Dune: Part Twofollowed inThe Lord of the Rings' footsteps at the 97thAcademy Awards, butDune 3is unlikely to repeatThe Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King’s awards success. Denis Villeneuve’s adaptations of Frank Herbert’s classic science-fiction novel have been well-received, withDune: Part Tworeviewsbeing particularly stellar. This positive reception translated into recognition at the Academy Awards asDunereceived 10 nominations andDune: Part Tworeceived five nominations.
Long before Villeneuve’s take onDune, Peter Jackson’sThe Lord of the Ringsmoviestook popular culture by storm. Each installment in the trilogy was a critical and commercial success and the movies are still widely admired more than two decades later. At the time,the movies' success led toReturn of the Kingwinning a staggering 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture. As anticipation for therelease ofDune 3builds, there are inevitably comparisons between the two fantasy and science-fiction franchises, especially afterDune: Part Two’s Academy Awards wins.
Dune 2 Won The Exact Same Oscars As The Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers
They Were Recognized For Their Sound And Visual Effects
BothDune: Part TwoandThe Lord of the Rings: The Two Towerswon the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects.Dune: Part Twowon Best Sound andThe Two Towerswon Best Sound Editing. At the time, Best Sound Editing and Best Sound Mixing were two separate categories, but they were later combined into the single category of Best Sound. It is an intriguing coincidence thatthe second installment in both theDuneandThe Lord of the Ringstrilogies walked away with the exact same awards.
Oscars 2025 Winners: 4 Biggest Snubs & Surprises
While there were not too many surprising parts of the 97th Academy Awards, a select handful of wins were truly stunning, especially for Best Actress.
Despite the positive reception, these second movies received fewer nominations than their predecessors.Dunehad double the number ofDune: Part Two’s nominations.The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ringmore than doubledThe Two Towers' number of nominations, withFellowship of the Ringgarnering 13 andThe Two Towershaving six. This is arguably not a reflection ofDune: Part TwoandThe Two Towers' quality, but instead has more to do with the Academy Awards' aversion to sequels and franchises.
Through Two Movies, Dune Has More Oscars Than The Lord Of The Rings
The First Dune Movie Won 6 Oscars
When comparingDuneandDune: Part TwotoFellowship of the RingandThe Two Towers,Dunehas more Academy Award wins. In addition toDune: Part Two’s two Oscar wins,Dunewon Best Music (Original Score), Best Sound, Best Film Editing, Best Cinematography, Best Production Design, and Best Visual Effects. Along withThe Two Towers' two wins,The Fellowship of the Ringwon Best Music (Original Score), Best Cinematography, Best Makeup, and Best Visual Effects. Two movies in, thisputsDuneat eight Oscar wins compared toThe Lord of the Rings' six wins.
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In both cases, the first of the two movies won the majority of the awards, althoughDunewas more dominant thanThe Fellowship of the Ring. This would seemingly indicate a downward trajectory, with the third movie receiving even fewer nominations and wins than the second.Return of the King’s 11-win sweep ensured that this would not be the trajectory as a total of 17 Academy Awards became part ofThe Lord of the Ringsmovie trilogy’s enduring legacy.
Why Dune 3 Is Unlikely To Repeat Return Of The King’s Oscars Sweep
The Unconventional Dune 3 Will Struggle To Match Return Of The King’s Dominance
Any movie matchingReturn of the King’s 11 Academy Award wins would be a difficult feat.Return of the Kingwas an epic movie that had the rare ability to resonate strongly with critics and general audiences. WhileDune 3will undoubtedly have an epic scale and be another quality adaptation from Villeneuve, it is unlikely to be as well-received by audiences and critics.Dune 3’s weird moments, as seen in Herbert’s novelDune: Messiah, will probably lead to a more divisive response, and the weirdness may even be too much for the Academy Awards.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King’s Academy Award Wins
Best Film Editing
Best Visual Effects
Return of the King’s 11 wins were partly in recognition of the entire trilogy’s groundbreaking success. WithDuneandDune: Part Twoadapting a single novel, andDune 3adapting a story that takes place 12 years later, it isnot a conventional movie trilogy compared toThe Lord of the Rings. Academy voters may not feel the need to giveDune 3recognition for the entire trilogy.Dune 3will definitely be a successful movie, but it probably will not reach the same heightsReturn of the Kingdid at theAcademy Awards.
