Summary
Jessica Bardenis an undeniable force on screen.
Now Barden is busy stealing scenes in yet another significant way.
Shes doing so in one of the most popular franchises out there opposite some of the industrys greatest icons.
Image via Max
Barden plays a young Valya Harkonnen inDune: Prophecy.
I wasn’t in the school play or anything.
There was no performance.
Image via Max
And it’s very male-centered.
It’s usually the guys that are very funny.
It was that feeling that made me want to get attention and be an entertainer.
It wasn’t about being in movies or being in Hollywood or a performance or an actor necessarily.
It was a feeling of wanting to perform and make people laugh.
A specific person who helped her recognize that itch to make others laugh?
Image via HBO
I did impersonations.My dad would do an impersonation of somebody trying to get out of a plastic bag.
I want to make people feel good and make people laugh.
Barden would indeed go on to do just that, and then some.
Image via HBO
It validated her taste in projects.
She explained:
The main thing that it did to me was, I was right.
We did not have any money.
Set in the universe of Frank Herbert’s Dune series, this sci-fi epic follows the political and spiritual struggles on the desert planet of Arrakis. As factions vie for control of the prized spice melange, a prophesied hero emerges, challenging the balance of power and the fate of the galaxy.
It was on the television at 11pm at night.
It was set to be aired at 11pm on a website show.
It wasn’t even going to be aired on main TV.
Netflix were involved in it, but they were not actively making the show.
We didn’t do any interviews for the show.
There was no algorithm.
That didnt matter to Barden though.
She knew they made something special.
I remember saying to my team, ‘This shows gonna be really big.
People are gonna be really obsessed with it.
I could just feel it in my stomach.
I was like, I know that the show is going to do really well.
And then it blew up, and I was like, I was right!
Theres a style of what it needed to sound like technically [with] post-production stuff.
But it was like,where does The Voice come from?
And I was like, Oh, guys, it’s so obvious.
Everybody could have a Voice in some way.
And when they agreed with that, I was like, It’s fine.
I know I can do this.
Where exactly does The Voice come from for Valya in particular?
They’re misunderstood in some way, and then a part of their brain develops this hyper-concentration.
When they agreed with that, I was like, I get it.
I know what I can do with this.
What If Griffin Didnt Die in Dune: Prophecy?
That little psychopath was always going to come out in some way.
“Sisterhood above all.”
Valya has the power of The Voice.
That begs the question, how will she go about using it?
Or better yet, does Valya have any limits in that department?
Is there any line she wont cross to forge forward in the way she sees fit?
Because the first person that she meets does appreciate her, Raquella.
We are playing somebody that is not a nice person.
I don’t believe in it.I don’t believe in itnow, right now.
Look at what we have to look at.
She’s a really flawed person.
She uses people continuously.
According to Barden, at that point Valya had no hope for survivors.
She knew exactly what theyd do.
No one wants to be in her fucking club.
No one wants to be on my side.
you’re able to die then.
Barden continued:
It was a frosty entrance, wasnt it?
It wasn’t like a nice, Hi, welcome.
I think that she thoroughly expects everybody’s going to do it.
People don’t like Valya.
Because its not even about her family anymore.
It’s like, How do I feel the way that I want to feel?
But yeah, people don’t like her and I think she’s offended by it.
I want to see Griffin go to the war.
That’s the main thing.
That’s in the book.
Does that make him more mad?
She don’t even know who killed him.
There was nothing special about it.
Another burning question Barden would love to dig into in Season 2?
Is [Valya] capable of falling in love?
Is she capable of being attracted to someone?
Where does Barden stand on that matter at this point in time?
Heres what she said:
I have no fucking clue.
Thats what I mean.
What if she meets an equal?
Desmond Hart is not her equal.
Dune: ProphecySeason 1 is available to stream on Max.
