Josh Brolin vows to ‘quit acting’ if Dune director Denis Villeneuve is not nominated for Oscar

Josh Brolin has expressed strong support for director Denis Villeneuve’s potential nomination for Best Director at the upcoming Academy Awards for Dune: Part Two.

In a recent interview with Variety, Brolin stated, “If he doesn’t get nominated this year, I’ll quit acting.”

Brolin, who plays Gurney Halleck in the Dune series, praised Villeneuve’s work on the sequel, describing it as a better film than Dune Part One.

He added “It was a better movie than the first one. When I watched it, it felt like my brain was broken open. 

“It’s masterful, and Denis is one of our master filmmakers. If the Academy Awards have any meaning whatsoever, they’ll recognize him.”

The first instalment of Dune, released in 2021, received ten Academy Award nominations and secured six wins, including Best Cinematography, Best Visual Effects, and Best Original Score.

Notably, Villeneuve was absent from the Best Director category, a snub that drew criticism from many, including Brolin. 

At the time, Brolin expressed his disbelief, calling the omission “the most asinine, bizarre… snub that I just thought was an impossibility.”

While it remains to be seen if the Dune sequel will earn an Oscar nomination, Denis Villeneuve has already revealed plans for a third instalment, tentatively titled Dune: Part Three. 

The film will adapt Frank Herbert’s second novel, Dune Messiah, exploring the intricacies of Paul Atreides’ rule and the political schemes that shaped his leadership.

Villeneuve has shared that this third film is intended to wrap up his adaptation of Herbert’s work.

He previously told EW, “I always envisioned three movies. It’s not that I want to do a franchise, but this is Dune, and Dune is a huge story.”

“In order to honor it, I think you would need at least three movies. That would be the dream. To follow Paul Atreides and his full arc would be nice.”

Expanding the Dune universe, HBO’s latest prequel series is Dune: Prophecy.

Set approximately 10,000 years before the events of the original films, the series will explore the origins of the Bene Gesserit sisterhood.

Based on “Sisterhood of Dune” by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson, the narrative follows two sisters, Valya and Tula Harkonnen, as they navigate the formation of this influential order.