Anya Taylor-Joy Dune 2 Secret Role Revealed
Anya Taylor-Joy has officially been confirmed as part of the Dune 2 cast. Rumors started swirling when eagle-eyed fans noticed that Denis Villeneuve’s Dune sequel was listed on Taylor-Joy’s Letterboxd as a film she stars in. While the credit was removed, Variety has now confirmed that the rumors are true after Taylor-Joy made a surprise appearance at the film’s London premiere.
Anya Taylor-Joy Is A Surprise Addition To Dune 2
While it’s nice to get confirmation that Anya Taylor-Joy is in Dune 2, it does beg the question: who is she playing? If you are familiar with the source material, the answer does seem pretty obvious. Here’s your spoiler warning for Frank Herbert’s book and potentially Dune 2.
Is She Alia Atredides?
Anya Taylor-Joy is almost undoubtedly playing Alia Atreides, the younger sister of Paul Atreides (Timothee Chalamet) and daughter of Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson). The only weird part of this is the fact that Alia is a toddler in the books. In fact, she’s only two years old by the end of the book.
Connected To Rebecca Ferguson’s Lady Jessica
However, Alia Atreides is far from a normal child. Lady Jessica undergoes a ritual to become a Bene Gesserit Reverend Mother while pregnant with Alia, leading Alia to be born with the consciousness and powers of an adult Reverend Mother. The fact that Alia speaks like an adult means that Anya Taylor-Joy would be a good fit to play her.
A Complicated Character
With that being said, Alia still looks like a child, and her voice sounds childish in the books despite speaking like an adult. Undoubtedly, Denis Villeneuve has found some unique ways to portray this strange character on screen. While the character was played by a child actor in David Lynch’s version of the film, having Anya Taylor-Joy play this enigmatic character in Dune 2 should help to give the character more of the gravitas she carries in the book.
A Different Theory
There is one potential explanation for Denis Villeneuve’s approach, as a previously revealed character description for Alia in Dune 2 described her as “an embryo who advises her mother from the womb.” Is it possible that Alia might not even be born in this film, and instead, we’ll see Lady Jessica hearing Alia talk to her in the womb? That would mean Anya Taylor-Joy is only voicing the character for now.
Smaller Than The Book Role?
This approach would make sense, especially since Villeneuve previously revealed that he wants Lady Jessica to have a bigger role than she did in the second half of the book. Lady Jessica could take Alia’s place in some major story events, with Alia still being present since she’s still communicating with Lady Jessica from her womb. This would likely mean Anya Taylor-Joy’s role in Dune 2 is a bit smaller than Alia’s role in the books.
A Major Part Of Dune 3
However, Anya Taylor-Joy would play a much bigger role if the franchise continues past Dune 2. Denis Villeneuve has expressed his desire to adapt Dune Messiah to the big screen, so this wouldn’t be the last time Taylor-Joy plays the character. In any case, we won’t have to wait long to find out more about Taylor-Joy’s role, as Dune 2 hits theaters on March 1.
