Dune is shining on the billboard. What many viewers wonder is why they have changed the gender of a character.
Since Denis Villeneuve revealed that he was working on Dune, fans of the novel by Frank Herbert they were eager to see what the director’s vision was on this story. More if we take into account that, from the age of 14, the filmmaker wanted to work on this famous novel and take it to the big screen. And while in many ways it stayed true to the original story, it also made some changes. Like, for example, Dr. Liet Kynes, who has changed sex on her arrival on the big screen.
Dr. Kynes is in charge of helping the Atreides family, as she explains how to understand the terrain of Arrakis and how to work with the spice. Without a doubt, the work of this character is essential to make the mission successful. The truth is that in Frank Herbert’s novel, the character is a man. However, Denis Villeneuve and the producers felt that said character deserved an update.
Why did they change the sex?
Times change and audiences demand that there be more female representation on the big screen. For this reason, Denis Villeneuve decided that this character from Dune have a sex change. Remember that the original novel was released in the 60s, therefore in history there are more male than female characters. For this reason, they felt that Kynes was the perfect opportunity to craft a complex, determining and feminine role. Also, in the production notes, the team reveals that they chose the doctor since this modification had been approved by the author.
“In general, in this story, men are the majority, there are only three women. They are three powerful and integral elements in our story, much like the role of Kynes, who embarks on a rich and complex dialogue for audiences to broaden their perspective while keeping Frank and his original mission within our hearts and minds of the century. XXI », explained actress Sharon Duncan-Brewster.
According to the actress herself, Dr. Liet Kynes is a character who immediately caught her. “He is someone who has a lot of power in the palm of his hands, power in the form of information and secrets. Later, when you peel off the layers and excavate every part of its nature, you begin to understand that it is under enormous pressure to keep everything under control: the culture, the delicate socio-ecology, the politics., he assured.
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