Warner Bros. Pictures
Denis Villeneuve warns the most purists: Dune 2 is going to anger more than one. The changes from the book will be very serious.
If you like the book, Dune 2 is going to piss you off.. (We warn of spoilers of the original novel) Director Denis Villeneuve has revealed that Lady Jessica will have a larger role in the film than the character had in the second half of the original novel. Scheduled for November 2023, the second part will adapt the second half of the science fiction novel written by Frank Herbert and published in 1965. The cast includes Rebecca Ferguson in the role of Lady Jessica, the mother of Paul Atreides.
Speaking to Town & Country, Denis Villeneuve revealed that Lady Jessica will have a bigger role in Dune 2 than in the second half of the novel.. The filmmaker has indicated that Lady Jessica does not have a major story arc in the book. That is something that he has worked to rewrite during the development of the scripts for the second part. “Lady Jessica disappears in the second part of the book,” said Denis Villeneuve. “And in writing the script I made sure to do the opposite, that she was active, that I put her back at the forefront of the story. I’m looking forward to the world seeing what Rebecca Ferguson has accomplished. He is not afraid to go further. She is a force I can count on.”
Lady Jessica will have a much bigger role than expected
Warner Bros. Pictures
But what happens in the book that we may not see in Dune 2? In Frank Herbert’s novel, Lady Jessica becomes a Reverend Mother of the Bene Gesserit, using her genetic memory to unlock new knowledge and abilities.. She uses these powers to help Paul become the prophet of the Fremen, Maud’Dib, using her strength as a male Bene Gesserit, also known as the Kwisatz Haderach. Lady Jessica also learns that she is pregnant with Alia, the daughter of Duke Leto Atreides and sister of Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet).
