Last year, HBO tried its hand at making a Dune TV show: set 10,000 years before Paul Atreides was born, Dune: Prophecy told the story of Valya and Tula Harkonnen (Emily Watson and Olivia Williams), sisters who are in charge of the Bene Gesserit order during this early period in its history. The first season only lasted six episodes, but they were lushly produced, splendidly acted, and ended leaving fans wanting more. HBO will give it to them with a second season.
When it comes to these big sci-fi and fantasy projects, fans have gotten used to having to wait years between new seasons. Unfortunately, that looks like it will also happen with Dune: Prophecy. Although we don't know all the details, Emily Watson told ScreenRant that she expects filming on the second season to start up later this year. "I think we are going to start in the fall, and I don’t know anything [about Valya’s story]," Watson said. "I know nothing, so I’m just as excited as you are."
if cameras start rolling in the fall and continue through, one assumes, early in 2026, obviously we won't be seeing new episodes of Dune: Prophecy this year. At the earliest, we'll see them towards the end of 2026, which will mean a gap of about two years between seasons. That's not great, but hey, it could be worse.
Dune: Prophecy season 2 will finally spend time on Arrakis
After a season of Arrakis kind of exerting its pull from afar, and whether that's in the economics of spice trade or the psychological aspects of these visions and nightmares that are sort of imagery of Arrakis and Desmond's past seeping into everyone's consciousness. To actually go and put boots on the ground at this incredibly overdetermined and sort of almost mythic Dune space that we know very well, but we sort of kept it at distance the whole season," she said. "So, I think it's very significant that Valya's back there, and I also think she's back kind of at the origin point of Desmond, where he emerged from. Like, he emerged with a story and a myth, and it was I'm from Arrakis, and I was swallowed by a worm and I survived after my whole regiment was killed. I think Valya is going to find out a lot more, given that she is sort of back where Desmond sort of emerged as an adversary. And [it will] be interesting to see what she finds out there."
The first season of Dune: Prophecy ended with lots of plot threads dangling. The Bene Gesserit school on Wallach IX was in chaos as the fanatical, long-dead consciousness of Sister Dorotea possessed the body of her granddaughter Lila (Chloe Lea) and took a sledgehammer to the sisterhood's thinking machine. Meanwhile, on the imperial planet of Salusa Secundus, the emperor was dead and Tula Harkonnen was arrested by her mentally unstable, supernaturally powerful son Desmond Hart (Travis Fimmel). Finally, Valya set foot on the desert planet of Arrakis, where Desmond got his powers, to find out who's pulling his strings.
Now those are some crazy-sounding plotlines I am eager to get more of. Speaking to Space.com, showrunner Alison Schapker talked about what going to Arrakis, easily the most iconic location in the Dune franchise, means for the show:
"After a season of Arrakis kind of exerting its pull from afar, and whether that's in the economics of spice trade or the psychological aspects of these visions and nightmares that are sort of imagery of Arrakis and Desmond's past seeping into everyone's consciousness. To actually go and put boots on the ground at this incredibly overdetermined and sort of almost mythic Dune space that we know very well, but we sort of kept it at distance the whole season. So, I think it's very significant that Valya's back there, and I also think she's back kind of at the origin point of Desmond, where he emerged from. Like, he emerged with a story and a myth, and it was I'm from Arrakis, and I was swallowed by a worm and I survived after my whole regiment was killed. I think Valya is going to find out a lot more, given that she is sort of back where Desmond sort of emerged as an adversary. And [it will] be interesting to see what she finds out there."
Won't it just?
I was pleased with the first season of Dune: Prophecy. I think Schapker and company did a good job of making it feel like it was part of the Dune universe while still telling a story that felt new and original, and the incredible acting talent certainly didn't hurt. Again, we probably won't see new episodes until 2026 at the earliest, or even 2027. That's also likely around the time when director Denis Villeneuve will release the third movie in his Dune trilogy, based on the original Dune books by Frank Herbert. So maybe 2025 will be free of new Dune content, give or take Dune: Part Two hopefully taking home a bunch of Oscars in March, but in 2026 and 2027, it'll be all sand, all the time.
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