Original Dune Author's Son Weighs in on Part Two

The first reviews for Dune: Part Two emerged last week and boasted that the follow-up film was even more impressive than Denis Villeneuve's first Dune, but for Brian Herbert, son of Dune author Frank Herbert, he understandably approaches the material through a different lens, though took to Twitter to confirm that the two-part adventure is "the best film interpretation" of the material to date. Not only was the sci-fi epic crafted by his father, but Brian Herbert took over writing duties on the saga in the late '90s, having developed more than a dozen entries into the series with Kevin J. Anderson.

"I saw Dune: Part Two at a private studio screening, and it is gratifying to see my father's story told with such great care," Herbert shared on Twitter. "When the new movie is combined with Dune: Part One it is by far the best film interpretation of Frank Herbert's classic novel DUNE that has ever been done."

I saw Dune: Part Two at a private studio screening, and it is gratifying to see my father's story told with such great care. When the new movie is combined with Dune: Part One it is by far the best film interpretation of Frank Herbert’s classic novel DUNE that has ever been done pic.twitter.com/YlzbKPAeK8

— Brian Herbert (@DuneAuthor) February 24, 2024

One of the first major attempts to bring Herbert's story to life came in the '70s from The Holy Mountain director Alejandro Jodorowsky, with the filmmaker's hypnotic and surreal storytelling sensibilities aiming to lean heavily into the psychedelic elements of Herbert's epic. Despite having figures like Orson Wells, Salvador Dalí, and Mick Jagger attached, Jodorowsky failed to find the funding for the project and the adaptation was scrapped. In preparation for the project, Jodorowsky created a massive tome filled with concept art and storyboards, the existence of which would help inspire studios for sci-fi projects like Star Wars and Flash Gordon.

In 1984, David Lynch delivered an official adaptation of Dune, but between the dense subject matter and overall ambitious nature of the story, as well as Lynch's filmmaking sensibilities, condensing the concept into one feature-length film made for a largely disappointing experience that Lynch has distanced himself from. In 2000, the miniseries Frank Herbert's Dune debuted on the SciFi channel, and while it was more authentic to the source material, it failed to make a major impact on general audiences.

Dune: Part Two will explore the mythic journey of Paul Atreides as he unites with Chani and the Fremen while on a warpath of revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family. Facing a choice between the love of his life and the fate of the known universe, he endeavors to prevent a terrible future only he can foresee. 

The big-screen epic Dune: Part Two includes Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, Dave Bautista, Christopher Walken, Stephen McKinley Henderson, and Léa Seydoux, with Stellan Skarsgård, Charlotte Rampling, and Javier Bardem. Denis Villeneuve directed from a screenplay he co-wrote with Jon Spaihts based on Frank Herbert's iconic novel. 

Dune: Part Two hits theaters on March 1st.

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