Now thatDunePart 1has officially been released, it’s apparently time for director Denis Villeneuve to start thinking about what projects he wants to take on once both episodes of the massive science fiction film are released. However, it turns out he won’t be turning his attention to a project all that different fromDune,as he next wants to work on another classic sci-fi story inRendezvous with Rama.
Villeneuve took on a reboot of a very popular science fiction movie when he decided to redoDune, and that was met with acclaim. While it doesn’t appear that there’s anything officially in the works, the director wants to try a slightly different part ofthe massive sci-fi genre.
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The Hollywood Reporter has learned that Villeneuve is set to directRendezvous with Ramasometime afterDune Part Twois in the can. Morgan Freeman has also signed onto the project as a producer. As of yet, there does not appear to be a cast set for the film, and there certainly isn’t any kind of planned release date.
Rendezvous with Ramacertainly has adifferent setting thanDune, as this one is set in present times and tells the tale of humanity’s first contact with an alien civilization. The Arthur C. Clarke book that the film will be based on involves explorers who intercept and explore an alien spaceship. Alcon Entertainment will finance the project, with co-CEOs Broderick Johnson and Andrew Kosove on board as producers.
While it’s quite a bit different fromwhat the director has done withDune, he’s not a complete stranger to this kind of science fiction story. Villeneuve treaded similar “alien first contact” ground when he helmedArrival. It seems likely that he’ll be able to turnRendezvous with Ramainto the same kind of grand-scale vision of sci-fi that he’s done with his past films.Rendezvous with Ramahas quite a bit in common withArrival, as it turns out as both stories involve the protagonists trying to unravel the mysteries of a visiting race.
The book, penned by Clarke in 1973, won several awards and was originally intended as a standalone story. However, the Hugo and Nebula award-winner ended up getting several sequels to continue the story of the crew that found the Rama, as well as the race of aliens that sent the ship towards earth in the first place. At the moment, it’s a matter of wait and see as to when production onRendevous with Ramawill begin.
