Dune: Part Two’s time as cinephiles’ chosen Kwisatz Haderach has largely passed, but the Bene Gesserit have been waiting in the wings, silently pulling strings and rearranging HBO schedules in order to reign supreme once more. They must not fear that their new show won’t measure up to the standard of Denis Villeneuve’s films, because fear is the mind-killer. And where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only Dune: Prophecy will remain.
Allowing the people to watch the series’ new teaser is the first step toward facing that fear. It certainly walks the walk, but we’ll see in the months to come if it’s able to talk the Talk. And by that, we obviously mean the infamous Bene Gesserit Voice, which does make a welcome appearance here.
Dune: Prophecy is set “10,000 years before the ascension of Paul Atreides” (sorry folks, no Timothée cameos in this one) and “follows two Harkonnen sisters as they combat forces that threaten the future of humankind, and establish the fabled sect that will become known as the Bene Gesserit,” according to its logline.
The series is based on Brian Herbert (the son of original Dune author Frank Herbert) and Kevin J. Anderson’s 2012 novel, Sisterhood Of Dune. That book is part of a prequel series which is itself a prequel for a different prequel series, thus massively expanding the already extremely large scope of Herbert’s original vision. Dune: Prophecy promises to do the same for Villeneuve’s, exploring enticing new planets and orders while remaining largely faithful to the film director’s aesthetic sensibility—at least if this short clip is anything to go by. And if you’re afraid the show will veer too far from what made the first two films great, just remember: Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
Dune: Prophecy stars Emily Watson, Olivia Williams, Travis Fimmel, Jodhi May, Mark Strong, Sarah-Sofie Boussnina, Josh Heuston, Chloe Lea, Jade Anouka, Faoileann Cunningham, Edward Davis, Aoife Hinds, Chris Mason, Shalom Brune-Franklin, Camilla Beeput, Jihae, Tabu, Charithra Chandran, Jessica Barden, Emma Canning, and Yerin Ha. It’s scheduled to premiere sometime this upcoming Fall.