Dune prequel series set 10,000 years before Denis Villeneuve’s epic gets its first trailer

Dune Prophecy
(Image credit: HBO)

Streaming service Max has released the first trailer for its upcoming Dune TV series, titled Dune: Prophecy, which is set 10,000 years before the birth of Paul Atreides and Denis Villeneuve’s two movies.

The trailer opens with a vast look at the universe before honing in on a group of women all dressed in black sat in occult fashion in a circle. The narrator begins: "10,000 years before the birth of Paul Atreides before the universe would know us as the Bene Gesserit, we founded a sisterhood." The following clips show the making of the group as they start to inflict their powers throughout the Imperium. "Assigned to the great houses to help them sift truth from lies," the voice continues, "We created a network of influence throughout the imperium. But power comes with a price." Watch the full trailer below. 

As per the official logline, the HBO show follows "Two Harkonnen sisters as they combat forces that threaten the future of humankind, and establish the fabled sect that will become known as the Bene Gesserit."

The six-episode series set to release this fall is inspired by the novel Sisterhood of Dune written by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson. In Herbert’s fictional world, The Bene Gesserit are a powerful and political force described as an exclusive sisterhood whose members go through years of physical and mental conditioning to obtain superhuman abilities. Herbert is of course the author behind the Dune series which director Villeneuve’s epics Dune and Dune 2 are based on.

The series stars Emily Watson who we can hear narrating the trailer, The Sixth Sense’s Olivia Williams, Vikings’ Travis Fimmel, The Last of the Mohicans’ Jodhi May, and Sherlock Holmes’ Mark Strong. The cast also includes Sarah-Sofie Boussnina, Josh Heuston, Chloe Lea, Jade Anouka, Faoileann Cunningham, Edward Davis, Aoife Hinds, Chris Mason, and more. 

In terms of crew, Fringe’s Alison Schapker serves as showrunner and executive producer alongside Outlander’s Anna Foerster who also directed multiple episodes. Interestingly, author Kevin J. Anderson also serves as co-producer.

Dune: Prophecy is due to hit Max later this year. For more, see our list of the best new TV shows heading your way this year.  

Editorial Associate, GamesRadar+

I am an Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, covering TV and film for SFX and Total Film online. I have a Bachelors Degree in Media Production and Journalism and a Masters in Fashion Journalism from UAL. In the past I have written for local UK and US newspaper outlets such as the Portland Tribune and York Mix and worked in communications, before focusing on film and entertainment writing. I am a HUGE horror fan and in 2022 I created my very own single issue feminist horror magazine.