“The awful makeup is so distracting”: Dune: Prophecy’s Stupidest Mistake Completely Ruins 1 Key Character
- Dune: Prophecy is going to conclude on December 22, 2024.
- Fans disappointed with Mother Superior Raquella's look on the show.
- Emily Watson would love to return for Season 2.
Alison Schapker and Diane Ademu-John’s science fiction series Dune: Prophecy, set in Frank Herbert’s Dune universe, is currently the talk of the town. Set 10,000 years before the events of Denis Villeneuve’s Dune movies, it is based on the novel Sisterhood of Dune by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson. The series is set to follow and explore the Harkonnen Sisters as they fight the forces that threaten the future of humankind and establish the fabled sector known as Bene Gesserit.
Season one of Dune: Prophecy premiered on November 17, 2024, and opened to positive responses from the critics as well as the audience. The performances of the actors have been highly appreciated. Emily Watson plays the lead on the show as Valya Harkonnen. Fans have pointed out that one character who is significant to the story has been one of the major distractions.
Fans disappointed with Mother Superior Raquella’s appearance on Dune: Prophecy
Set 10,000 years before the events of the Dune movies by Denis Villeneuve, Dune: Prophecy focuses on the origins of the sisterhood eventually known as the Bene Gesserit. The space-witch order ostensibly provides trusted advisers to the ruling Emperor of the Corrino Empire and his Imperium’s aristocratic great houses.
Actress Cathy Tyson plays Mother Superior Raquella Berto-Anirul on the show and had found Sisterhood. The character was introduced to the audience being impressed by Valya Harkonnen’s ability with The Voice and entrusting her with carrying on her vision of the Bene Gesserit.
However, fans have pointed out that even though Cathy Tyson is an amazing actress, the makeup she’s got on is very distracting. A Reddit user mentioned that her face prosthetics are super distracting and stiff. Another user also agreed by stating that it was a bad decision taken by the makers who allowed such distracting makeup to be on-screen. They wrote,
Yeah, the awful makeup is so distracting. What a terrible, bizarre decision.
Someone suggested that they should have used the makeup artists from The Penguin. Colin Farrell also used prosthetics to look aged on the show, and his appearance has been appreciated. The actor is almost unrecognizable with makeup on.
On her deathbed, Mother Raquella saw an ominous vision of the future, a prophecy. She named Valya Harkohhen as her successor and said to Valya, “You will be the one to see the burning and know the truth.”
Dune: Prophecy star Emily Watson talks about potential season 2
Emily Watson, who leads the series during an interview at HBO’s office (via Variety), shared that playing Valya Harkonnen on Dune: Prophecy is quite a departure for her compared to her previous roles. She says,
Valya is really strong, driven, kind of manipulative, and very smart and clever. She is always one step ahead. But she’s good at letting other people think that they are the ones pulling the strings when she’s controlling the narrative. It’s kind of a dark art that she practices.
The well-respected and celebrated actress got an opportunity to attend Comic-Con for the first time, where she was overwhelmed by the size and enthusiasm of the crowd. She noted that most things she has done were loved and helped her to grow, but Dune: Prophecy’s role is a phenomenon from the beginning. She thanked fans for being so enthusiastic about the show.
Upon asking about the potential Season 2, the actress noted,
That’s the goal—have the whole thing carry on. I had a blast doing this, and I would love to do more. But you just don’t know until it’s quite close to the wire. That’s the actor’s life. There’s a lot of uncertainty.
The actress concluded that she had done her part, and now it’s the audience and their reaction that is going to decide the future of the show. She recalled that Robert Altman had once told her that making a movie is like making a sandcastle on the beach. One has to sit back in a deck chair with a beer and watch the tide take the castle away. She added one has to be Zen about it.
Dune: Prophecy is going to conclude season 1 on December 22, 2024. It is available to stream on HBO.
