The Worst Thing About The New ‘Dune’? NO PUGS!

As a lifelong Dune fan, there were key things I was desperate to see in Denis Villeneuve‘s brand new film adaptation on HBO Max. I wanted to make sure Villeneuve understood the nuances of the Bene Gesserit sisterhood, the sheer terror of the Sardukars, the majesty of the sandworms, and the real love Duke Leto Atreides (Oscar Isaac) and Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson) felt for their son Paul (Timothée Chalamet). Almost across the board, Dune delivered all that and more. The film finally made Duncan Idaho (Jason Momoa) cool and brought House Atreides’s weird relationship with death into focus with the bullfighting totems Frank Herbert mentions in the books. All in all, I had little to complain about — as I knew going into it, the film was only Part One of a yet unfinished duology — but there is one thing that super duper upsets me about the new Dune movie.

The new Dune movie does not have a single pug!

There is not a single snort-muffin ever seen lounging idly on Timothée Chalamet’s lap, nor does House Atreides arrive on Dune with their beloved family fart muffin in tow. When — spoiler — the Harkonnens arrive in the middle of the night to destroy House Atreides, Josh Brolin’s Gurney Halleck rushes into battle carrying just weapons. There isn’t a single love bug pug with his tongue lolling out of his mouth in this scene! It is disappointing! I went into Dune hoping Villeneuve would keep the pugs in the story, and he did not! HBO Max, I demand a refund!

Let’s back up and talk about why I assumed that pugs would be in the new Dune movie.

Here’s the thing: there are no pugs in Frank Herbert’s Dune. House Atreides does not have a cutesy family pet. They have honor and courage and ferocious fighting skills, but no family dog. However, director David Lynch decided that House Atreides would have a sweet squash-faced mascot when he directed the first official film version of Dune in 1984. The family brings this unnamed buddy with them on their interstellar trip. Later, as Arrakeen falls in battle, Patrick Stewart’s Gurney Hallack holds the pup as he bellows a war cry for Duke Leto. For my money, it’s simply one of the most iconic images from the film, next to Sting in a space diaper and Kyle MacLachlan shouting, “Father, the sleeper has awakened!” to no one but the dessert sand.

I had no reason to expect that Denis Villeneuve would keep this quirk of David Lynch’s going in the 2021 film version of Dune, and yet, I did. Giving House Atreides a sweet little innocent pug as a pet felt emblematic of the family’s deep humanity. There’s something quirky, yet beautifully right about House Atreides being represented by a pug. After all, the noble pug, like Paul, is a creature who wouldn’t exist were it not for careful breeding programs.

Instead of pugs, Villeneuve gave the family bagpipes to herald their arrival on Arrakis. It’s another swerve from the books that ties the House to traditional values, but far less fun than a pug. The pug in Lynch’s film made the Atreides feel more like a family and the image of Gurney holding the family pet felt metaphoric of the soldier’s loyalty to Duke Leto, Lady Jessica, and Paul. Honestly, a pug would have given Josh Brolin’s heroic stand even more oomph in my opinion. (But hey, that’s just my opinion, man.)

The latest film version of Dune is a monumental achievement in adaptation, but it’s not perfect. It’s still woefully unfinished, but even more disturbingly, it doesn’t have a single pug.

Where to stream Dune (2021)

Where to stream Dune (1984)