Alia Atreides

Alia Atreides
Dune character
Daniela Amavia in the Children of Dune miniseries (2003)
First appearanceDune (1963–65)
Last appearanceDune: Part Two (2024)
Created byFrank Herbert
Portrayed by
In-universe information
TitleImperial Regent
OccupationReverend Mother
AffiliationBene Gesserit
Fremen
FamilyHouse Atreides
SpouseHayt (Duncan Idaho)
Relatives
As a child actress, Alicia Witt portrayed Alia in the 1984 film Dune.

Alia Atreides (/əˈliːə əˈtreɪɪdiːz/)[1][2] is a fictional character in the Dune universe created by Frank Herbert. She was introduced in the first novel of the series, 1965's Dune, and was originally killed in Herbert's first version of the manuscript.[3] At the suggestion of Analog magazine editor John Campbell, Herbert kept her alive in the final draft.[3] Alia would next appear as a main character in both Dune Messiah (1969) and Children of Dune (1976). The character is brought back as a ghola in the Brian Herbert/Kevin J. Anderson conclusion to the original series, Sandworms of Dune (2007).

In the novels, Alia is the daughter of Duke Leto Atreides of Caladan and his Bene Gesserit concubine, Lady Jessica, and the younger sister to Paul Atreides. Born on the planet Arrakis eight months after her father's death, she possesses the full powers of an adult Bene Gesserit Reverend Mother. Later known to her followers as St. Alia of the Knife, Alia is considered an Abomination by the Bene Gesserit because of the unique nature of her birth. As an adult, she becomes a devoted ally to Paul, and later regent for his children. She marries the ghola Duncan Idaho, but becomes possessed by the persona of her deceased maternal grandfather, Baron Vladimir Harkonnen.

Alia is portrayed by Alicia Witt in David Lynch's 1984 film adaptation, by Laura Burton in the 2000 miniseries Frank Herbert's Dune, by Daniela Amavia in its 2003 sequel, Frank Herbert's Children of Dune, and by Anya Taylor-Joy in a cameo appearance in Denis Villeneuve's 2024 film Dune: Part Two.

  1. ^ "Audio excerpts from a reading of Dune by Frank Herbert". Usul.net. Archived from the original on 11 November 2010. Retrieved October 6, 2010.
  2. ^ Dune: Creating the Audiobooks (Official promotional video, includes images of Frank Herbert's pronunciation notes for some terms). Macmillan Audio. December 23, 2008. Event occurs at 4:04. Archived from the original on 2021-12-12. Retrieved January 23, 2010.
  3. ^ a b Herbert, Frank; Herbert, Brian; Anderson, Kevin J. (August 11, 2005). "The Letters of Dune". The Road to Dune. Tor Books. p. 279. ISBN 0-7653-1295-6.