Ridley Scott opens up about why stepped away from directing the first adaptation of Dune that was later helmed by David Lynch instead. Frank Herbert's sci-fi novel of the same name first hit shelves in 1965 to rave reviews and has been a bestseller in the 40-plus years since its debut. The story revolves around nobleman Paul Atreides as he and his royal family are charged with taking control of the desert planet of Arrakis, home to the universe's most valuable resource known as the Spice, and subsequently being drawn into a war between multiple factions for the planet, including former overlords House Harkonnen.

Attempts to adapt Dune into film began in 1971 and suffered a tremendous journey through development hell, with Arthur P. Jacobs first being set to produce the film before passing away and Alejandro Jodorowsky working on an iteration for years with an ensemble cast lined up and concept art in the works from H.R. Giger. Jodorowsky's would infamously fall apart as funding dried up for his 14-hour film adaptation prior to production getting underway, with Italian producer Dino De Laurentiis later acquiring the rights and brought on Ridley Scott for the project and Giger still attached. However, when Scott departed a few years later, De Laurentiis would re-up the deal with Herbert for the novel's rights and landed David Lynch to write and direct Dune, which would finally hit theaters in 1984 and go on to be a critical and commercial dud.

In a recent interview with Total Film for House of Gucci, Scott reflected on his time attached to the first attempt at adapting Dune for the big screen. The filmmaker recalled having come up with "a very good take" with writer Rudy Wurlitzer, though upon learning of the costs of the film and the plan to shoot it in Mexico, Scott would elect to back out of the project. See what Scott shared below:

"It's always been filmable. I had a writer called Rudy Wurlitzer, of the Wurlitzer family. He'd written two films: Two-Lane Blacktop with James Taylor, and Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid, which had Bob Dylan and Kris Kristofferson. My brain's working quite well today, actually! We did a very good take on Dune, because early days, I'd work very, very closely with the writer. I was always glomming the look of the film onto what he or she was writing.

And then [producer] Dino [De Laurentiis] had got me into it and we said, 'We did a script, and the script is pretty fucking good.' Then Dino said, 'It's expensive, we're going to have to make it in Mexico.' I said, 'What!' He said, 'Mexico.' I said, 'Really?' So he sent me to Mexico City. And with the greatest respect to Mexico City, in those days [it was] pretty pongy. I didn't love it. I went to the studio in Mexico City where the floors were Earth floors in the studio. I said, 'Nah, Dino, I don't want to make this a hardship.' And so I actually backed out and instead moved on to Legend. Tim Curry and Tom Cruise."

In the years since its publishing, Dune has garnered an infamous reputation for the various attempts taken to get the film made, namely Jodorowsky's take that spawned a 2013 documentary chronicling the troubled experience. Scott's latest comments on stepping down from directing Dune comes as an interesting new explanation for his departure, as he previously discussed in the novel Ridley Scott: The Making of His Movies that he left upon realizing how long it would take to make the film and was reeling from the loss of his older brother to cancer. His previous discussions on the manner have also explained that Scott would go on to direct Blade Runner instead of Dune, making it interesting for Scott to note he went on to Legend instead, which began filming two years after the Phillip K. Dick adaptation.

Scott's departure from Dune may have ultimately been a blessing in disguise for the Oscar nominee given the reception and troubles Lynch faced during his version. Having been denied final cut privileges, Lynch has since refused to discuss the film in interviews and declined offers from Universal Pictures to craft a director's cut of the project as it has gained a cult following in the years since. Herbert's novel would finally get the creatively free big-screen treatment with Denis Villeneuve's Dune earlier this year, which has been a critical and commercial hit and landed a sequel order to adapt the second half of the source novel.