Dune: Who Are The Dead Characters? Will They Come Back? Explained
Paul Atreides the descendant of House Atreides, is the main protagonist of Denis Villeneuve’s film Dune and Frank Herbert’s classic book series of the same name. In the film as in the books, he begins his journey with recurring dreams about the deserted planet Arrakis and a mysterious young woman Fremen.
He is traveling with his parents and the rest of the family when the Emperor of the Known Universe entrusts House Atreides with the stewardship of Arrakis, where the most precious substance in the entire universe, the Blend, is found in abundance. or Spice. However, soon after arriving on Arrakis, Paul’s father is captured and killed by enemies of the family, prompting Paul to escape with his mother.
Who Died In Dune?
Dr. Wellington Yueh
The first main character who died in Dune is Dr. Wellington Yueh, the family doctor of House Atreides. In the book, Yueh is pretty sure from the start that his wife is dead, but he still goes against the Duke because he thinks it’s the only way to get close enough to Baron Vladimir Harkonnen to kill him. Despite all his efforts, the doctor dies at the hands of the baron.
Duke Leto Atreides
Shortly after Dr. Yueh, the next major character to die in Dune is Duke Leto Atreides, father of Dune protagonist and dreamer Paul and partner of Lady Jessica. Leto is given stewardship of the planet Arrakis, known colloquially as Dune, in a veiled attempt by the Emperor to get rid of him.
In the novel and the 2021 film adaptation, the Duke is betrayed and knocked out by Dr. Yueh, in exchange for his wife’s safety. Yueh replaces Leto’s fake tooth with a hidden poison capsule and, facing Baron Karkonnen, the Duke bites the tooth and fills the room with poison gas, killing himself in the process. Although many people are killed, the assassination attempt ultimately fails. The Baron is injured but can survive by activating his body shield and hanging on to the ceiling.
Piter De Vries
Another character whose role in the movie Dune is significantly reduced compared to the original novel is Piter De Vries, who died unceremoniously. In Dune’s original book, Piter is killed by the Duke’s suicidal toxin attack on Baron Harkonnen. The movie doesn’t actually confirm that Piter died of the poison, but given that he was present at the scene and the Baron appeared to be the only survivor, it’s reasonable to assume that he was killed in the same manner as in Herbert’s Dune franchise.
Dr. Liet-Kynes
Much later in Dune’s history, Dr. Liet-Kynes is killed as she walks through the treacherous sands of Arrakis. In the film, she escapes the Sardaukar attack on her Fremen base and almost manages to get to safety on the back of a sandworm.
Unfortunately, before the worm arrives, Kynes is stabbed from behind by one of the enemy soldiers. Before she dies, the worm she summoned with her detonator device arrives, swallows her and her attackers entirely, killing them all.
Duncan Idaho
Arguably the most epic death scene in the Dune movie belongs to Duncan Idaho who gloriously sacrifices himself to protect Dr. Kynes, Paul, and Lady Jessica from an attack by Sardaukars. The scene is pretty much the same in the movie as it is in the book.
Duncan impressively holding enemies in check despite a much lower number of men, while the others escape through the secret tunnels of Kynes. If Dune 2 and the other potential sequels follow the plot of Herbert’s novels, audiences may not be done seeing Momoa’s Duncan Idaho.
Fremen Jamis
Villeneuve’s last great character death in the film comes towards the very end of Dune when Paul kills the Fremen Jamis in a ritual duel to the death. The scene is basically the same in both versions: Jamis, outraged by Paul and Lady Jessica’s ability to defeat them, he and his fellow Fremen, during a brawl, challenges the boy to a duel to prove his superiority over abroad.
