HBO Max’s Dune Prequel Begins Filming

The Dune franchise has been thriving for several decades now, with Frank Herbert’s ambitious sci-fi world thriving in some unexpected ways. One upcoming component of that is set to be Dune: The Sisterhood, a live-action HBO Max series that will serve as a prequel to Warner Bros.’ recent hit films. The series has been assembling an all-star ensemble in recent weeks — and now it looks like they’re officially getting to work on the show. Emmy-winning director Johan Renck, who will helm the first two episodes, recently took to Instagram to reveal that filming on The Sisterhood began on Tuesday, November 22nd. “Through machinations taking place millenia before the story you all know, we descend into the coven that one day shall be named the Bene Gesserit,” Renck’s caption reads in part.

Dune: The Sisterhood will star Emily Watson, Shirley Henderson, Indira Varma, Travis Fimmel, Sarah-Sofie Boussnina, Shalom Brune-Franklin, Faoileann Cunningham, Aoife Hinds, and Chloe Lea. Diane Ademu-John serves as creator, writer, co-showrunner and executive producer. Alison Schapker is co-showrunner and executive producer. The series will be written by returning franchise writer Jon Spaihts, with Diane Ademu-John as showrunner.

What is Dune: The Sisterhood about?

Dune: The Sisterhood has been previously described as being told through the eyes of a mysterious order of women known as the Bene Gesserit. Given extraordinary abilities by their mastery of the body and the mind, the Bene Gesserit expertly weave through the feudal politics and intrigue of The Imperium, pursuing plans of their own that will ultimately lead them to the enigmatic planet Arrakis, known to its inhabitants as Dune.

“Oh, that is carrying on and I’m not allowed to talk about it very much,” Spaihts previously said during an interview with The Playlist. “But that effort is alive and well. I ended up getting moved off of it to work, not just on Dune: Part Two, but to investigate other cinematic prospects in the Dune universe, which we are still talking about and which, again, I’m not allowed to say very much about. But it is a very rich world in which to play, and I think it is ripe with opportunities for storytelling in every direction. They’re well down the road, but I honestly don’t know the details of the timing.”

Are you excited for Dune: The Sisterhood? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!