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Not long after the 1965 publishing of Frank Herbert’s sprawling, best-selling science fiction novel,Dune, early attempts were made at adapting the book into a film.A movie option was originally purchasedin 1971 by producer Arthur P. Jacobs — which went into the early stages of development withLawrence of Arabiadirector David Lean attached to direct.
Jacobs, however, tragically passed away in 1973, reverting the rights temporarily until they were purchased by a French film group that tasked directorAlejandro Jodorowsky with developingDunein 1974. Jodorowsky won fame (and infamy) for his ‘Acid Western’ films likeEl Topo, and in developing his version ofDune, he veered heavily away from Herbert’s novels.
By then, Herbert had already written his first of 5Dunesequels,Dune: Messiah, but Jodorowsky was on his own path, taking plenty of artistic license in development, covered extensively in theengaging documentaryJodorowsky’s Dune. Much ink has been spilled on Jodorowsky’s unrealized version, as well as the oft-derided David Lynch version of the film that eventually made it to screens in 1984. What is seldom discussed, however, was the brief period when directorRidley Scott, riding high betweenAlienandBlade Runner, was set to directDune.
How Ridley Scott’s Dune Could Have Advanced Alejandro Jodorowsky’s Prep Work
While the ‘what ifs’ surrounding Jodorowsky’savante gardeapproach toDuneand David Lynch’s studio-sabotaged box office bomb in 1984 have gotten plenty of analysis from critics and cinephiles alike —a Ridley Scott version may have had the most potential. That’s because Scott was in the prime of his science fiction filmmaking after shocking audiences with thedeep space horror known asAlienin 1979.
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Only three years earlier, in 1976, legendary producer Dino De Laurentiis had purchased the rights toDunefrom Jodorowsky’s backers after the Mexican director’s failed attempt to bring Herbert’s story to screens. In the Spring of ‘79,Ridley Scott’sAlienpushed all the boundaries of science fictionby adapting H.R. Giger’s nightmarish artwork into a successful space horror. De Laurentiis set his sights on Scott as a potentialDunedirector — understanding the British director’s mastery of the genre.
Scott Used H.R. Giger’s Artwork for His Version of Dune
One thing Scott’s version retained from Jodorowsky’sDunedevelopment was the horrific art of Swiss airbrush master H.R. Giger, but Jodorowsky cared much more about making art than entertaining audiences — precisely the skill that Scott had in spades. Scott went into development onDunein late 1979, facing the ever-present issue of developingFrank Herbert’s dense novelsinto a succinct two-hour feature (an issue that remained a challenge for director Denis Villeneuve 40 years later).
A bigger issue, yet, for Ridley Scott was some personal turmoil he faced during this late-’70s period of development — as well as his greater desire to adapt another science fiction property — Philip K. Dick’s 1968 novelDo Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, which eventually becameBlade Runner.
Elements of Scott’s Dune Development Presaged Denis Villeneuve’s Later Adaptation
Over the years,Ridley Scott has cited several reasons for his abandonment ofDune, but in late 1979, Scott began development on the project, hiring novelist and screenwriter Rudy Wurlitzer to pen the script. Wurlitzer had already been a scribe for two notable films,Two Lane BlacktopandPat Garrett and Billy the Kid. Both films underperformed, but Wurlitzer still managed a first draft ofDune,which Ridley Scott felt wasa “decent distillation” of Frank Herbert’s novels.
Herbert himself had attempted a script for De Laurentiis in 1978, which would have run over three hours had it made it to screens. Scott had intended to split the first book into two movies, much like Denis Villeneuve has done with his current (and very successful) film incarnations ofDune. The problem was that the development process was moving slowly, and Scott knew that his boss, De Laurentiis, preferred his films to be produced on time and under budget.
A Tragic Loss Led to Scott’s Self-Dismissal from Dune
Then came a shocking personal tragedy.Scott’s oldest brother, Frank, lost a short battle with cancer that had shaken brother Ridley to his core during this third attempt at the film development ofDune. Speaking about the tragedy in the documentaryRidley Scott: The Making of His Movies, Scott remarked, “I didn’t have the heart to attack [Dune] because my brother Frank unexpectedly died of cancer while I was prepping the De Laurentiis picture. Frankly, that freaked me out. So, I went to Dino and told him theDunescript was his.”
While this may have been Scott’s reasoning at the time, he would later cite factors beyond the family tragedy. Dino De Laurentiis was well known in Hollywood for his frugality as a producer. While De Laurentiis was legendary for his fund-raising ability for risky film endeavors, he also didn’t like going over budget, a fact that became laughable when, years later,David Lynch’sDunebecame a spendthrift endeavorthat didn’t even manage to turn a profit. Still, at the time of Ridley Scott’s attachment toDune, it was clear the film would require an enormous budget to live up to Herbert’s novel.
Ultimately, Scott May Have Made the Right Decision
Indeed, De Laurentiis would have been better served, financially speaking, to developDunewith Scott rather than arthouse filmmaker David Lynch. But another major factor came into play later for Ridley Scott — as De Laurentiis’ infamous penny-pinching led him to demandthe film be shot in Mexico City.That was a bridge too far for Scott, who was still reeling from the loss of his brother. Speaking about De Laurentiis' wishes, Scott recalled forIndie Wire, “[De Laurentiis] said, ‘Mexico.’ I said, ‘Really?’ So he sent me to Mexico City. And with the greatest respect to Mexico City, in those days [it was] pretty pongy. I didn’t love it.”
For Scott,that was the straw that broke the camel’s back, as he was already tantalized by the much more insular script forBlade Runner— and wary of De Laurentiis' cost-cutting approach to picture-making. Still, Scott’s interest inDunewas earnest, with Scott remarking that “I was attracted toDunebecause it was beyond what I had done onAlien, which was a hardcore horror film.Dunewould be a step, very strongly, in the direction ofStar Wars.” Regardless of that potential, Scott clearly made the prudent decision (for his own career prospects), whenBlade Runnereventually became the pre-eminent science fiction film of the 1980s and vaulted him into the upper-echelon of action directors.
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Dunemay have become the most over-analyzed film adaptation of the 20th Century — after years and years and varying degrees of development of the novels under generational directors like Lean, Jodorowsky, Scott, and Lynch. Still, beforeCGI development had come to full fruitionin the ’90s, it is hard not to postulate thatRidley Scott could have given Herbert’s novels their greatest outcomein the early ’80s — given the landmark science fiction films he was making at the time.Dune(1984) is streaming onNetflix, whileDune(2021) is streaming onMax.
