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‘Dune: Part Two’ removed Thugir Hawat from the story, what happens with the character in the novel?
Director Denis Villeneuve admits that removing this character was a difficult decision, but that it was necessary to focus ‘Dune: Part Two’ and its themes.
Thufir Hawat is the mentor of Paul Atreides, a character played by Stephen McKinley Henderson in the first film that has been deleted from ‘Dune: Part 2′, although his role in the novel is quite relevant. Director Denis Villeneuve described this decision as one of the most painful to make, although he recalled that when it comes to adapting, these types of sacrifices are usually made. “When you adapt, there’s always some kind of violence toward the original material”, said the director in statements to Entertainment Weekly. “You have to change things, you have to bend, you have to make painful choices.” And yes, Thufir Hawat has been one of them.
“One of the most painful choices for me on this one was Thufir Hawat. He’s a character I absolutely love, but I decided right at the beginning that I was making a Bene Gesserit adaptation. That meant that Mentats are not as present as they should be, but it’s the nature of the adaptation.”
The Mentats are human beings who profess a discipline that serves to replace computers and artificial intelligence, prohibited within the ‘Dune’ universe. Since they have certain similarities with the Bene Gesserit, the filmmaker has preferred to focus on this peculiar cult.
What happened to Thufir after the Atreides massacre?
In Frank Herbert’s novel, Thufir Hawat survives the betrayal of the Harkonnens, which culminates in the murder of Duke Leto Atreides and the escape of Paul and Lady Jessica. The heir of the Atreides meets the Fremen, becomes their leader, and survives the harsh desert, but what happens to Hawat? Baron Harkonnen forces him to serve his house, happily as Thufir had thwarted his plans on more than one occasion. What they don’t know is that the Mentat is going to try to manipulate them and destroy them from within.
When Paul restores Atreides rule on Arrakis, Thufir realizes that in a way he has worked against him without knowing it, as he fought against Muad’Dib without knowing that it was Paul himself. Instead of using the poison needle against the heir of the Atreides, he gives his life for him and commits suicide.