16 things Star Wars stole from Dune that you simply cannot unsee
By Anwesha Nag
8. Main characters descending from powerful villains
The Empire Strikes Back gives us one of the biggest moments in cinematic history when Darth Vader tells Luke Skywalker, "I am your father." The quote not only became a part of the colloquial tongue, but the revelation was the cornerstone for a large chunk of Star Wars lore we have today. It is also yet another thing the franchise may have taken from Herbert's story.
In Dune 2, Paul finds out his secret lineage after drinking the Water of Life. He has Harkonnen blood flowing through him alongside that of Atreides, as his mother, Lady Jessica, happens to be the daughter of Baron Vladimir Harkonnen, the hedonistic head of the Great House that worked with Emperor Shaddam IV to massacre House Atreides.
Unlike Luke, Paul chooses to lean into the identity and embrace its darkness, which he then uses to kill most of the Harkonnen bloodline, including the Baron, Rabban (Dave Bautista), and Feyd-Rautha (Austin Butler).
A similar storyline was written for Rey in the Star Wars sequels where she finds out she is Emperor Palpatine's granddaughter but chooses not to go down the Dark Side anyway. She confers the Skywalker surname upon herself after being trained and mentored by Luke, at the end of The Rise of the Skywalker.
9. Sarlaccs vs. Sandworms
With some of the more complex similarities behind us, let's take a look at the simpler ones. It wouldn't be fair to accuse George Lucas of copying the idea of gigantic worms that hide in the sands of the desert. Even for Herbert, it is barely original, if one thinks about old fairytales and folklore.
Nevertheless, the Sarlaccs in Star Wars look awfully similar to the Sandworms in Dune.
Sandworms in Dune are giant, sand-dwelling creatures with a gaping, many-toothed abyss for a mouth that swallows anything in its sight whole. Sarlaccs are no different. However, once again, the Sandworms of Arrakis are a more important part of the story, given what they mean to the Fremen. The worms are their only mode of transportation in the desert. Learning to summon a Sandworm and successfully ride it is part of their upbringing.
The Sarlaccs have no such role in Star Wars. They exist only to be an inconvenience, and so do other desert monsters like the krayt dragon or the six-armed ape we saw in The Book of Boba Fett.
