When Denis Villeneuve’s Dune arrives, it’s going to tell an epic, fantastical story of intertwined destinies, intergalactic deserts and the mind-bogglingly huge sandworms that roam them – but like the best sci-fi, including Villeneuve’s own Arrival and Blade Runner 2049, it has something to say about our own world. It’s a tale of exploitation and control of resources, with the sand-swirling planet Arrakis being the home of ‘spice’, the universe’s most sought-after substance. Duke Leto (Oscar Isaac) of House Atreides is forced to be its new governor, but faces opposition from the Fremen – Arrakis’ indigenous people, including Javier Bardem’s tribe leader Stilgar. Take a brand new look at Stilgar and the Fremen people in a world-exclusive image from Empire’s new Dune issue, on sale Thursday 3 September.
For Isaac, the relevance of Dune, with its anti-capitalist and environmentalist themes, felt clear. “It’s about the destiny of a people, and the different way that cultures have dominated other ones,” he said. “How do a people respond when it’s at the tipping point, when enough is enough, when they’re exploited? All those things are things we’re seeing around the world right now.”
If Isaac’s Duke Leto – father of Timothée Chalamet’s protagonist Paul Atreides – looks an imposing figure, so too is Paul’s mother, the Bene Gesserit witch Lady Jessica, played by Rebecca Ferguson.
Villeneuve was keen to showcase just what she’s capable of as a character in his adaptation. “I didn’t want Lady Jessica to be an expensive extra,” the director said. “Something I deeply love in the book is that there was a strong balance between the masculine power and feminine power.”
See more exclusive images from Empire’s Dune issue here, and pick up the issue – going on set to Arrakis and beyond, and talking to Villeneuve, Chalamet, Ferguson, Isaac, Zendaya, Jason Momoa, Josh Brolin and more – on shelves this Thursday, 3 September.
Pre-order a copy with free UK delivery now – choose the House Atreides cover here, the [Fremen cover here](https://www.greatmagazines.co.uk/empire-october-2020-cover-2?utm_source= dynamic&utm_medium=bws&utm_content=dunescover2&utm_campaign=empire_singles), or a discounted bundle featuring both editions here.