Thread by @evolvingcalm

There have been more attempts at making a Dune film than most people are aware of;

even those who know about Jodorowsky.

It’s quite an interesting little piece of history:

The original rights to option a Dune film were bought by APJAC around 1971/1972, which was the company of Arthur P. Jacobs (producer of Planet of the Apes) who ‘had the bad taste to die’ before ever consulting with Herbert.

After the Jacobs estate is sorted, in 1974 the APJAC corporation sold the film option to a French group - who would hire Alejandro Jodorowsky to direct.

The extravagant saga of this attempt and its enormous influence (without which the likes of Alien and Star Wars wouldn’t exist as they do) is famously detailed in the 2013 documentary ‘Jodorowsky’s Dune’.

For example:

The soundtrack was to be by Pink Floyd.

Salvador Dali was to be paid $100,000 to film for 1 hour only as the Emperor.

Herbert at one point joked with the director; “I know what your problem is, Alejandro. There is no way to horsewhip the pope in this story.”

After Jodorowsky’s Dune attempt went up in spectacular flames, film producer Dino De Laurentiis bought the option to film. Ridley Scott is soon brought on as the director.

Frank Herbert himself during this period writes a script - a task he struggles with.

Here’s Frank Herbert’s idea of what the opening scene of the Dune film would look like:

(You can listen to the audio of this yourself here from an early 80’s tape interview: file 3 at ~6.00 min
archive.org/details/cfls_0…

Other scripts are done and there’s some contention around Herbert’s displeasure with these - for example from the introduction of an incest subplot between Paul and Jessica - originating either from Ridley Scott or writer Rudolph Wurlitzer.

Ridley Scott then drops out of Dune after the unexpected death of his older brother and goes on to do Blade Runner.

Not long afterwards David Lynch is brought into the picture.

He completes a script and production begins.

There are budget troubles, and Lynch didn’t get final cut so disavows the result, but after so many false starts a Dune film debuts in December 1984

The movie is a success but many find it impenetrable.

There’s a much worse TV extended edition that gets released later on.

Also:

https://twitter.com/evolvingcalm/status/1451089843090456578?s=20

As written in the introduction to Eye (and expounded in many other places) Frank Herbert was quite happy with the result of 1984 film, and Lynch's translation of his book into visual metaphor, although he was fervently displeased with the rainstorm ending. theaugustry.com/frank-herbert-…

(It seemed to be a recurrent case with his works that one of the first points of conversation that would come up in prospective movie talks was about how they wanted to change his ending.)

Frank Herbert dies in 1986.

Then there’s the 2000 Dune miniseries and its sequel which covers the other two books of the initial Dune trilogy.

Fast forward to today and we now have another attempt at Dune (although only half of it).

It remains to be seen what may come.

A few additional sources:

Interview from Starlog 66 (Jan 1983):

Unknown Worlds of Science Fiction (May 1975) Sandworms and Saviors:

God Emperor of Dune Frank Herbert by John Bowles, Starburst 37 (09/1981):

Futuristic (and Present) Meditations by Hank Stine from fanzine Bewilderbeast 10 from 1986.

web.archive.org/web/2011051716…

theaugustry.com/frank-herbert-…

And maybe check out my other thread:

https://twitter.com/evolvingcalm/status/1449192152068608002?s=20