Dune fans are counting down the days until they can return to the sandy planet of Arrakis, sandworms and all.
However, many people were left perplexed when The Queen’s Gambit star Anya Taylor-Joy made a shock appearance at the London premiere.
His involvement in the film had been mostly kept secret according to director Denis Villeneuve, who told EW that “everyone signed with their blood” not to reveal the secret – figuratively, of course.
If you’re wondering who this actress was cast as, your wait is over. We saw Dune: Part Two in its entirety at an early screening and can confirm it now.
Dune: Part Two is released on March 1, 2024 and you can get your tickets from AMC, Fandango and Atom cinemas in the US, and Cineworld, Odeon and Vue in the UK.
Spoilers for Dune: Part Two below.
Who plays Anya Taylor-Joy in Dune 2?
Anya Taylor-Joy plays Alia Atreides, the sister of Paul Atréides (Timothée Chalamet).
Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson) is pregnant with Paul’s sister throughout the film. However, Alia appears in one of the protagonists’ many flash-forward vision sequences, where we see a character walking through sand and eventually finding a shore, facing an ocean. We know her name is Alia, as she calls Paul “brother”.
It’s a small scene in the grand scheme of things, but it foreshadows that it will play a huge role in the franchise… if Dune is renewed for a third installment.
Taylor-Joy is happy to be on board, saying during the first: “It’s a dream come true. You know, the books are incredible, but, with this cast and with Denis, it doesn’t get better than this.
Who is Alia Atreides in Dune?
Alia is the second child of the late Duke Leto Atreides (Oscar Issac) and Lady Jessica of the Bene Gesserit.
While pregnant, Jessica drinks the Water of Life to become the new Reverend Mother of the tribe in which she has settled. In doing so, she and her unborn baby become aware of their ancestral memories.
In the second film, Alia has a consciousness in the womb and can communicate clearly with Jessica – well beyond her actual age.
In the books, she can think like an adult even though she is physically a little girl. As such, the Bene Gesserit consider it an abomination. Nonetheless, she ends up proving to be a crucial ally for her brother in his fight against one of the Great Houses.
Will there be a Dune: Part Three?
Villeneuve plans to make Dune into a trilogy and revealed during a press conference in South Korea (via Deadline) that work on the third storyline was almost complete – that was in December of last year.
However, Warner Bros and Legendary have not fully confirmed whether the film will come to fruition – that could likely depend on how the sequel performs. The director confirmed to Time magazine (via The Independent) that this would be the final installment of the series.
If it gets the green light, there’s no word yet on when it will be released, but one thing is certain: Alia will play a major role in the story.
