In particular, I love how the ring of teeth comes to resemble the iris of an eye. Credit: Chia Bella Jamesĭespite the familiar elements of the design - we all know what whales and worms look like - Dune's sandworm still looks completely, awesomely alien. According to production designer Patrice Vermette (Opens in a new tab), the teeth were inspired by whale baleen - think filtration devices instead of terrifying chompers. The result is something Villeneuve describes as "prehistoric": Skin thick enough to survive the harsh elements of the desert, the giant "questing mouth" of Herbert's work, and the long crystalline teeth that the Fremen use to make their crysknives. In an interview with Empire Magazine (Opens in a new tab), he revealed that perfecting the shape and look of Dune's worm took a year. Villeneuve did not take the process of designing the sandworms lightly. With so many different versions already out there, Villeneuve and his team had to work hard to create something different that still felt like it belonged to the world of Dune.ĭenis Villeneuve's version of Arrakis' sandworms succeeds on all levels. Lynch's worms have the key feature of a tripartite mouth, something they share with artist John Schoenherr's iconic Dune illustrations, which Herbert endorsed as "perfect." (Opens in a new tab) Lynch also included the lightning that signals a sandworm's impending breach in his film, something which Villeneuve left out (or is perhaps saving for Dune: Part Two).Ī number of other sandworms have graced the screen, with films like Beetlejuice, Tremors, and even Star Wars getting in on the desert monster action. But I've got to give credit where credit is due: His sandworms are awesome. Lynch's 1984 film was a critical and commercial failure. One such interpretation was that of director David Lynch, who, like Villeneuve, had the monstrous task of translating Dune (and its sandworms) to the screen. It was a round, black hole with edges glistening in the moonlight. It lifted higher, resolved into a giant, questing mouth. What little we get of their appearance is still plenty evocative, but there's a lot of room for interpretation:Ī silver-gray curve breached from the desert. He focuses instead on the worms' impact on the environment: how they sound moving through the sand, how their movement affects the landscape, how the people of Arrakis react and adapt to their approach. In Frank Herbert's novel, the physical description of the beast is brief. There isn't a blueprint to creating the perfect sandworm. He and his team have managed to create worms that are awe-inspiring and just the right amount of scary, with a distinctive look that sets them apart from previous iterations of the creature. Luckily, Dune director Denis Villeneuve's version of Arrakis' sandworms succeeds on all levels. This is a creature straight out of science-fiction legend, one so iconic to the Dune novels that messing it up would spell immediate failure for any adaptation. We don't get the full worm just yet, but we don't need to. A shot of its toothy maw devouring a spice harvester whole. Just over an hour into Dune, something magical happens: We see our first sandworm.Ī flash of its thick hide as it surfaces all-too-briefly.
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