Anya Taylor-Joy joined the already star-studded cast of Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi epic Dune: Part Two. The film already has present-day A-listers such as Timothee Chalamet, Zendaya, Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, Rebecca Ferguson, Christopher Walken, and more. Taylor-Joy’s cameo was a tight secret, which was only revealed after the film premiered last month.
Anya Taylor-Joy plays the role of Alia Atreides, the unborn daughter of Lady Jessica and sister of Paul Atreides in Dune: Part Two. Her brief cameo is reportedly part of a vision and sets her up for a potential adaptation of the second novel Dune Messiah. If Villeneuve chooses to adapt the sequel novels, he might have to explore a disturbing relationship between Taylor-Joy’s Alia and Jason Momoa’s Duncan Idaho. Spoilers ahead.
Anya Taylor-Joy’s Cameo Was A Well-Kept Secret
Denis Villeneuve’s Dune franchise has boasted of the best of A-listers in its cast. While the first film had Timothee Chalamet, Zendaya, Javier Bardem, Oscar Isaac, Stellan Skarsgard, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Jason Momoa, and more, the second film added to the list with Florence Pugh, Austin Butler, and Christopher Walken.
Despite the huge scale of the project and all the stars, the film still had room for one more A-lister for a brief cameo. In the London premiere of Dune: Part Two, Furiosa star Anya Taylor-Joy was seen in Arrakis-appropriate attire and seemingly confirmed her appearance in the film. Taylor-Joy’s involvement was kept a secret until the last moment.
Denis Villeneuve told The Hollywood Reporter that he wanted to experiment on how long a film of that scale could keep a secret as Hollywood was the most “gossipy town”. He said,
“I think that Hollywood is the most gossipy town on earth and I wanted, as an experiment, to see how long we could keep a secret. We did it. It was a special unit, we went to Africa to shoot with Anya under super-secrecy. I just loved the idea to keep something a surprise for the audience until the very end; it was like a gift I wanted to keep for the fans.”
Villeneuve also mentioned to Entertainment Weekly that extensive effort was taken to ensure that the secret was not out and that everyone had to ‘sign in blood’ to not give it away.
Who Does Anya Taylor-Joy Play And What Does The Future Hold?
Anya Taylor-Joy reportedly plays the role of Alia Atreides in Dune: Part Two. She reportedly appears in a brief cameo, where her brother Paul Atreides (played by Timothe Chalamet) has a vision of his grown-up sister guiding him through the desert. In the events of the film, Alia is reportedly still not born and is only seen communicating with her mother, Lady Jessica.
In Frank Herbert’s novels, Alia Atriedes has a more prominent role in the war. She reportedly grows to till the age of four while Paul and Jessica move with the Fremen of Arrakis. According to Slash Film, Alia is reportedly an extremely powerful being, having the mental capabilities of an adult despite being a child. In the books, she also reportedly leads an army.
Alia Atreides has more to do in the sequels Dune Messiah and Children of Dune, where she reportedly gets into a relationship with Duncan Idaho. Idaho, played by Jason Momoa in the Dune franchise, is Paul’s weapons teacher and a master swordsman, who was last seen sacrificing his life while battling the Sardaukar in Dune: Part One.
With Denis Villeneuve reportedly working on a Dune Messiah adaptation to complete his trilogy of the franchise, there are chances that Anya Taylor-Joy might get to play her character as Alia Atreides in a full-fledged role. However, the relationship between Momoa’s Duncan Idaho and Alia Atreides might be too disturbing for the audiences due to the huge gap between the two.
While Dune Messiah can certainly build on Alia’s character and her role in the workings of the Dune universe as she gets possessed by the ghost of Baron Harkonnen, her grandfather, the relationship between Idaho and her might be too creepy. It has the capability of being something akin to Twilight’s Jacob imprinting on Bella Swan’s daughter.
