Where the Bene Gesseret, the order that includes Paul’s mother Jessica, cultivated religious practices that gave them abilities such as the Voice and finger-talking, the Bene Tleilax practiced genetic modification. Eventually, the Bene Tleilax developed complete control over their bodies, allowing themselves to change their makeup on a cellular level, essentially shapeshifting.
Face-dancers aren’t completely new to those who only watch the Dune movies and haven’t read the books. Sister Theodosia, the Bene Gesserit acolyte played by Jade Anouka in Dune: Prophecy was a Face Dancer, who used her abilities to advance Valya Harkonnen’s (Emily Watson) plans. As seen in that show, Face Dancers are a pariah among the larger society, an issue that only grows worse in the 10,000 years between that show and the events of the first Dune movie.
Thus, when Scytale enters the story, he has good reason to doubt Paul’s empire. As such, Scytale serves an important thematic role for Dune: Part Three. Herbert wrote Messiah, in part, as a rejoinder to those who saw Paul as a more or less straightforward hero. In Messiah, the critique of charismatic leaders is more obvious, making Paul feel more morally ambiguous.
It’s hard to make your readers mistrust your main character. It’s all the harder for movie audiences watching glamorous Hollywood stars to criticize the actions of the protagonist, especially when he’s played by Timothée Chalamet. Fortunately, Pattinson is the ideal counter to Chalamet. A magnetic and handsome performer in his own right, Pattinson has built his career around his ability to play against type. From Tenet to The Batman to Mickey 17, Pattinson knows how to embody people who are weirder than they seem, who shouldn’t be fully trusted.
Does that ability mean that Scytale will be a villain in Dune: Part Three? The answer depends in part on how we view Paul, but it depends just as much as on what we see when we look at the face of Scytale, a face that’s always changing.
Dune 3 arrives in theaters on December 18, 2026.
