It seems everyone in Hollywood is backing Denis Villeneuve after his Oscars snub, including Spider-Verse's Chris Miller: "There were many films that had great directing this year but what Denis did was masterful"
The Dune 2 director missed out on Best Director yet again
The fallout from the 2025 Oscars nominations continues, as Spider-Verse producer Chris Miller reveals his displeasure with Dune 2 director Denis Villeneuve being snubbed from the Best Director picks yet again.
"There were many films that had great directing this year but what Denis did — in all aspects of the craft — was masterful," Miller wrote on Twitter.
Despite Dune 2 picking up a nomination for Best Picture, Vinnenueve's work as director wasn't recognized by the Academy. Instead, Jacques Audiard (Emilia Perez), Sean Baker (Anora), Brady Corbet (The Brutalist), Coralie Fargeat (The Substance), and James Mangold (A Complete Unknown) were those chosen for the prestigious category.
Villeneuve has previously been nominated for helming Arrival back in 2017 but, since then, the pair of Dune films – blockbusters which launched to the rare combination of critical and commercial acclaim, with a towering box office to match – have garnered only a pair of Best Picture nominations, and a Best Adapted Screenplay nomination for the first Dune (where it lost out to Coda).
The lack of Best Director recognition has also led to Josh Brolin, who starred in both Dune movies, doubling down on his intention to 'retire' from acting if Villeneuve was snubbed again.
"Apparently, I am going to quit acting because Denis Villeneuve didn’t get nominated. This is just how this thing works. It makes no sense to me," Brolin said on Instagram "That’s okay. [Editor] Joe Walker and Denis, you deserve it. It’s an amazing film. It was even better than the first one. The people who have gotten accolades surely deserve it. Happy to be a part of it. Congrats everyone."
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I'm the Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, focusing on news, features, and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV. On-site, you'll find me marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films, Star Wars and, of course, anime. Outside of GR, I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG, Warzone, and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager. My work has also been featured in OPM, FourFourTwo, and Game Revolution.