed when Brian Herbert tweeted that the screenplay he received in July 2018 covered "approximately half of the novel", adding that he was "very excited and pleased about this".

We assume that's still the case. If the first movie is a hit, then not only would we get a sequel, but there's also the chance for future movies as the Dune book series includes several sequels and prequels.

And if you want more of an idea for Villeneuve's take on the classic novel, he spoke about its connection to Star Wars.

"Most of the main ideas of Star Wars are coming from Dune so it's going to be a challenge to [tackle] this," he outlined. "The ambition is to do the Star Wars movie I never saw. In a way, it's Star Wars for adults. We'll see."

Dune trailer: When will it land?

Nothing as of yet as the movie hasn't started filming, but there's an outside chance that we could get some behind-the-scenes footage at this year's Comic-Con.

Otherwise you're looking at late 2019 at the earliest for a proper trailer.

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