There's only one episode left Dune: Prophecyis the first season, and the series continues to add more Bene Gesserits who have the power to turn everything upside down dune Universe. Although we briefly saw her younger self in flashbacks, adult sister Francesca's (Tabu) arrival at the Corrino house in the penultimate episode revealed the lengths to which Mother Chief Valya Harkonnen (Emily Watson) went to keep her ultimate plan in motion. However, Sister Francesca allowed it My city I know her influence goes deeper than what we might see on screen.
In the episode, we learn that Sister Francesca is mother to Emperor Javicco Corrino's petulant son (Mark Strong) when she mysteriously shows up at the palace unannounced. We later learn that her son Constantine (Josh Heuston) did not send her a message requesting her presence, as she believed, but that it was Valya who secretly summoned her without telling her is a guy Well done– Kasha (Jihae) – had been killed. When Valya learns that the Sisterhood is losing its influence over the royal palace because Emperor Corrino refuses to have a fortune teller, Francesca returns to convince Emperor Corrino to appoint Constantine as leader of his new fleet, unbeknownst to him that he is being manipulated into doing this.
However, Valya does not simply order Francesca to do this with her voice or with threats, but by appealing to Francesca's love for her son. Francesca is her trump card after her previous attempts to remind Emperor Corrino of the Order's influence over him backfired. Remember, Valya's ultimate plan is to get Emperor Corrino's daughter Ynez (Sarah-Sofie Boussnina) trained as a Bene Gesserit so that the Sisterhood can have one of their own sit on the throne of the Empire to protect them from impending trouble . For an indeterminate (but clearly long) period of time, Francesca could not be near Constantine. In conversation with My cityTabu says she believes this highlights the hidden power of the character.
“I think she was deliberately kept away from her son because it could have been dangerous for Valya if Francesca hung around the palace. Francesca has a very powerful position if she wants to use it. She can play her “take the son” card at any time because he is the natural heir to the throne.”
She argues that Francesca was kept away so that “she would not become powerful, put her son on the throne and turn against Valya.” Judging by the way Emperor Corrino almost jumped on her in a moment of passion the moment he saw her, Francesca has a firm hold on his heart, which means she can control him. Her mere suggestion that the emperor give his son more responsibility was enough to persuade him to appoint Constantine as leader of his new fleet. If Francesca had been there during her son's upbringing, couldn't she have persuaded Javicco to make Constantine the next leader of the Empire?
This question becomes more difficult to answer when considering how she rejects the Emperor's romantic advances at the beginning of the episode before submitting to them near the end. This could easily be seen as typical Bene Gesserit sexual manipulation. However, the woman who plays Sister Francesca doesn't think it's that easy to determine. “She says she doesn’t want to come between him and his wife, but she has very strong feelings for the emperor. She also wants to secure a place for her son,” she explains. “I don't think she played him just for the sake of the Bene Gesserit.”
No Bene Gesserit is more closely connected to the throne than Francesca, making her one of the most influential members of the Sisterhood in the series in terms of influence. We'll have to wait until the final episode to see if this influence ends up helping or hurting Valya.
