With the upcoming release of the film "Dune," a big-name cast is set to attract a new audience to meet Paul Atreides. Notably, the film will also air on HBO Maxx.

If you have ever tried to read Frank Herbert's "Dune" and failed, you are familiar with its dense and complex content. So director Denis Villeneuve ("Arrival," "Blade Runner 2049," "Sicario") is trying to draw fans and newcomers alike into the same tent by making a Dune film that is both accessible and true to the source material.

Villeneuve attempts to pull all of this off by breaking the original story into multiple parts. The upcoming film "Dune" will be an adaptation of the first half of Herbert's complex and beloved 1965 novel. A second "Dune" film is expected to complete the work (but has not been confirmed for production).

And another trick they are using to draw the audience into the world of "Dune" - to make them want to know what a rubber jabber is and how to manipulate the spice - is to fill it with a stellar cast. Timothée Chalamet ("Call Me by Your Name," "Lady Bird"), Oscar Isaac ("Star Wars: The Last Jedi"), Rebecca Ferguson ("The Snowman"), Jason Momoa ("Aquaman," "See").

Here's what you need to know to get excited about the movie "Dune," but to understand it, just watch the trailer. You'll soon find out if it's for you.

There are two trailers available for Dune:

The first trailer for Dune begins with the troubled narration of the protagonist Paul Atreides. But before he can kiss Chani, he wakes up in his dignified bedroom and speaks of "the crusades coming." He is then interrogated about how real his dream is. Then a masked figure who appears to be Gaius Helen Mohiam tests his limits to pain.

Then the would-be young ruler argues and throws one melancholy look after another into view. Floating objects and powerful wrist-worn devices are visible. Atreides' father is clearly losing his mind, and Paul is coming to realize that his time in power is drawing near. Wild figures, burning trees, floating soldiers, and a rift of cool airships, blades, and desert monsters. Marvel movie fans may recognize some of the figures that look like Drax but aren't.

The second trailer certainly gets the action rolling, but you wouldn't guess it from the way it starts. This time, it begins with a dream of Chani (Zendaya), one of the indigenous people of the desert world, that Paul sees before he arrives in Arrakis.

Chani's narration fills in the history of Arrakis and the suffering endured by the indigenous Fremen at the hands of the Halkonen family. The Duke of Leto (Oscar Isaac) then reveals that the Atreides family has been sent to put a stop to the conflict between the two sides.

Most importantly, the second trailer for "Dune" actually gives us a glimpse of the film's stellar cast. From the stingy military strategist Gurney Halleck, played by Josh Brolin, to the grotesque Baron Harkonnen, played by Stellan Skarsgard, we get our first proper glimpse.

When I heard that "Dune" would be released on December 18, 2020, I called that "a bit optimistic."

And I was right. A new release date for "Dune" has been set: October 1, 2021, and Collider broke the news. But the pandemic woes of "Dune" did not end there, and the film has been pushed back to October 22. There is, however, one important detail about the release of "Dune" that we should point out.

"Dune" was originally supposed to be released on HBO Max on the same day as its theatrical release, but the COVID-19 pandemic caused Warner Bros. to think a little differently about blockbuster films.

Nevertheless, there was speculation that this might not happen. Deadline reports that the HBO Max release date for "Dune" is "not yet set". Why the second-guessing? Director Denis Villeneuve was openly critical of the HBO Max deal.

Nevertheless, HBO Max has confirmed that "Dune" will appear on the service's ad-free plan on the same day as its theatrical release. However, like other theatrical releases, it will only be available for 31 days after its release.

"Dune" stars Timothée Chalamet, whose appeal may be broad enough to draw a larger audience to this adaptation that might otherwise not have been their favorite. He is joined by an all-star cast of contemporary comic/sci-fi movie actors, including MJ himself, Zendaya. Oscar Isaac and Josh Brolin also make an appearance.

This is the main cast of "Dune":

Aside from director Denis Villeneuve, the "Dune" pedigree is strong behind the scenes as well. Villeneuve co-wrote the screenplay with "Forrest Gump" director Eric Roth. [Because Peter Berg ("Friday Night Lights") was originally attached to direct the film, but he dropped out before Paramount could cross "Dune" off the project list. Legendary Pictures later acquired the rights and invited Villeneuve. We also want all memories of David Lynch's 1984 film "Dune" to be erased. Villeneuve has stated that his film has no connection to that original. Relatedly, Lynch has no interest in seeing the film.

Hans Zimmer is in charge of the music for "Dune" and chose this project over Christopher Nolan's "Tenet" because of his own personal love of Herbert's book.

Ten thousand years in the future, the Imperium Empire rules the world of Dune. The larger story at the center of the narrative involves Paul Atreides, son of Duke Leto Atreides, dealing with conflict, a powerful drug known as spice, and giant sandworms.

The story begins in Arrakis, where Paul has taken over the mining of the spice (also known as melange) for his family and is fighting for his life. Complicating things is Baron Harkonnen, who was a caricatured Caribbean evil in the book, but Villeneuve wants to turn him into a more complex antagonist.

In Arrakis, Paul's life changes as power begins to manifest itself in his body and his own goals begin to conflict with his family's politics.