Intro

Today we are pleased to share with you another Original from the science-fiction genre. After nearly a year since the theatrical release of the first part, today we bring you our updated movie preview of "Dune: Part Two". We will cover lots of events from the books, from the feature film and from David Lynch's old film, so there is a correspondingly high risk of spoilers of course. But here's everything you need to know about the plot, cast and production, so pay attention and enjoy our new Original episode!

Plot

In "Dune", we were already introduced to the gigantic universe during the almost two and a half hour duration. The story takes place in the year 10191 and deals with the power struggle for control over the Galactic Empire of mankind. The focus is on Paul Atreides, a smart young man who cannot quite grasp yet what his great destiny will turn out to be. The son of Lady Jessica and Duke Leto Atreides I. is not really finding his way around his new home planet of Arrakis, and is soon confronted with the death of his father and his escape with his mother from the forces of the hostile Harkonnen family. At the end of the film, he meets the girl Chani, whom he had previously only seen in his dreams, and joins the native Fremen. These are a kind of subculture of humans who consider the planet Arrakis their home.

The ending of Part 1 is not as abrupt as it might seem at first, given the large-scale story. The first movie covered roughly half of Herbert's book "Dune" and concludes when House Atreides is more or less non-existent and it looks like an outnumbered battle. A ritual by which Paul and his mother gain the respect of the Fremen has already been depicted in the film: Paul fights Jamis in a knife fight until death, as the laws of the Fremen demand. 

The second ritual, on the other hand, did not occur, which is why we assume that we will see it at the beginning of "Dune 2". This time it is the turn of Paul's mother Jessica as she has to drink from the Water of Life. However, contrary to its euphonious name, the Water of Life is not a tasty magic potion, but the poisonous excretion of a young sandworm drowned in water. The procedure has to do with the beliefs of the Fremen, because worms play a major role there. They are characterized by a great duality, since the worm can represent both God and Satan. By drinking the water, she becomes the Reverend Mother of the Fremen, a kind of spiritual leader. As Reverend Mother, she must then transform the Water of Life into a harmless drug that the Fremen enjoy to consume at their gatherings. 

But how does the story go on in "Dune 2"? Those who read the books will know that after Jessica's ritual, there is a big time jump. Here, director Villeneuve should be particularly careful not to rush the story, after all, that was one of the major flaws of the first movie adaptation from 1984. So it may well be that they will take their time to depict the arrival and further life of Paul and Jessica with the Fremen. In particular, we have in mind the birth of Paul's sister Alia, who has already gained consciousness in her mother's womb through the water ritual and possesses special powers. She is also the girl with blue eyes, of whom Paul has some visions. Because of his successful fight against Jamis, Paul is called Usul by tribe leader Stilgar. It is translated as "the strength of the base of the pillar". Stilgar will later become a loyal companion and important advisor to the main character. The final acceptance by the Fremen is then also expressed in a completely new name for Paul, and that is Muad'Dib. In contrast to Usul, this is his common name, with which everyone addresses him from now on. Actually, in Arabic a similar word means "teacher". 

A second story aspect that unfortunately comes up far too short in the book is the initial love affair between Paul and Chani, which also took its course during the great time jump. One could certainly fill hours with the development of Paul and Chani's relationship until the birth of their first child. However, the challenge will be to find the balance between a debauched love story and interesting story details. 

Either way, the book picks up quite late after the time jump. In addition to his personal family happiness, Paul grows more and more into a leader position among the Fremen and his initially not yet developed strength also becomes increasingly powerful. He is seen by the Fremen as the great savior that has been repeatedly prophesied to them, and many of the visions that have long haunted Paul will also eventually coalesce. Particularly with all the Spice the Fremen consume, Paul's powers continue to increase. As a result, Paul becomes sort of overpowering and is capable of looking into the past and the future, as well as seeing all the events of the universe at the same time. 

It will be a special treat to see Paul riding the true fan favorites later in the film, namely the sandworms. When he then also drinks the Water of Life, which can actually only be survived by women, his powers will complete and he will be ready to finally face Baron Harkonnen. 

Fate of Minor Characters 

Interesting is the future of the character Gurney Halleck, embodied by Thanos actor Josh Brolin. The Duke's armorer is also Paul's trainer and has trained him for the adverse conditions of the desert planet. He will return in the upcoming film, as will the Atreides mentat Thufir Hawat, played by Stephen McKinley Henderson. In the book, Hawat is later forced into service by Baron Harkonnen, as his own Mentat Peter de Vries was in fact killed by Duke Leto due to a mix-up. A different fate happens to Gurney, as he surprisingly survives the big battle and devotes himself to a life as a spice smuggler. In the course of the story, he also meets Paul and Jessica again, who, let's say, he is not too fond of. Particularly with the latter he finds himself at odds. 

There are also many presumed dead with questionable fates. On the one hand, there is the planetary ecologist Liet Kynes, who appears for the first time as a woman in Villeneuve's film adaptation, unlike in the book and in the 1984 film. According to the book, she is indeed dead, but then again, the question can be raised whether Villeneuve perhaps recast her for the reason of having her appear in the second part as well. In any case, the director can be credited with that much artistic freedom in a movie adaptation that is otherwise very close to the book.

Even more likely is a reappearance of Duncan Idaho, who was killed in the attack on Arrakis. Despite his passing, the likeable character, who is played by Jason Momoa, at least appears to have a future in the world imagined by Frank Herbert. He no longer appears in the old "Dune" film, but he does celebrate his return as Ghola in the second book. Strictly speaking, however, Duncan is no longer alive, because a ghola is an artificially created human being who preserves the memories of an individual and thus lets him live on in a certain way. His return has not been denied nor confirmed yet.

Someone who was missing from the book is Shaddam IV, the emperor of the entire universe and undoubtedly one of the most powerful figures. The comparison to David Lynch's movie is interesting here, because there the emperor has a regular appearance. Quite a few casting possibilities circulated on the net, from Michael Fassbender and Jared Harris to Mads Mikkelsen or Ralph Fiennes. The slim, elegant man with the cold eyes described in the book would have been a perfect fit for many actors, but in the end it was Christopher Walken, a legendary actor known for his dark and often disturbing roles, who was cast. 

As important as the role of the emperor is that of his eldest daughter Princess Irulan Corrino. She acts as a historian and narrates the events surrounding Paul Atreides. During the course of the story she even officially becomes Paul's wife. However, the marriage was only done for convenience and happened on the orders of her father, and as a result, they have no offspring. She is to be played by "Midsommar" actress Florence Pugh, who even bears a certain resemblance to actress Virginia Madsen from the 1984 movie version.

Also recast was the role of Lady Margot. She is part of the Bene Gesserit, the wife of Mentat Hasimir Fenring and an ally of Paul. She supports him in his quest to avenge the House of Atreides. She will be portrayed by Bond girl Léa Seydoux. 

In addition to Florence Pugh, Christopher Walken and Léa Seydoux, "Elvis" actor Austin Butler also joins the cast. The 31-year-old plays the ruthless and cruel Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen, who is the younger nephew of Baron Vladimir. In David Lynch's film, by the way, he was embodied by none other than "The Police" front man Sting. The latest addition to the cast is the Swiss actress Souheila Yacoub, who has previously made a name for herself mostly in French cinema. She plays the character Shishakli, who is the rather tough squad leader of the Fedaykin, a part of Sietch Tabr.

All things considered, it can be said that "Dune: Part 1" takes place in a relatively short period of time compared to the possible plot of Part 2. The difficulty with the sequel is making a meaningful connection between the end of the first movie and the beginning of the second. Between Paul and Jessica's joining the Fremen and the big attack on the Baron, or even the Emperor later on, a fair amount of time passes. In between, Villeneuve has to accommodate a gigantic plethora of events, or at least cut them down enough in order to do justice to the scope of the book and an adequate big screen adventure at the same time. Jessica has to face the ritual, Paul becomes a Muad'Dib and learns to ride sandworms, and then simultaneously they have to prepare for the grand finale of the second part and include many of the aforementioned characters. 

Production

Filming started in Budapest in July 2022, after completing preliminary shoots in Italy. There, the Tomba Brion was used as a setting, which is originally a family tomb and a memorial at the same time. Carlo Scarpa's architecture is very reminiscent of the brutalist style of the buildings in "Dune", making it an ideal set. It is not yet known exactly when filming will be completed, but it is not expected to last too long. After the success of the first part, the director is again Denis Villeneuve, who also wrote the screenplay together with Jon Spaihts and Eric Roth. Much to the delight of many fans, there is one more returnee who is neither an actor nor a part of the crew. This is star composer Hans Zimmer, who is the number one choice for epic soundtracks and who has agreed to take over the musical aspects of the second film as well. 

We are definitely very excited about "Dune: Part 2" and look forward to the planned release in just about a year on November 3, 2023.

Outro

That was our new Original for "Dune: Part 2". Which characters would you like to see in addition to the ones mentioned earlier and which events from the book should not be missing in your opinion? Feel free to tell us in the comments!