‘Blade Runner 2049’ Helmer Denis Villeneuve Eyed to Direct ‘Dune’ Reboot (EXCLUSIVE)

“Blade Runner: 2049” director Denis Villeneuve looks ready to jump into another classic fixture from the sci-fi world.

Sources tell Variety that Villeneuve is in early talks to direct Legendary’s “Dune” reboot for the company. Legendary has not commented on the news.

Prior to the Thanksgiving holiday, Legendary closed a deal with the Frank Herbert estate for the rights his iconic novel, granting the production entity not only rights to film but also TV-based projects on the sci-fi property.

The projects would be produced by Thomas Tull, Mary Parent, and Cale Boyter, with Brian Herbert, Byron Merritt, and Kim Herbert serving as executive producers.

Set in the distant future, “Dune” tells the story of Paul Atreides, whose family accepts control of the desert planet Arrakis. As the only producer of a highly valuable resource, control of Arrakis is highly contested among competing noble families. After Paul and his family are betrayed, the story explores themes of politics, religion, and man’s relationship to nature as Paul leads a rebellion to restore his family’s control of Arrakis.

The novel was also adapted as the 1984 film directed by David Lynch. The film starred Kyle MacLachlan and at the time was thought of as a flop, getting poor reviews and grossing just $30.9 million, but more recently has attained cult status.

It’s unknown if Villeneuve would be involved in any TV-related projects, just that he would direct the first film to come out of this new universe.

The director has already delivered three original projects that have over-performed at the box office while also being critically applauded as award season contenders. His latest, “Arrival,” opened with $23 million at the box office and has already earned $94 million worldwide on a $45 million budget.

Following those successes, he was handpicked by Ridley Scott to help reboot the “Blade Runner” franchise with “Blade Runner: 2049,” which bows next October and stars Ryan Gosling and Harrison Ford, who reprises his role as Detective Rick Deckard.

He is repped by CAA.

When “Blade Runner 2049” filmmaker Denis Villeneuve stepped on stage in Montreal’s Place des Arts’ Théâtre Maisonneuve for the Rendez-Vous du Cinema Quebecois this week, he expected a small crowd for an “intimate cinema lesson.” What he ended up stepping into was a packed house that holds more than 1,400 seats. Needless to say, Villeneuve is a bit of a hero in Quebec.

Maybe it was his nerves, or perhaps he was just feeling honest and forthcoming, but in front of that huge crowd, Villeneuve dropped a quick update on his forthcoming “Dune” adaptation. “Dune will probably take two years to make,” the director said. “The goal is to make two films, maybe more.” Do we have potential series or franchise on our hands? This ambitious film just got a little more complex.

For those that have read Frank Herbert’s classic sci-fi novel, this news might a relief. Seeing as the book is fairly lengthy and incredibly dense, the idea of trying to capture the story in one film seems impossible (see David Lynch‘s version which never quite worked). Splitting up the movie into at least two parts would be the perfect way to adapt “Dune.” There’s a time jump in the middle of the book which makes the split quite easy to pull off. This would allow for Villeneuve to cut fewer scenes and give us the full two-part film, or more, he envisions.

Villeneuve’s comments also might bring to mind the director’s last film, “Blade Runner 2049.” Back in December, Villeneuve had revealed he had toyed, at least in the editing room, with the idea of releasing the sci-fi film in two separate parts (his assembly cut was 4 hours). The editor of the film described that cut as “quite strong,” but of course, even the nearly 3-hour running time of the theatrical releases was a type of kiss of death.

Dense and sprawling, “Dune” frankly needs more than one film to be properly told. It, of course, may all come down to its box office success or failure, but it’s fascinating to hear that Villeneuve has his eyes on something more expansive and enterprising than we all initially imagined.