By the time “Dune: Messiah” swings around, it’s as much Alia’s story as it is her brother Paul’s, as he’s still battling with the decisions that have sent the universe into disarray and sparked various plots and conspiracies against his family. It’s this that sends Alia on a journey of her own along with a familiar friend to Paul, who was thought to be lost only to return from the dead to chip knives and mess up a variety of enemies.
Yes, in what would no doubt have audiences on their feet if and whenever the third film arrives, “Dune: Messiah” also sees the return of Jason Momoa’s Duncan Idaho, who was last seen sacrificing himself to protect Paul in “Dune: Part One.” In “Messiah,” Idaho returns as a ghola, a clone given as a gift to Paul, and he eventually falls in love with and marries Alia. It’s a vital part of her story — along with taking over from Paul as Regent — that would lead her to become a central presence in the third and final chapter of Villeneuve’s planned trilogy. If it does, it’s certainly something to look forward to, given that even in “Dune: Part Two,” Taylor-Joy does an excellent job of bringing Alia to life and could no doubt continue to do so when the sands shift and the anticipated threequel closes off Villeneuve’s epic endeavor.
