By Romy Hildebrand
Adapted for film from the acclaimed science-fiction novel by Frank Herbert, Dune tells the story of Paul Atreides, son of a noble family that governs the planet Arrakis, and his epic destiny-driven journey to the most dangerous realm in the universe.
Released last fall, Dune has been celebrated by both critics and audiences for its exciting storytelling and vivid world building– and coming up with the successful feature adaptation was no small feat.
Dune screenwriter Eric Roth ‘66 spoke with a UCSB audience about his creative process for the film during a recent installment of the Carsey-Wolf Center’s Script to Screen series.
Dune screenwriter and UCSB alumnus Eric Roth spoke with a student audience about his creative process for the film at a recent installment of the Carsey-Wolf Center’s Script to Screen series.
Roth, who graduated in 1966, has been in the industry for nearly 60 years, writing for other acclaimed adaptations such as Forrest Gump and A Star is Born.
But, in conversation with Pollock Theater Director Matt Ryan, Roth said he found Dune to be an unexpected new experience, particularly because of the book’s complexity.
“This was rare for me, and at first I thought it was just like any other adaptation. I was not really daunted by it until I got into the book again.”
Roth found that his customary process was challenged by the demanding novel. “When I adapt something, I underline what I think would be something worth putting in a script. And [with Dune] I found that I had underlined almost the whole book– so that didn’t help much.”
Dune tells the story of Paul Atreides, son of a noble family that governs the planet Arrakis, and his action-packed journey to the most dangerous realm in the universe.
A large part of Roth’s work involved paring down the intricacies of the novel’s story. In the process of adapting an 800-page book into a two-and-a-half hour film, many difficult choices need to be made, he explained. “You have this giant book that has all these delicious details and outlooks and imagination– and some things have to go.”
As he chose what to omit, it was important to Roth to maintain the integrity of the story. “Part of the task in anything I adapt is to do no harm. It’s easy to think you’re better than what’s there, and that just never happens,” he said.
Roth noted that his focus as a screenwriter was to create an adaptation that would appeal to more than just established Dune fans. “We have a whole new audience, a younger audience,” he said. “And there are also those who read the book and forgot about it. And then, of course, you don’t want to disappoint those to whom the book means so much.”
He wanted to share a relatable story, a true experience, for moviegoers.
“Personally, I wanted to make sure I still felt vital to young people– that I could write things that young people could relate to,” Roth said.
Timothée Chalamet plays Dune’s protagonist Paul Atreides in the 2021 film adaptation.
“Obviously you want people to like what you do – you want people to have fun with it, to laugh, to cry, all those clichés– that’s what it’s all about. That’s why you do it.”
Roth reached these goals, according to critics who say past attempts at Dune adaptations pale in comparison to the success of the latest film.
“It’s just about choices, like everything else in life. In this movie I think we made mostly the right choices,” Roth said.
“And it’s only going to get better,” he said, hinting about the sequel, which is set for release in 2023.
Romy Hildebrand is a fourth-year Communication major and Professional Writing minor at UC Santa Barbara. She is a Web and Social Media intern with the Division of Humanities and Fine Arts.