'Dune' Reboot's First Look Reveals 2020 Release Date

New art for the upcoming Dune adaptation surfaced on Tuesday, giving fans their first glimpse of [...]

By Michael Hein

New art for the upcoming Dune adaptation surfaced on Tuesday, giving fans their first glimpse of the reimagined sci-fi classic. Acclaimed director Denis Villeneuve is adapting Frank Herbert's 1965 novel for a new generation, but so far fans have seen very little from the production. That changed Tuesday night.

A new title screen for Dune was unveiled on at a film convention in France, according to a report by Screen Rant. It was not released widely by Warner Bros. or Legendary Films, although it was shared on social media by attendees.

The display could serve as a poster, a teaser or a general logo for the upcoming movie. It had the title set against a far-away shot of a sand dune, with one tall ridge running through it. Across the bottom was the date Dec. 23 spelled out in French. In the U.S., the movie is slated for release on Dec. 18.

Dune has a passionate, die-hard fan base, so naturally users were dissecting this shot on forums and social media overnight. They noted that the unique minimalist font gives us our first peek at the aesthetic tone of Villenueve's Dune, while the background shows what the color palette of the desert planet Arrakis will be.

On the other hand, there is no guarantee that this art is a final product for the movie, especially because it has not been widely released by the studios. In fact, last May Warner Bros. displayed a completely different art style at Licensing Expo.

Some fans are hoping that we will see what direction the movie is going in soon — possibly in this year's Super Bowl commercials. Either way, with less than a year before its release, Dune will have to start promotion soon.

The movie stars Timothee Chalamet as Paul Atreides, Rebecca Furgeson as Lady Jessica and Jason Momoa as Duncan Idaho. The all-star cast also includes Dave Bautista as "Beast" Rabban, Oscar Isaac as Duke Leto Atreidies and Josh Brolin as Gurney Halleck. Stellan Karsgard plays the main villain, Baron Vladimir Harkonnen.

Dune is one of the most famous mixtures of the sci-fi and fantasy genres, and has been cited as an influence on many other big franchises in fiction. It was adapted to film once before in 1984, when it got a distinctive treatment from filmmaker David Lynch. This time around, fans are hoping for something that more closely resembles the original book.

Villenueve may be the perfect filmmaker to deliver that. He is known for other sci-fi hits like Arrival, and has proven himself on other adaptations such as Blade Runner 2049. After several big successes, Dune may be the real test of Villenueve's popularity.

Dune is slated for theatrical release on Dec. 18 2020 in the U.S.

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