The recently-delayed adaptation of Dune directed by Denis Villeneuve is a massive, interweaving story, filled with politics, schemes and betrayals. At the center of the narrative is the noble House Atreides, who desperately seek to survive a conspiracy to kill them all.
Here's a look at the major players in House Atreides and their roles within the larger plot of Dune.
Paul Atreides
The hero of the first novel, Paul is the ducal heir of House Atreides, the legally recognized and beloved son of the Duke and his mother, the ducal concubine. He was raised receiving the finest education and combat training possible. Paul is brilliant, brave, compassionate and capable, but haunted by prophetic dreams.
Compounding his sense of detachment, his only real companions growing up were the soldiers and advisers in service to his father. He is the product of centuries of planned breeding by the Sisterhood of the Bene Gesserit, with the potential of being the Kwisatz Haderach -- their engineered messiah. Paul's true power and destiny are greater than anyone can imagine.
Duke Leto Atreides
The rightful head of the ancient House Atreides, the Duke is a consummate leader whose decisiveness and valuing of his subjects' well-being inspires fierce loyalty. Born and raised on his ancestral homeworld of Caladan, the Duke is a stoic figure prone to occasional outbursts of anger and bouts of melancholy.
Despite this, Leto is a good man at his core. He desperately tries to be a better, more caring father than his own. Equally, his love for the Lady Jessica is profound, bordering on awe. His greatest regret is not marrying her because of the political advantages remaining unwed gave him. He is Emperor Shaddam IV's distant cousin and has roused his suspicions. The Emperor fears Duke Leto is growing too popular with the other noble houses, an effect of his natural charisma. Leto knows being sent to rule Dune is a death trap meant to get him out of the Emperor's way, but doesn't want his family to fear the walls closing in.
Lady Jessica
Regal, politically-minded, fiercely nurturing and deceptively dangerous, Jessica is not to be underestimated. On paper, the Lady Jessica is merely Leto's Ducal Concubine. In reality, she is the only companion the Duke has ever known, his wife in every sense that counts -- and she is shown the appropriate respect.
A trained member of the Bene Gesserit Sisterhood, she was part of their century-spanning breeding program. Leto's father purchased her for his son, but as they grew up, the two fell deeply in love. It was out of her love that Jessica gave Leto the son he wished for, instead of the daughter she was ordered by the Sisterhood to conceive. She then spent all of Paul's life training him in the secret ways of the Bene Gesserit, another instruction from her Sisterhood that she chose to disobey. Her act of rebellion is the catalyst for everything to come in Dune.
Gurney Halleck
Gurney is House Atreides's Warmaster and one of Paul's combat teachers. A warrior with the heart of a poet, Gurney is rarely found without his baliset nearby. He seemingly has a quote or a song for every occasion and his talents are frequently called upon to ease tensions and soothe spirits.
Despite his artful soul, Gurney is a powerful and feared combatant. He learned to fight for his life in House Harkonnen's slave pits. Leto rescued Gurney from that life and Gurney has been loyal to House Atreides ever since. He's taken a particular shine to Paul over their many hours of training, caring for him as much as he does Leto.
Duncan Idaho
A swordmaster and one of the finest soldiers in service to House Atreides, Duncan frequently serves as Leto's right-hand man. Because he's younger than most of the Duke's other close counsel, he formed a particularly strong, almost brotherly bond with Paul. He also trained Paul in combat, teaching him approaches that favored finesse as opposed to Gurney's more practical lethality.
His competence, loyalty and bravery make Duke Leto send Duncan to Dune in advance, seeking to form an alliance with the native population. Leto considers Duncan the finest example of what House Atreides stands for and is relying on him to make a good impression with the wary and dangerous Fremen.
Thufir Hawat
As House Atreides' Master of Assassins, the grizzled veteran Thufir has served the noble family for the three generations. Thufir is a Mentat, a human raised and trained to be a living computer. Using his incredible capacity for calculation, it's his job to keep his Duke free from conspiracy and espionage, while simultaneously operating his own network of spies as well.
Paranoid, terse, unrelenting and overbearing, Thufir took great care in meticulously educating and preparing Paul for his future as the next Duke. He fears he is finally getting too old to be effective, despite Leto's opinion otherwise. At the start of Dune, Thufir is on high alert, sensing betrayal in every corner as they prepare to move . He has a particular distrust and poor opinion of the Bene Gesserit and as a result, has always had a tense relationship with Jessica. He suffers her presence only for the sake of his Duke.
Doctor Wellington Yueh
A graduate of the Suk School of medicine and branded with a diamond tattoo signifying his imperial conditioning, Dr. Yueh is supposed to be beyond reproach. The imperial conditioning supposedly means his duty to protect life is so deeply ingrained that he may be trusted enough to treat the Emperor himself.
In addition to being House Atreides' physician, he is one of Paul's teachers, focusing on the less martial subjects of science, history, anthropology and mathematics. A reserved, mild-mannered man, he carries with him a perpetual sadness. His wife, Wanna, was taken captive and believed killed by their enemies, House Harkonnen. He admires and loves House Atreides, but carries a dark secret that threatens to bring doom to them all.