Warning: This post contains spoilers for Dune: Part Two.
THE INCREDIBLE HYPE around Dune: Part Two has fully surpassed that of its predecessor. Fans couldn’t wait to return to Arrakis, the setting where we last saw characters Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) and his mother, Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson) at the end of Dune. They’d just survived an attack on their house, then escaped to the tribal society of Fremen hidden on the desert planet. And as Paul becomes entrenched in the Fremen’s way of life, Jessica continues to work in the interest of her Bene Gesserit teachings.
The 2024 sequel continues with everything set up from the first film, and it doesn’t skimp on the intense, highly anticipated moments we’ve been waiting to see since 2021. Of those moments, there’s Paul and Jessica becoming further embroiled in politics, warfare, and religion. The House Harkonnen continue their assault on them, this time in the form of Baron Harkonnen’s nefarious nephew played by Austin Butler. Oh, and there’s tons of sandworm riding as Paul rises in the ranks of the Fremen.
But it was inevitable that Villeneuve had to cut out some major parts of the book to streamline the plot and keep clarity throughout the film’s whopping 2 hour and 40 minute run time. Diehards know that Dune is a doorstopper of a novel, and to bring it from book to screen, something’s got to give. Sure, it may be disheartening for some loyal Dune fans, but it’s important to trust the writers and directors as they switch up aspects of the original text and transform written material into a visual medium.
So, what changes did Dune: Part Two make to the original source material? Here’s what we know.
Major characters didn’t make the cut.
Warner Bros.
Count Hasimir Fenring, a close friend of the Emperor, didn’t make it into Dune or Dune: Part Two. His wife, who belongs to the Bene Gesserit like Jessica, did make it in, played by Léa Seydoux.
The Fremen are also missing characters, like Harah, who becomes Paul’s wife after he kills her husband Jamis. And remember Mentant Thufir Hawat in Dune? In the book, he suspects a traitor in the household and believes it to be Lady Jessica. But in the film, he disappears quickly, likely another casualty of the Harkonnen attack on House Atreides.
Paul’s sister, Alia, shows up in a different way.
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In the book, as well as the 1984 David Lynch-directed film adaptation, Alia is born as a highly intelligent child who aids Paul in the fight against the Harkonnens. Lynch’s adaptation showed how silly it is to bring a full walking, talking baby to screen, so Villeneuve completely redoes her portrayal for Dune: Part Two. Rather than show her as an actual baby, he holds off on Alia’s birth, having her speak to Jessica in utero and appearing in Paul’s dreams as a fully grown person (played by The Menu’s Anya Taylor-Joy).
Chani isn’t always on Paul’s side.
Warner Bros.
In the book, Chani (Zendaya) is fiercely loyal to Paul, and stands with Jessica as a united front against any and all opposition to his quest for power. Dune: Part Two, however, sees Chani as a critic of Paul’s rise within the Fremen. She repeatedly questions whether his role as their messiah will truly lead her people to freedom, or if it will only mean being controlled under another person’s rule. And in pointing out her concerns of the prophecy, she also comes head to head with Jessica, who is actively pushing for Paul’s messianic importance.
The end of the film also sees another move by Chani that doesn’t occur in the pages of the novel. While she still believes in Paul even after he chooses to marry Princess Irulan at the end of the Dune book, Chani in Dune: Part Two is far less convinced of Paul’s love for her. Rather than stand by Paul as he takes over the Imperium, Chani up and leaves him by hopping on a sandworm into the unknown. While that’s a very different ending from the book, it gives Chani more agency. Rather than relegate her to the sidelines while Paul has his political marriage, Chani instead decides her loyalty to her people trumps her loyalty to Paul.
It’s a major departure from the original work, but one that sets up a fascinating new scenario for Villeneuve’s third and final film in the works, Dune: Messiah.
Milan Polk
Milan Polk is an Editorial Assistant for Men’s Health who specializes in entertainment and lifestyle reporting, and has worked for New York Magazine’s Vulture and Chicago Tribune.
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