Josh Brolin says he’ll "quit acting" if "master filmmaker" Denis Villeneuve doesn’t receive an Oscar nomination for Dune 2

Dune 2
(Image credit: Warner Bros.)

Josh Brolin says he'll retire if Denis Villeneuve doesn't get a Best Director nomination at the Oscars.

“If he doesn’t get nominated this year, I’ll quit acting," Brolin told Variety. "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."

Brolin plays Gurney Halleck, a Warmaster for the House of Atreides who trains Timothee Chalemet's Paul, in Villenueve's Dune franchise. The first film earned 10 Academy Award nominations and won the following six: Best Cinematography, Best Visual Effects, Best Original Score, Best Production Design, and Best Sound. It was also nominated for Best Picture. Villeneuve, however, did not receive a nomination for Best Director.

It's likely that Dune 2 will be up for several Oscars again, but whether Villeneuve is nominated remains to be seen. The filmmaker is hard at work on the third Dune installment, which he says will be "something completely different. "The story takes place like 12 years after where we left the characters at the end of Part Two," he told Deadline. "Their journey, their story is different this time, and that’s why I always say that while it’s the same world it’s a new film with new circumstances."

While we wait for Dune 3, Dune: Prophecy, a prequel series focusing on the formation of the Bene Gesserit, is now streaming on Max. For more, check out our Dune: Prophecy review, or check out our guides to the best Max shows and the best Max movies to stream right now.

Lauren Milici
Senior Writer, Tv & Film

Lauren Milici is a Senior Entertainment Writer for GamesRadar+ currently based in the Midwest. She previously reported on breaking news for The Independent's Indy100 and created TV and film listicles for Ranker. Her work has been published in Fandom, Nerdist, Paste Magazine, Vulture, PopSugar, Fangoria, and more.

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