Most People Don’t Know the Star of Original ‘Dune’ Is From Yakima
Dune has been everything moviegoers hoped it would be.
Frank Herbert's masterful sci-fi epic about the dangers of idealizing heroes has finally been rewarded with a film that honors its scope, themes, and beauty. Before Star Wars captivated movie audiences everywhere, Dune made generations of readers look inward.
Dune: Part One has audiences and critics raving about its cast, cinematography, sound design, and aesthetic. It is truly a lovely picture and you can see the care director Denis Villeneuve has for the source material. So much care, in fact, that he said he wouldn't direct the movie if he couldn't do it in two parts. With Dune: Part Two officially being greenlit, it seems the Dune saga will finally get the glory it deserves.
Most people wish David Lynch's disastrous 1984 Dune never existed, but Washingtonians will never forget it.
<p> </p><p>When<em> Dune </em>was released in 1984, it was the talk of the town for all of the wrong reasons. <a href="https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/dune-1984">Roger Ebert</a> called it the 'worst movie of the year,' awarding it one star.</p>
Before 2021's Dune brought people back to the theater, another acclaimed director tried his hand at the grandfather of sci-fi epics. David Lynch, director of Eraserhead and Blue Velvet, would go on to create Twin Peaks in 1990. But in 1981, Lynch was hand-picked to direct the first adaption of Frank Herbert's incomparable Dune. But who would play Paul Atreides?
Kyle MacLachlan was chosen to portray the Chosen One.
Unlike the 2021 adaptation, Lynch's Dune told the entire story of Herbert's book. The problem with this is how large the book is and how much of it is inner dialogue. Where Villeneuve opted for atmospheric shots and score, Lynch went the route of voiceover. It clogs up the story and comes off as goofy. Needless to say, you hear a lot of Kyle MacLachlan. MacLachlan would work again with Lynch in Blue Velvet and most notably, Twin Peaks.
MacLachlan was born and raised in Yakima.
Before moving to Hollywood, Kyle MacLachlan was born in Yakima, where he lived until graduating from Eisenhower High School in 1978. He would go on to attend and graduate cum laude from the University of Washington with a Bachelor of Fine Arts.
Dune was nearly a career-ender but MacLachlan bounced back.
Dune was MacLachlan's first film role and when it was released in 1984, it was the talk of the town for all of the wrong reasons. Roger Ebert called it the 'worst movie of the year,' awarding it one star. The movie also bombed terribly at the box office where it made less than $31 million against its $40 million budget. Who could forget a sweaty and mostly naked Sting cast for some reason as Feyd-Rautha?
MacLachlan struggled to find work with the stink of a box office bomb on him. He regrouped with David Lynch for Blue Velvet in 1986, regaining the favor of Hollywood for his performance. MacLachlan would win a Golden Globe for his portrayal of Dale Cooper in Twin Peaks. Since then, he's had success in Desperate Housewives, Sex and the City, Pixar's Inside Out, and a return to Twin Peaks in 2017.
He lives in Los Angeles and New York but owns Pursued by Bear, a winery out of Walla Walla.
Dune: Part Two, once again starring Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya, won't be out for another three years but you can catch a second viewing of Part One on HBO Max.