Christopher Nolan Praises ‘Dune: Part Two’ As A “Miraculous” Adaptation

Denis Villeneuve has a fan in fellow director Christopher Nolan, who recently gave him a rave review.

The 2x Oscar-winning praised Dune: Part Two as “a miraculous job of adaptation,” wrapping up Villeneuve’s two-part feature portrayal of Frank Herbert‘s 1965 sci-fi novel.

“Taking the second half and making an incredible conclusion to the story,” said Nolan on a recent DGA panel with Villeneuve. “What a remarkable piece of work.”

Nolan added, “If, to me, Dune was like Star Wars, then Dune 2 is The Empire Strikes Back, which is my favorite Star Wars film. I think it’s just a great expansion of all that was introduced in the first one.

“What I was really struck by is the sense of immersion in that world,” he said. “It’s a film that has so many unique images, so many things you’ve never seen before in this movie, time after time, and I was so struck by the detail of everything.”

After David Lynch adapted Herbert’s Dune for his 1984 space opera, Villeneuve returned to the source material for his adaptation Dune (2021) and this year’s Dune: Part Two. The first film took home six Oscars, with both films earning a combined $1.12 billion globally.

The franchise has spawned the prequel series Dune: Prophecy, which recently debuted, with new episodes airing Sundays at 9pm ET/PT on HBO and streaming on Max.

Villeneuve told Deadline this month that he plans to start filming the film franchise’s third installment, based on Herbert’s ’69 novel Dune Messiah, in late 2025 or 2026.