Jodorowsky's Dune Uncovered

Jodorowsky's Dune.

Scene 151 : Final Showdown

In the government palace Paul watches as the Emperor, the Reverend Mother, the Lady and Count Fenring, Hawatt, Feyd and Irulan are brought in.

Paul demands that Hawatt is to be removed from the other prisoners. Hawatt steps forward towards Jessica. Paul steps between them, and reveals that he has seen this moment in his visions - Hawatt holds a poisoned needle which the Emperor has given him to kill Paul, and only then will Hawatt receive his antidote.

Paul offers his life for Hawatt's many years of service, but Hawatt moves past him towards Jessica again. Jessica offers her life and Hawatt turns the needle onto himself, dying instantly. Paul tells the Fremen to honour Hawatt as a hero as they carry his body away.

The Emperor claims that on his order 5,000 Guild ships will attack, but Paul tells the Guild that if they allow the attack Paul will destroy the worms on Dune, and therefore the spice. He demonstrates this power by gassing a small worm.

Paul signals and Fremen uncover a mutant Guild Navigator floating in spice-blue water. The glasses are suddenly torn off the Guild officials revealing their blue eyes. Having revealed their dependence on spice, the Guild is now at the service of Paul.

Paul next deals with the Bene Guesserit, stating that the unborn son of Lady Fenring and Feyd will be a brainless mutant.

Paul informs the Emperor that Irulan will be his wife, but promises Chani that he'll never touch Irulan.

Only Feyd remains to be dealt with, who challenges Paul to a duel. During the fight Feyd poisons Paul. But when he moves in for the kill, Paul is able to counter the poison and kills Feyd.

But still under the poison's effect Paul falls to his knees and Count Fenring suddenly has a blade to his neck. The Emperor orders Fenring to kill Paul, but the Count realises that doing so would only make him a martyr.

The Emperor decides to do it himself, but Paul says he is the Kwisatz Haderach as he lives in everyone, and Jessica, Chani, Alia, Stilgar and Fremen all start talking in Paul's voice - "I'm Muad'Dib".

Paul (and all the Fremen) announce that he is the "collective man", and that the universe has but one path - the Kwisatz Haderach.

The Fremen recover their voices and cry "Mahdi, Lisan Al Gaib, Muad'Dib !"

Many parts of this final scene are reflected in the Moebius storyboards, we see the glasses being ripped from members of the Guild, and someone (Fenring?) holding a blade at Paul's neck. But unlike the script, Paul does actually get killed! Paul's voice does still then come from all the Fremen, but at this point the storyboards diverge from the script (and the novel) with Dune itself transforming into a green paradise and travels through the universe.

The press kit script summary seems to be more similar to the script, with Paul becoming the Emperor and form a "Collective Being".

The storyboards end here, but the script has an epilogue, which we'll look at next time.

In which other films does the main hero die at the end?

If you didn't like the rain at the end of Lynch's film, then you'd hate this ending!

The end of the storyboards - but not the end of the script...

Continue to Part 53: Epilogue