Seeing the second part of Dune, you may have noticed the absence of an important character from the first game. Thufir Hawat does not appear in this sequel for script reasons.
Dune is a dense work, difficult to adapt to the cinema. It forces the director to make choices to compile long chapters into films lasting a little over 2h30. This is why a character from the first film Dune does not appear in the sequel. His name: Thufir Hawat, played by Stephen McKinkey Henderson.
In the universe of Dune, Thufir Hawat is what we call a Mentat, a “human computer” capable of making deductions (this order replaces the use of machines, which are prohibited). He is close to Duke Leto Atreides, whom he assists and advises, in addition to playing a role in Paul’s training. By not seeing him in Dune 2, one might believe that he lost his life during the Harkonnen attack on the Atreides base located on Arrakis. But no. In an interview with ScreenCrush and published on February 26, Denis Villeneuve explains why Thufir Hawat is no longer there even though he survived.
Where did Thufir Hawat go in Dune 2?
The decision to sacrifice Thufir Hawat was obviously not easy for Denis Villeneuve. He indicates : “ I was in love with Thufir Hawat. It’s a character that I adore. But I had to make the daring choice of making an adaptation more centered on the Bene Gesserit, by focusing the film on this sorority. I wish there were more Thufir Hawat. »
Scenes with Thufir Hawat were filmed, but they were not included in the final cut of Dune 2. Conversely, the blockbuster heavily highlights the Bene Gesserit, who occupy functions that overlap with those of the Mentat. Princess Irulan (Florence Pugh) and Lady Margot (Léa Seydoux) appear alongside other important Bene Gesserit characters already known, such as Gaius Helen Mohiam (Charlotte Rampling) and Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson).
This script choice is undoubtedly also motivated by the fact that the Bene Gesserit will be entitled to their own series, via HBO. This allows Denis Villeneuve to familiarize viewers with characters who will be explored in greater depth later.
In the books, Thufir Hawat ends up serving Baron Harkonnen, who poisons him to ensure his loyalty. He then replaces Mentat Piter de Vries, who we see die in the first film Dune (when Duke Leto tries to kill Baron Harkonnen before breathing his last). He is supposed to die before the fight between Paul and Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen, at the end of Dune 2. In the end, we understand that Denis Villeneuve did not want to add complexity to his very complex story.
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