Summary
- Deaths in Dune are surprising due to major changes from the original novel, making some deaths shocking even for fans familiar with the story.
- The movie covers betrayal, war, and political intrigue, resulting in characters meeting violent ends like being stabbed, poisoned, or attacked by sandworms.
- Villeneuve's adaptation condenses key storylines, leading to some confusing character deaths, but all are vital to Herbert's grand narrative.
When it comes to who dies in Dune, director David Villeneuve managed to even surprise those viewers familiar with the source material by making a few key changes. While 2021's Dune mostly follows the story of Frank Herbert’s original sci-fi novel of the same name, some of the movie's characters meet their end in a notably different way from how things play out in the book. Because of these changes, and because of the massive amount of narrative content covered throughout Dune, some of the deaths were shocking (even to those well versed in Herbert's work).
The story of Dune is one of betrayal, war, political intrigue, and religious zeal. With all that drama, the expected lifespan isn’t long for characters populate Dune. In Villeneuve’s movie, which only covers the first half of the original novel, major Dune characters are stabbed, poisoned, or otherwise slain, and it’s just the beginning of Paul Atreides’ journey. Because some of the rivalries and secret motivations of characters are brushed over in the Dune movie, some of the major Dune character deaths can be a bit confusing, but they are all important for Herbert’s grand story.
Every Death In Dune |
|
|---|---|
Name |
Manner Of Death |
Dr. Wellington Yueh |
Knife Slice To Throat |
Duke Leto Atreides |
Suicide |
Piter De Vries |
Poison |
Dr. Liet-Kynes |
Sand Worm Attack |
Duncan Idaho |
Self-Sacrifice To Save Paul |
|
Fremen Jamis
|
Duel To The Death |
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Dr. Wellington Yueh
Killed By Baron Harkonnen
The first main character to die in Villeneuve’s Dune is Dr. Wellington Yueh (Chen Chang), the family physician to House Atreides. Though he barely features at all in the movie, Dr. Yueh is a much larger character in Herbert's version of the Dune timeline, which fully explains how his wife was captured by the Harkonnens and how Yueh chose to betray the Atreides to try to save her.
He goes against the Duke anyway because he believes it’s the only way to get close enough to Baron Vladimir Harkonnen to kill him.
In the book, Yueh is pretty sure from the start that his wife is dead, but he goes against the Duke anyway because he believes it’s the only way to get close enough to Baron Vladimir Harkonnen to kill him. For all his efforts, the doctor still dies at the hands of the Baron's Mentat advisor, Piter de Vries, after House Harkonnen takes back Arrakis. In the film, Yueh dies in the same scene, but at the hands of the Baron himself, who mockingly says he can now his wife and then slashes his throat.
Duke Leto Atreides
Death By Suicide While Trying To Kill Baron Karkonnen
)Shortly after Dr. Yueh's death, the next major character to die in Dune is Duke Leto Atreides (Oscar Isaac), father to Paul (Timothée Chalamet) and partner to Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson). Leto is given stewardship over the planet Arrakis, known colloquially as Dune, in a veiled attempt by the Emperor to do away with him. In both the novel and the 2021 film adaption, the Duke is betrayed and knocked out by Dr. Yueh as a bargaining chip for his wife's safety.
While many individuals die here, the assassination attempt ultimately fails.
Yueh replaces Leto's false tooth with a hidden poison capsule, and when face-to-face with Baron Karkonnen, the Duke bites down on the tooth and fills the room with poisonous gas, killing himself in the process. While many individuals die here, the assassination attempt ultimately fails. The Baron is injured, but is able to survive by activating his body shield and clinging to the ceiling.
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Piter De Vries
Killed By Duke Leto Atreides
Another character whose role in Villeneuve’s Dune movie is greatly reduced from the original novel is Baron Harkonnen's creepy servent Piter De Vries (David Dastmalchian), who dies quite unceremoniously. In the original Dune book, Piter is killed by the Duke’s suicidal toxin attack on Baron Harkonnen, as he’s present in the room as are several other prominent figures.
The movie doesn’t actually confirm that Piter died from the poison, but given that he was present at the scene, and that the Baron appeared to be the only one to survive, it’s reasonable to assume that Piter was killed in the same way as in Herbert’s Dune book franchise. It was a sad death and a lackluster appearance for a character who played such a strong role in helping House Harkonnen reach its level of power in the Dune universe to begin with. The fact that his death was barely acknowledged shows the lack of care for the villain.
Dr. Liet-Kynes
Eaten By A Sand Worm After Being Stabbed
Much later in the story of Dune, Dr. Liet-Kynes (Sharon Duncan-Brewster) is killed while traversing the treacherous sands of Arrakis. In the movie, Kynes escapes the Sardaukar attack on her Fremen base and almost gets to safety on the back of a sandworm. Unfortunately, before the worm arrives, Kynes is stabbed from behind by one of the enemy soldiers. Before she dies, the worm she summoned with her thumper device arrives, swallowing her and her assailants whole, killing them all.
This is a notable change from the story of the Dune novel, in which Kynes is captured by the Harkonnen forces first. Because the doctor is an agent of the emperor—not someone they want to kill directly—the Harkonnens strand Kynes in the desert with no stillsuit. Dehydrated and exhausted, Kynes, who’s a man in the original Dune novel, begins to hallucinate a conversation with his late father. Kynes is then killed by the explosion of a pre-spice mass, part of the growth process of the spice Melange that brings it from underground to the surface.
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Duncan Idaho
Sacrifices Himself To The Sardaukar To Protect Paul & Lady Jessica
Perhaps the most epic death scene in the Dune movie belongs to Duncan Idaho (Jason Momoa), who sacrifices himself in glorious fashion protecting Dr. Kynes, Paul, and Lady Jessica from a Sardaukar attack. The scene is basically the exact same in the movie as it is in the book, with Duncan impressively holding the enemies at bay despite being severely outnumbered, while the others make their escape through Kynes’ secret tunnels.
If Dune's sequels follow the plot of Herbert’s novels, however, audiences may not have seen the last of Momoa’s Duncan Idaho. While he never showed back up in Dune Chapter 2, in the books, Duncan Idaho survives via advanced technology. While he dies in the books as well as in the movie, in the novels he resurrects as what is known as a ghola, which is the Dune universe's word for clones. While he has no memory of his past life, and uses the name Hayt, he has vague hints at what his previous incarnation stood for.
Fremen Jamis
Killed By Paul Atreides In A Ritual Duel To The Death
The final major character death of Villeneuve’s film occurs near the very end of Dune, when Paul kills the Fremen Jamis (Babs Olusanmokun) in a ritual duel to the death. The scene is basically the same in both versions, with Jamis being outraged at Paul and Lady Jessica’s ability to overcome him and his fellow Fremen in a scuffle, challenging the boy to a duel to prove his superiority to the off-worlder. This death really effects Paul, as he saw Jamis in visions as a friend and mentor.
However, Paul couldn't allow him to live in ritual combat because of the Tahaddi challenge rules, and Paul stabs Janis in the heart. In the book, the battle takes place a little later on, after Paul has already been accepted into the Fremen society, as opposed to the movie, where he effectively earns his spot in the tribe by killing Jamis. Either way, the result is the same, earning the young Lord the respect of the Fremen and setting up their alliance in the next installment of Dune.
Dune
- Release Date
- October 22, 2021
- Runtime
- 155 minutes
- Director
- Denis Villeneuve
Cast
Rebecca Ferguson
WHERE TO WATCH
Dune the big-screen adaptation of Frank Herbert’s seminal bestseller of the same name. A mythic and emotionally charged hero’s journey, Dune tells the story of Paul Atreides, a brilliant and gifted young man born into a great destiny beyond his understanding, who must travel to the most dangerous planet in the universe to ensure the future of his family and his people. As malevolent forces explode into conflict over the planet’s exclusive supply of the most precious resource in existence—a commodity capable of unlocking humanity’s greatest potential—only those who can conquer their fear will survive.
- Writers
- Frank Herbert, Eric Roth, Denis Villeneuve, Jon Spaihts
- Studio(s)
- Legendary Pictures
- Distributor(s)
- Warner Bros. Pictures
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