Dune 2’s 12 Biggest Unanswered Questions Explained

Spoilers are ahead for Dune: Part Two.

Summary

• Paul embraces his destiny as Lisan al Gaib despite initial reluctance, becoming a powerful and terrifying messiah figure.
• Lady Jessica discovers her shocking parentage, revealing a complex web of carefully planned Bene Gesserit lineage and control.
• Chani’s character development in
  Dune 2
  shows her as a skeptical warrior conflicted about Paul’s alleged destiny, leading to questions of reconciliation.

Although Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part Two pays off the first film’s primary setup, the sequel still left some of its biggest questions unanswered. Based on the second half of Frank Herbert’s 1965 sci-fi classic, Dune 2 picks up where its predecessor left off: having escaped the Emperor-backed Harkonnen massacre of House Atreides, Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) and his Bene Gesserit mother, Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson), have sought refuge among a Fremen sietch. Led by Stilgar (Javier Bardem), the tribe of Fremen are split over Paul’s striking resemblance to their foretold messiah, Lisan al Gaib.

The younger generation of Sietch Tabr Fremen, including the warrior Chani (Zendaya), are skeptical of any outsider claiming to be their people’s salvation. Although Chani is drawn to Paul, she knows the Lisan al Gaib stories were planted by the Bene Gesserit as a means of exacting control over the desert-dwelling Fremen of Arrakis. At first, Paul is also unwilling to become the foretold messiah, but as the Fremen conflict with House Harkonnen escalates, he resigns himself to the path of Lisan al Gaib. Also the Bene Gesserit’s Kwisatz Haderach, Dune‘s Paul positions himself as a terrifying power.

12 Who Is Lady Jessica’s Mother?

At Stilgar’s encouragement, Lady Jessica consumes the Water of Life. By ingesting the poison, and using her Bene Gesserit training to render it harmless, Jessica undergoes spice agony and becomes a Reverend Mother. As a Reverend Mother, Jessica taps into the Bene Gesserit genetic memory. Able to access all the knowledge and insight of her ancestors, Lady Jessica learns a terrible truth: she is the illegitimate daughter of Baron Vladimir Harkonnen (Stellan Skarsgård). While the movie reveals this information, it doesn’t dwell on the other half of Jessica’s parentage.

When it comes to the Bene Gesserit, everything is planned. The order wants to exert control over the universe by manipulating its outcomes, hence the carefully plotted breeding program. That said, Lady Jessica’s lineage is also the product of careful selection. While Dune 2 reveals that the Baron is her father, the Prelude to Dune prequel novel confirms that the Reverend Mother Gaius Helen Mohiam (Charlotte Rampling) is Jessica’s mother. Given that Dune 2 makes some massive changes to the book, it’s possible Jessica’s mother will be a key plot point in Dune 3.

11 What’s The Deal With Paul’s Unborn Sister?

By far Dune‘s weirdest character, Alia Atreides is Paul’s younger sister. Before Duke Leto Atreides (Oscar Isaac) was murdered, he and Lady Jessica conceived another child. That said, when Jessica drinks the Water of Life and undergoes the spicy agony, she’s pregnant. The ritual has huge ramifications on the unborn Alia: like her mother, she is able to tap into the Bene Gesserit genetic memory. When she’s born, Alia has all the abilities of a Reverend Mother even though she’s a child. Instead of translating a super-human toddler to the screen, Dune 2 wisely chose a different path.

Unlike David Lynch’s 1984 Dune, the sequel film limits Alia’s (Anya Taylor-Joy) on-screen appearance to a vision that Paul has after drinking the Water of Life. Throughout the film, Alia is able to communicate telepathically with Jessica from the womb, allowing Paul’s mother to share Alia’s insights with him. That said, the movie changes Alia’s role substantially; in the book, she is the one to kill Baron Harkonnen, for example. Viewers will have to wait until Dune 3 to see what Alia’s new fate has in store for her.

10 Will Paul & Chani Reunite?

Among its many smart changes is Dune 2‘s approach to Chani. Instead of limiting her role to being Paul’s Fremen lover, she’s an incredibly adept warrior who’s rather skeptical of Paul’s alleged destiny. The voice of a younger, less devout group, Chani sees through the Bene Gesserit’s scheme; she knows they carefully plotted the seeds of a messiah story in order to control the Fremen. It’s clear that Chani loves Paul, but feels conflicted about his alleged destiny. When Paul chooses to become the messiah, Chani can’t stand by him, leading viewers to wonder if the pair will ever reconcile.

9 Will Paul Really Bring Rain To Arrakis?

Although the book doesn’t end with Paul, the self-proclaimed Lisan al Gaib, bringing rain to Arrakis, David Lynch’s Dune goes a more symbolic route. Misguided in its efforts to paint Paul as a hero, 1984’s Dune sees the messiah figure casting rain upon the desert planet. Although Dune 2 mentions this potential narrative, it only shows the ocean touching the sands of Arrakis in one of Paul’s dream visions. In Herbert’s sequel novel, Dune Messiah, Paul’s story ends on a fittingly tragic note, so it’s unlikely he’ll bring rain to Arrakis outside of his dreams.

8 What Happened To Thufir Hawat?

Although Dune‘s Thufir Hawat (Stephen McKinley Henderson), a House Atreides-aligned Mentat, seemingly survives the Harkonnen/Sardaukar massacre on Arrakis, he doesn’t appear in Dune 2. Villeneuve’s painful Dune 2 book change removes the Atreides’ loyalist’s whole subplot. In Herbert’s novel, Hawat tries to bring the Harkonnens down from within by gaining Feyd-Rautha’s (Austin Butler) trust. Eventually, he even turns Feyd against his uncle, the Baron. Seemingly, Dune 2 cuts Hawat’s role to streamline its story. At one point, Gurney Halleck (Josh Brolin) mentions getting the survivors off Arrakis and back to Caladan — a possible resolution for Hawat.

7 Who Are Chani’s Parents?

In the novel, Chani’s parentage is almost as interesting as Lady Jessica’s twist. Paul’s love interest is the daughter of Imperial Planetologist Liet-Kynes and a Fremen woman, Faroula. In Dune, Sharon Duncan-Brewster plays Dr. Liet Kynes, which means the planetologist may be Chani’s mother in the movie’s canon. At the end of the first film, Kynes helps Paul and Lady Jessica escape in an ornithopter and tells them they’ll meet again. Ultimately, she’s killed by Sardaukar troops, but the implication is that she’s close with the Fremen and will join the mother-son duo in the desert.

6 Is Chani Pregnant With Paul’s Son?

In Herbert’s novel, Chani becomes pregnant with Paul’s son, Leto II. Toward the end of the book, the Emperor and Baron Harkonnen amass fleets around Arrakis to thwart the Fremen attacks on spice production. As Paul prepares the Fremen for all-out war, the Emperor’s troops take a Fremen outpost, killing hundreds. While Paul’s sister, Alia, is captured, his and Chani’s son, Leto, is among those who are killed. Although the movie focuses on Paul and Chani’s complicated relationship, Dune 2 doesn’t imply that Chani is pregnant. If that storyline does progress in Dune 3, it will look drastically different.

In the novel, Paul’s younger sister is the one who kills Baron Harkonnen…

5 What Will Alia’s Role Be In Dune 3?

Since Alia is born with the abilities of a full-grown Reverend Mother, she’s a formidable force — even as a child. In the source material, Paul’s younger sister is the one who kills Baron Harkonnen in the grand finale. Of course, Dune 2 ends with Lady Jessica still pregnant, so it’s unclear how Alia’s role will develop in a third film. With Anya Taylor-Joy cast as Alia, it seems like the film would want to give the character a prominent role to make up for her lack of screentime in Dune 2.

4 Does Lady Jessica’s Ultimate Allegiance Belong To The Bene Gesserit?

Throughout Dune 2, Chani calls out Lady Jessica for risking Paul’s life — especially when he undergoes the spice agony. Chani can’t believe the Bene Gesserit acolyte would watch her son suffer (and possibly die). It’s clear that Jessica, unlike Paul, is committed to the messiah narrative from the start. The villainous, newly minted Reverend Mother uses her influence to sway the Fremen, making their worship of Paul inevitable. That said, it’s not clear where her ultimate allegiances lie, but it does seem she puts the Bene Gesserit order above all else, even if she previously disobeyed them.

3 What Role Does Irulan Play In The Bene Gesserit Scheme?

As with Chani, Dune 2 puts a much greater emphasis on Princess Irulan’s (Florence Pugh) role. In the source material, the Emperor’s daughter appears very briefly on the page, though some of the novel’s elements are attributed to her. A kind of narrator for the epic saga, Irulan is given much more to do in Dune 2. In fact, her connection to the Bene Gesserit and, in particular, Reverend Mother Gaius Helen Mohaim, is of great importance. In Dune Messiah, Irulan is betrothed to Paul, though the two don’t produce an heir.

2 What Will Happen To Margot Fenring & Feyd’s Child

Lady Margot Fenring (Léa Seydoux), a Bene Gesserit and friend of the Emperor, is introduced during the Feyd-centric portion of Dune 2. Margot is the wife of the former governor of Arrakis, Count Fenring, and attempts to warn Jessica of the Harkonnen plot against Paul. In the book and Dune 2, Margot is sent to seduce Feyd and “preserve the bloodline” for the Bene Gesserit breeding program. Later, while Paul fights Feyd in the book, Mohiam mentions that if the two men die, only Feyd’s unborn daughter and Alia will remain, hinting at the child’s future in Dune 3.

Paul’s victory on Arrakis unleashes an unstoppable holy war…

1 Can Paul Stop What He Has Put Into Motion?

Dune 2‘s ending offers little hope that Paul will be able to stop what he’s put into motion. After he kills Feyd and sways the Emperor to kneel before him, Paul proves to the Fremen that he’s an all-powerful ruler. That said, they seem committed to following their messiah into battle. In the books, Paul’s victory on Arrakis unleashes an unstoppable holy war, which is enacted by the Fremen in his name. Ultimately, Dune 2‘s Paul becomes the most powerful person in the known universe — but at a massive cost.

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  Dune: Part Two

  Director:

  Denis Villeneuve

  Release Date:

  2024-03-01

  Cast:

  Timothee Chalamet, Zendaya, Florence Pugh, Austin Butler, Rebecca Ferguson

  Writers:

  Denis Villeneuve, Jon Spaihts

  Genres:

  Sci-Fi, Thriller, Drama, Adventure

  Budget:

  $122 Million

  Studio(s):

  Legendary Pictures

  Distributor(s):

  Warner Bros. Pictures

  prequel(s):

  Dune

  Franchise(s):

  Dune

  Rating:

  PG-13

  Sequel(s):

  Dune: Part Three