Lord of the Rings inspired Dune director Denis Villeneuve to stay true to his movie’s source material

“If it can bring more people to read the book, it would be great”

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Dune director Denis Villeneuve has revealed that he took inspiration from Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy when it came to staying faithful to his own films' source material.

“I tried my best to stay close to the spirit and to stay close aesthetically to something I had in mind when I read the book,” Villeneuve said in a new interview withVanity Fair. “I remember when I saw Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings, where I felt so much respect for the book, so much love for the book. Of course it’s my adaptation, it’s my take on it, but people will feel an energy, a spirit that is close to what Frank Herbert had done. So if it can bring more people to read the book, it would be great. At the end of the day, that’s the goal.”

2021’s Dune and 2024’s Dune: Part Two formed a two-part adaptation of Frank Herbert’s 1965 novel. There are some keydifferences between the book and the movies, but this is to be expected with any adaptation – especially one of a hefty book like Dune.

Later in the same interview, Villeneuve confirmed that he’s currently writing Dune Messiah, based on Herbert’s second book. “If I do a third one, which is in the writing process, it’s not like a trilogy. It’s strange to say that, but if I go back there, it’s to do something that feels different and has its own identity,” he said.

Dune Messiah doesn’t have a release date yet. While we wait for more updates, check out our guide to the other biggestupcoming movieson the way.

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I’m an Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, covering everything film and TV-related across the Total Film and SFX sections. I help bring you all the latest news and also the occasional feature too. I’ve previously written for publications like HuffPost and i-D after getting my NCTJ Diploma in Multimedia Journalism.

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