Will We See the Most Powerful Dune Baby Ever Again?

All hardcore Dune fans know that the child conceived by Lady Margot Fenring and Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen never appeared in any of Frank Herbert’s six original Dune novels. But, one theory about Dune: Part Two, could change all of that. By breaking new ground with one specific scene, it seems possible that a new version of the Dune canon could emerge either in a future film or a hypothetical TV series.

Here’s why one very obscure Dune character, previously only relegated to non-canon books, could suddenly get her due, and maybe rewrite the Dune saga in the process.

Spoilers and speculation ahead.

Lady Fenring seduces Feyd

In Dune: Part Two, we find Lady Fenring (Léa Seydoux) seducing Feyd (Austin Butler), all under the orders of the Bene Gesserit to sire a child from Feyd’s bloodline. The idea here is that Feyd is from another genetic line that the Bene Gesseirt has controlled, with the intention of creating another Kwisatz Haderach. This scene is straight from the original 1965 novel and has never been depicted in any other Dune adaptation before. The reason why we’ve never had an on-screen Lady Fenring is somewhat axiomatic; because the seduction of Feyd doesn’t result in a plot point later in the original novels, showing this happening onscreen may have just not made sense before. Plus, we now know that Lady Fenring’s husband, Count Fenring (as played by Tim Blake Nelson) was cut from the final film.

If Lady Fenring’s seduction of Feyd leads to a plot dead-end in the original books, why is it in the movie? The short answer is that it’s likely director Denis Villeneuve isn’t trying to set anything up here, but rather, demonstrate the power of the Bene Gesserit overall. In several interviews, including with Inverse, Villeneuve has made it clear that his version of Dune puts extra emphasis on the Bene Gesserit and that his intent is “a declaration of love to the Bene Gesserit.”

So, the notion that Villeneuve simply wanted more Bene Gesserit influence in the movie may be enough. We don’t even know if a third Dune film will happen, meaning that reading too much into Lady Fenring’s unborn baby might be misplaced fan theorizing. Unless...

Dune theory: Could Marie Fenring be rebooted?

The child of Margot Fenring and Feyd-Rautha doesn’t appear in Frank Herbert’s six original Dune books, but she does appear in the 2008 spinoff novel Paul of Dune, written by Kevin J. Anderson and Brian Herbert. This book partially takes place in between the events of Dune and Dune Messiah, which means that elements of it certainly show up in a hypothetical Dune: Part Three movie. In Paul of Dune, the child version of Marie Fenring comes to Arrakis and becomes a playmate of Alia, who is also a child at this point. Because all of this happens before Messiah, the novel attempts to retcon what happened to Marie Fenring and depicts a moment when Alia kills Marie, after young Marie tries to kill Paul.

To be clear, these events are not considered to be real-deal canon by most Dune fans. And yet, the timeline of this mid-quel-ish book matches up perfectly with the ending of Dune: Part Two. Because Dune Messiah jumps ahead 12 years, most of Paul’s holy war happens off of the page. If a movie version of Dune Messiah were to feature Marie Fenring, then some of the timeline could be altered to put it closer to the events of Paul of Dune, and thus, closer to the end of Dune: Part Two.

Bottom line: If Villeneuve does want to continue the story of Lady Margot Fenring and her daughter, there’s one book to support that idea, and the timeline matches up perfectly. Just because something didn’t happen in the original Frank Herbert books, doesn’t mean the movie versions can’t be different. And if Dune Messiah does become a movie, there’s a good bet that the seduction scene in Dune: Part Two could end up being surprisingly relevant. Count Fenring may be cut out of Dune 2, and Margot Fenring’s scenes may be short, but Marie Fenring might still come back with a vengeance.

Dune: Part Two is out in theaters now.