After suffering through several delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic and a whirlpool of controversy surrounding WB’s decision to simultaneously release the film on HBO Max, Denis Villeneuve‘s Dune finally came out last month to acclaim from critics and fans alike, cementing the director’s place as one of the best sci-fi filmmakers of our time.
By now, it’s become clear to everyone that Villeneuve is a master of his craft. From Arrival‘s surreal narrative and worldbuilding to Blade Runner 2049‘s hauntingly aesthetic universe, the director aims for a unique lens to depict the somber nature of humanity’s future.
This obviously draws a jarring contrast to other prominent sci-fi franchises like Star Wars or Star Trek, but as the revered filmmaker recently told The Hollywood Reporter, not only are there surprising parallels between Frank Herbert’s classic novel Dune and George Lucas’s space opera, but Denis himself wouldn’t be working in the industry today if it wasn’t for his love of the galaxy far, far away.
“George Lucas never hid the fact that he took a lot from Dune, and you can see Star Wars as another adaptation if you want to,” He noted, though maintaining: “I’m probably a filmmaker because of Star Wars, and one of my favorite movies of all time is The Empire Strikes Back.”
The director believes that since Lucas borrowed ideas from Dune “so liberally,” an adaptation that remained completely true to Herbert’s book would inevitably be considered a Star Wars rip-off.
Denis Villeneuve is currently busy working on the second part of Dune, though given his passion for the other sci-fi universe, we can’t help but wonder what a Star Wars film directed by his unique vision would look like.