Dune: Prophecy: premiere date, trailer, cast and more

dune is far more extensive than you think. Frank Herbert’s original novel series spanned six novels and several thousand years of galactic history. But already in the first one dune In the novel, there was the suggestion that history stretched back eons, from the days of Earth to the empire depicted in the book. In fact, it is Herbert’s universal essay on the development of religious orthodoxy feels to be read for several centuries.

Eventually, Herbert’s son Brian and science fiction veteran Kevin J. Anderson began tackling this story in a new series of novels, soon to be released on HBO Dune: Prophecy promises to bring this deep lore to the masses who are constantly hungry for more dune to consume like so much spice. But what does it mean to set a series thousands of years before Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) was born? And will any of this be relevant to the characters and time period of the films and the eventual third installment?

Let’s take a look at everything we know Dune: Prophecy to see if we can divine prescient visions of the Empire and its future.

A beginning is a delicate time

(Photo by Attila Szvacsek/HBO)

Set 10,000 years before the events of the two-parter by Denis Villeneuve dune Adjustment, prophecy It centers on two sisters from House Harkonnen – the antagonistic feudal family led by Stellan Skarsgård in the films – who, according to the official synopsis, “fight forces that threaten the future of humanity.” The result of this battle will give us the Bene Gesserit sisterhood shown in the films, which includes Reverend Mother Helen Gaius Mohiam (Charlotte Rampling), Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson), Lady Margot Fenring (Léa Seydoux) and Princess Irulan (Florence Pugh). ) belong ) among its members.

The series is inspired by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson Sisterhood of Dune. The 2012 novel was the first in a trilogy detailing the beginnings of the Empire’s leading schools: the Bene Gesserit, the Mentats (portrayed in the films of Stephen McKinley Henderson’s Thufir Hawat and David Dastmalchian’s Piter De Vries), and the Suk School in the first film about Dr. Wellington Yueh (Chang Chen).

Of course, ten millennia is a very long time, so it will be interesting to see how different each of the major schools in the series might be from their film counterparts. In fact, the series takes place 10,000 years earlier dune offers the program a chance to look a little different. Although, just as long dune Fans know that humanity’s stagnation is a plot point in the larger scheme of the story cycle, so an empire already similar to the one in the films also has appeal.

But what is the Empire like at this point in its history?

The state of the universe

(Photo by HBO)

If Sisterhood of Dune If anything is anything to go by, Butler Jihad is still fresh in people’s minds. In this conflict, humanity overthrew an oppressive artificial intelligence. The major schools began, in part, to teach surviving humans how to cope with the rigors of the universe without computer assistance. Each school chose a different focus, with the Bene Gesserit becoming a school for women and a place to learn the voice, as seen in the trailer for the series and as those who attended New York Comic Con did at a fan event experienced first hand, atmospheric and unsettling as you would expect dune. Despite these schools and their disciplines, there are varying opinions on the use of technology for other purposes.

Meanwhile, the family that led the uprising is known as House Corrino and controls the imperial seat on the planet Salusa Secundus – the planet that Piter visited in the first film to collect the Sardaukar warriors that the Emperor Baron Harkonnen (Skarsgård) had promised. . However, the family’s control of the empire is under attack by an anti-technology faction. Opposing them, in turn, are those who have control over space travel, which is crucial to maintaining the Empire.

Elsewhere, the ancestors of the Atreides and Harkonnen characters we know from the films vie for their own gains within the emerging political structure, as the sisters begin to develop their nascent spiritual powers and the great work of producing the Kwisatz Haderach to plan.

(Photo by Attila Szvacsek/HBO)

And if that wasn’t enough, the Free Men of Dune on Arrakis reject modernity and instead live a more natural life in the deep desert.

No matter how much you differ from the novel, the political setting of Dune: Prophecy is almost more important than the geographical details of planets like Salusa Secundus or the worlds that the various Great Houses called home at the time. Of course, it remains to be seen how exactly the series will follow Sisterhood of Dune‘s landscape. Firstly, the AI ​​element – ​​always in the background dune from the publication of the first novel – is not included in any of its various media adaptations (aside from a brief mention in the infamous television version of David Lynch’s novel). dune) and only became an important part of the series when the younger Herbert and Anderson began writing dune Novels in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

If any memories of the Butlerian Jihad do indeed remain among the characters, the trailer HBO released during NYCC gives no indication of this.

The preview also suggests an empire that is already close to its depiction in the films, with the great houses already formed in the Landsraad, an emperor already fighting rivals with cunning, and spice already the most valuable commodity is in the universe.

The Sisterhood (and others)

(Photo by Attila Szvacsek/HBO)

Emily Watson and Olivia Williams play the roles of Valya and Tula Harkonnen, respectively. Valya serves as head of the Bene Gesserit Sisterhood, while Tula is a Venerable Mother. Despite their family name, they seem to be the protagonists of the series, and the school’s ambition certainly goes far beyond the names of the great houses and extends into their bloodlines.

Other members of the sisterhood include Faoileann Cunningham as Sister Jen, described in an early cast description as an “unpredictable acolyte”; Aoife Hinds as Sister Emeline, who embraces the Bene Gesserit with religious fervor; Chloe Lea as Lila, a young sister-in-training with surprising empathy; and Jade Anouka as Sister Theodosia, a member of the Order with a “dangerous secret about her past.”

(Photo by Attila Szvacsek/HBO)

Tabu and Charithra Chandran also make regular appearances as Sister Francesca at two different points in their lives. The older version of the character returns to the palace, having once been the emperor’s mistress in the past. As a formidable Bene Gesserit sister, she threatens to change the dynamic in court. Additionally, Jihae portrays Venerable Mother Kasha Jinjo, the imperial fortune teller whose loyalty to the sisterhood is questioned along the way.

Sitting on the throne of the Golden Lion itself is Mark Strong as Emperor Javicco Corrino. He lives in the shadow of the “Martial Emperors” but tries to maintain the tenuous peace that his marriage to Empress Natalya (Jodhi May) has created in the human vastness of the universe. She’s no pushover either. Sarah-Sofie Boussnina plays Princess Ynez, heir to the Javicco throne. And serving the family is Mikaela (Shalom Brune-Franklin), a Fremen who has no memory of Arrakis but hopes to get there one day.

(Photo by Attila Szvacsek/HBO)

As seen in the trailer, Travis Fimmel’s Desmond Hart hopes to influence the Emperor against the Bene Gesserit. In fact, he even tells Valya that he wants to eradicate the Sisterhood from the cosmos. But what really motivates him to campaign against her?

Meanwhile, Swordmaster Keiran Atreides (Chris Mason) serves one of the other great houses, but his commitment to his role and the advancement of the family is shaken when he forms an unexpected connection with someone from House Corrino.

Josh Heuston will return as Javicco’s illegitimate son Constantine, while Edward Davis will take on the role of Harrow Harkonnen, who attempts to restore his house to the position of power it once held. Other actors who will appear in the series include Camilla Beeput, Jessica Barden, Emma Canning and Yerin Ha.

Architects of Prophecy

(Photo by Matt Doyle Photo/Getty Images)

Dune: Prophecy has been in development since the release of the first Villeneuve film and has gone through several development teams and concepts. Alison Schapker eventually became the program’s showrunner and executive producer, while Diane Ademu-John, who co-developed the series, was another executive producer.

Anna Foerster, another member of the executive producing team, directed several episodes, including the premiere. Other EPs include Jordan Goldberg, Mark Tobey, John Cameron, Matthew King, Scott Z. Burns and Jon Spaihts, who directed the first version of the program before turning development over to writing Dune: Part Two. Brian Herbert, Byron Merritt and Kim Herbert also serve as executive producers on behalf of the Frank Herbert estate. The younger Herbert’s frequent co-author, Kevin J. Anderson, is credited as co-producer.

The series’ writing team includes Ademu-John, Kor Adana, Jordan Goldberg, Kevin Lau, Monica Owusu-Breen, Elizabeth Padden, Carlito Rodriguez, Leah Benavides Rodriguez and Suzanne Wrubel.

The other crew includes production designer Tom Meyer, cameramen Pierre Gill, Richard Donnelly and Nikolaus Summerer; Editors Ameila Allwarden, Sarah C. Reeves and Mark Hartzell; and composer Volker Bertelmann. Production took place in 2022 and 2023.

The time is ripe

(Photo by HBO)

Dune: Prophecy begins on November 17, 2024 and given the 10,000 years to cover, it is unclear whether the program will continue or transition into another dune series in the coming years. A miniseries about the Butlerian Jihad itself could be very interesting. Additionally, these characters have the potential to lead the viewer into other aspects of the film dune universe, such as the Spacing Guild and the Face Dancers, a faction that will become important in the third film.

But does the series have a greater connection to the films? This all depends on the nature of the titular prophecy. Is it just about the Kwisatz Haderach and the long-term plan to breed him from the big houses – a conspiracy that leads to Paul Atreides – or is it something else? This other aspect of the prophecy could indicate a very long lifespan on the screen Dune.

Dune: Prophecy: Season 1
(2024)
Premieres November 17, 2024 on HBO.

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