The Borgias/Characters

Rodrigo Borgia (Jeremy Irons)
""The vultures are circling our family, our Rome. We most protect our self.""

A scheming, ambitious cardinal who, after the death of Pope Innocent, uses all the power at his disposal - including bribery, extortion, murder, and his children - to become the new Pope. Despite his willingness to use his family as pawns, he does care for them a great deal.


 * Adaptational Attractiveness: The real Rodrigo was an overweight Churchill-esque bulldog of a man. Jeremy Irons is really not. Irons himself has said that if they were aiming for authenticity in the looks department, they should have hired James Gandolfini.
 * Affably Evil
 * Anti-Hero
 * Awesome Moment of Crowning: When he becomes pope.
 * Badass: In a subtle way; Rodrigo flexes his badass muscles politically.
 * Badass Spaniard
 * Badass Preacher: Pope, thank you.
 * Badass Baritone
 * The Chessmaster: Whatever Rodrigo's occasional failures of judgment in regards to his family/personal life, when it comes to politics, he is always ten steps ahead of everyone else.
 * Cloudcuckoolander: It's unclear how much of his apparent goofiness is an act.
 * Deadpan Snarker: It's Jeremy Irons, you have to expect this one.
 * Decoy Protagonist: Played with. Although he's definitely a main character, some reviewers have pointed out that much of the character development and "journey" goes to his children.
 * Equal Opportunity Evil
 * Horrible Judge of Character: Especially when it comes to his own children.
 * Hot Dad
 * May-December Romance: Rodrigo and Giulia.
 * Magnificent Bastard
 * Nepotism: Rodrigo makes sure his oldest son has a high-ranking position in the church and puts his second son in charge of the Papal armies.
 * The Patriarch
 * Papa Wolf: Do not hurt any children around Rodrigo. If you do, God help you, especially if that child is one of Rodrigo's biological children.
 * Parental Favoritism: So much so that he ends up unintentionally pitting his kids against each other. Tragedy ensues.
 * Royal We
 * Sinister Minister: At his most villainous.
 * "Well Done, Son" Guy: Particularly to Cesare.

Cesare Borgia (Francois Arnaud)
""I was born with a stain. A mark. Like the mark of Cain. But is the mark of my father, my family. The mark of Borgia.""

The oldest son of Rodrigo and Vannozza, and older brother of Juan, Lucrezia, and Gioffre. Cesare is as ambitious as his father, but while Rodrigo works through the church, Cesare wants political power. While he resents his father for refusing to allow him to leave the clergy, he is also Rodrigo's strongest ally.

"Ludovico Sforza: Do you know what we all share? Cesare: Suspicion? Or is it hatred?"
 * Affably Evil: Ruthless and calculating, but is nice when it comes to family and women. Not to mention his vast amounts of charm.
 * Anti-Hero
 * Ax Crazy:  definitely got the worst of Cesare's occasional bouts with crazy.
 * Badass
 * Badass Preacher: He's a terrible priest, but he does retain the title of Cardinal.
 * Badass Spaniard: Born in Spain.
 * Bastard Protagonist Bastard
 * Big Brother Instinct: You harm a single hair on Lucrezia's head, you answer to Cesare.
 * Brother-Sister Team: With Lucrezia.
 * Byronic Hero: Even more so then the rest of his family.
 * Cain and Abel: His rivalry with Juan is escalating into something much more sinister.
 * Cool Uncle: To baby Giovanni. Well, you know. When he isn't killing people and stuff.
 * Dating Catwoman: He engages in a sexual relationship with Caterina Sfortza, an enemy of his family.
 * Deadpan Snarker:


 * Death Glare: Is a big fan of this. It's usually directed at a relative.
 * The Dragon: To Rodrigo.
 * Evil Genius: Sarah Bradford, a biographer of the real Cesare and Lucrezia, even specifically called him the evil genius of his sister's life.
 * Evil Is Sexy: Oh yes.
 * Evil Is Stylish
 * Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas: And fathers, and sisters. But really, don't insult Cesare's mother.
 * Five-Bad Band: In Season 2 he recruits his own little army with him in charge.
 * Big Bad: Cesare.
 * The Dragon: Micheletto.
 * Evil Genius: Cesare and Machiavelli share this role; although it should be said that Machiavelli was more pragmatic than evil, and he based a lot of his ideologies on Cesare, who... yeah, was definitely evil.
 * The Brute: The other assassins he have recruited in season 2.
 * Green-Eyed Monster: It's one of his defining traits. He wants Juan's position and job; he's explicitly envious of Paolo, Lucrezia's lover. Jealousy's kind of his thing.
 * Hell-Bent for Leather: Francois Arnaud has said that the things that people talk to him most about are the incest and the leather pants. Apparently, it's fine by him. He's talked about becoming annoyed with his cardinal robes, which he called "the red dress," so we're apparently going to see him in the leather even more now.
 * I Will Protect Her: A lot of his less rational actions have to do with protecting/avenging Lucrezia, due to his incredible emotional dependency on her.
 * Kick the Dog / Pet the Dog: This guy can pet a dog with his left hand, kick one with each foot and shoot a fourth with his right all at the same time (sometimes all to the same dog).
 * Kick the Son of a Bitch: His murder of first stabs him in the hand with a fork then a blade to his throat and multiple times in the stomach.
 * Knight Templar Big Brother: And how!
 * Magnificent Bastard / Bastard Understudy: He's learned well from his father; the stunt with the cannons in "The Beautiful Deception" proves it.
 * Moral Event Horizon: Take your pick. YMMV on whether or not he's THE Cesare Borgia of legend yet, but he's had a few MEH's, and crossed them all.
 * Morality Pet: His sister and mother.
 * My Sister Is Off-Limits: Unless you're... him. Or someone she really likes.
 * Nay Theist
 * Roaring Rampage of Revenge: The French troops made a colossal mistake in  - it tipped Cesare over the edge into sociopath.
 * Sanity Slippage: As of 2x04, it appears to be in gear. He's definitely not as cautious as he used to be.
 * Sexy Priest: Did we mention the leather?
 * Siblings in Crime: With Lucrezia again; also occasionally with Juan, however unwilling they both may be.
 * Sibling Yin-Yang: Unlike Juan, he's startlingly efficient and cunning; also unlike Juan, he's almost completely devoid of human warmth (unless you're his Morality Pet or someone he's obsessed with. Or both.).
 * Sinister Minister
 * Sociopathic Hero: And becoming less heroic with each episode!
 * Son of a Whore
 * Stalker with a Crush: Towards Ursula. Probably moreso towards Lucrezia. It's all a part of his inevitable Sanity Slippage.
 * The Strategist

Lucrezia Borgia (Holliday Grainger)
""I will not be beaten.""

The naive, yet intelligent daughter of Rodrigo and Vannozza. She loves her family, particularly her brother Cesare. She is married to Giovanni Sforza, but falls in love with the stable boy, Paolo.


 * Arranged Marriage: To Giovanni Sfortza
 * Beware the Nice Ones: Just ask Giovanni Sforza and Juan.
 * Break the Cutie
 * Brother-Sister Team: With Cesare.
 * Character Development: She goes from an innocent and naive victim to a cunning and manipulative woman.
 * Coming of Age Story: Lucrezia goes from being a naive and idealistic teenage girl who has to grow up fast when she used as a pawn in her father's political schemes and abused by her new husband.
 * The Chick
 * Corrupt the Cutie
 * Cute and Psycho: Lucrezia Borgia- the most loving and adorable of all the Borgias…but piss her off and she will do everything she can to end you. Just ask her ex-husband with the broken leg or
 * Daddy's Girl: Very clearly Rodrigo's favorite of his children.
 * Dating What Daddy Hates: Played with in season 2.
 * Dawson Casting: Holly Grainger is 23, but plays 14-year-old Lucrezia.
 * Femme Fatale: As seen in the season two promos. It's likely that she's still a teenager as of now, and still somewhat inexperienced. So she might be more of a Fille Fatale.
 * Good Is Not Soft
 * Guile Hero
 * Hair of Gold
 * Heroic Bastard
 * Magnetic Hero: She will befriend anyone, regardless of social standing or ethnicity and most people that meet her become attached to her quite quickly (Djem, Paolo, Francesca) to the extent that they would willingly hurt anyone that poses a threat to her. Not even her brother, who is a budding sociopath, or the  are immune to her charms.
 * Giovanni Sforza started off as a brutal subversion, and was perhaps the first time her charisma failed her but even he began to warm up to her towards the end. All it took was a broken leg to show him the error of his ways…
 * Mama Bear
 * Morality Pet: To Cesare.
 * Old Man Marrying a Child: Lucrezia and Giovanni Sforza.
 * The Ophelia: My mother said/ Now go to bed/ Or I'll have to lock you in, in, in.
 * Power Blonde
 * Siblings in Crime: With Cesare again.
 * Silk Hiding Steel
 * The Three Faces of Eve: While she is also, Lucrezia plays the Child role, learning from Giulia and Vannozza how to use feminine power.
 * The Vamp: Played with. She's certainly using an innocent, helpless act to seduce Raffaelo, but her motives aren't exactly clear. She definitely doesn't love him, and is possibly going to marry his brother... It's probably a mixture of sticking it to her dad and having fun.
 * Token Good Teammate
 * Took a Level in Badass: In "The Art of War", where she plays King Charles like a Stradivarius, keeping the French from invading Rome.
 * You Are in Command Now: Lucrezia takes her father's place as pope in his absence.
 * Took a Level in Badass: In "The Art of War", where she plays King Charles like a Stradivarius, keeping the French from invading Rome.
 * You Are in Command Now: Lucrezia takes her father's place as pope in his absence.

Vannozza dei Cattanei (Joanne Whalley)
""Don't you want them to hear that you have a new whore?""

Rodrigo's former long-time mistress and mother to his children, actually married to a commoner named Theo. She is quite displeased when Rodrigo casts her aside and takes up with Giulia.


 * Apron Matron: Surprisingly enough, Juan is the one to acknowledge this.
 * Berserk Button: Don't lie to Vannozza, or she'll come charging into the Vatican itself to smack you around.
 * Brainy Brunette: She seems to be the one whom all the Borgias go to for advice; season two has Giulia asking her former rival's advice multiple times.
 * Christmas Cake
 * The Consigliere: To Cesare, Lucrezia, and surprisingly enough, to Giulia.
 * High-Class Call Girl: The 15th/16th century version, anyway; Vannozza was a renowned courtesan in Spain.
 * Hot Mom
 * Insistent Terminology: Courtesan, not whore/streetwalker/prostitute. Truth in Television, as the distinction was an important one, and courtesans were afforded privileges and status above everyday prostitutes - it's discussed in "The Choice".
 * Mama Bear
 * The Mistress
 * Only Sane Woman: Rodrigo-related jealousy aside, she seems to be the peacemaker in the Borgia family; at the very least, she's accustomed to breaking up fistfights at the dinner table.
 * Silk Hiding Steel
 * The Three Faces of Eve: Vannozza does have aspects of the seductress, but usually falls into the wise Wife/Mother role.
 * Woman Scorned: Mostly in early season one; she's accepted it in season two.
 * Women Are Wiser
 * Worthy Opponent: Eventually concedes that Giulia is this for her.

Juan Borgia (David Oakes)
"I am the gonfaloniere of the Papal Army, brother! Go back to the College of Cardinals."

The second Borgia brother, chosen by his father to follow the path of a soldier, a role envied by his older brother Cesare. His inadequacies are obvious to everyone except Rodrigo.


 * Boomerang Bigot: Feels insecure because of his illegitimacy and insists on defending his privileges as a "noble" from commoners and illegitimate children.
 * Cain and Abel: Despite his own sadistic nature, Juan is probably the Abel to Cesare's Cain.  Promos for season two set this up.
 * Dirty Coward
 * Evil Is Petty
 * Evil Uncle
 * Hair-Trigger Temper
 * Hypocrite: In oh so many ways.
 * Jerkass
 * Kick the Dog: Several, most significantly when he beats the crap out of his mother's husband because of rumors that Theo was actually his father.
 * Moral Event Horizon: Juan was already a dick, but  went above and beyond.
 * He wasn't just content with
 * No-Holds-Barred Beatdown: Of Theo.
 * Properly Paranoid: In season two, he questions Cesare's love for him and in previews for episode 2x08, implies to his father that he thinks Cesare is out to get him. Needless to say, Rodrigo doesn't take Juan's concerns seriously enough.
 * Siblings in Crime: Rodrigo sometimes forces him to be this with Cesare.
 * Sibling Yin-Yang: Unlike Cesare, he's irrational and sometimes idiotic; also unlike Cesare, he at least shows his emotion and wants to be accepted (albeit with terrible results).
 * Son of a Whore
 * STD Immunity: Averted so hard it hurts.
 * The Brute: Shares the role with Micheletto to the Borgias as a whole.
 * The Strategist: That was supposed to be the plan - in reality, Juan sucks at long-term strategy.
 * Token Jerk Ass Teammate

Gioffre Borgia
The youngest of the Borgia children and the only one still behaving like a child. Aside from having an Arranged Marriage, his political value is negligible.


 * Arranged Marriage
 * Children Are Innocent
 * Constantly Curious: All the better for Rodrigo to Info Dump for the audience on.
 * Put on a Bus: For Season 2.

Giulia Farnese (Lotte Verbeek)
""Beauty can be deadly when well used.""

A renowned Roman beauty who becomes Rodrigo's mistress and Lucrezia's mentor.


 * Dark Mistress
 * Girl-On-Girl Is Hot: Kisses Vittoria to bring Rodrigo's attentions back to her.
 * Heroes Want Redheads: In season one, Rodrigo sure does.
 * Hidden Depths: In "Paolo", Rodrigo appoints her to the Consistatorial Council, in charge of Vatican finances. You'd think it was simply Rodrigo being his usual indulgent self, but then Giulia starts lecturing Piccolomini on Florentine bookkeeping.
 * Hypocrite: Is quite jealous despite having seduced Rodrigo away from his previous mistress.
 * YMMV. She's not so much jealous, but concerned about stealing Rodrigo away from her--and thus taking away her power. She's perfectly fine with sharing him, as long as she's the dominant party.
 * In-Series Nickname: "La Bella Farnese".
 * May-December Romance: Giulia and Rodrigo.
 * The Mentor: To Lucrezia.
 * Silk Hiding Steel
 * The Three Faces of Eve: Unquestionably the Seductress role.
 * Unusual Euphemism: Her "source of disquiet".
 * Worthy Opponent: Considers Vannozza this.

Micheletto (Sean Harris)
An extremely skilled and apparently emotionless assassin who is recruited by Cesare after failing to poison him and his father. Becomes The Dragon to Cesare.

"Micheletto: I have murdered infants in their beds... but only when the parents paid me."
 * Ax Crazy: Subverted: he's not actually unstable, but he's so paranoid and ruthless that he'll emotionlessly kill people for almost any remotely practical reason.

"Micheletto: I think someone as pitiless as you might have need of someone as pitiless as me."
 * Badass
 * Birds of a Feather: To Cesare. They hit it off quite well despite meeting under rather unfortunate circumstances.
 * Birds of a Feather: To Cesare. They hit it off quite well despite meeting under rather unfortunate circumstances.

"Micheletto: What is your name, boy? Paolo: Paolo. Micheletto: Tell me of love, Paolo. I know nothing of it."
 * Brutal Honesty
 * The Dragon: To Cesare or possibly The Brute to the Borgias as a whole.
 * Don't Tell Mama: When the two of them visit Forli, Cesare discovers Micheletto not only has a mother, but she’s rather doting and completely oblivious about what he really is, believing he is studying to become a doctor. Cesare plays along with this lie by posing as his mentor, out of his own amusement.
 * Fetish Fuel Station Attendant
 * Foil: Plays the stoical, methodical professional to Cesare's dark, charismatic genius.
 * Lightning Bruiser: Perhaps not particularly strong, but so fast that Cesare, no slouch with a sword, is stunned by his quickness, and that he can stoically endure torture.
 * Psycho for Hire
 * Self-Made Orphan: He told Cesare he killed his father for very good reasons but still not clear what age he was when he killed him.
 * The Sociopath


 * Too Kinky to Torture
 * Torture Technician
 * Would Hit a Girl
 * Would Hurt a Child
 * Let's just say that if there's a type of person Micheletto won't kill, he hasn't met them and declined to kill them yet. Though it does perhaps make it somewhat more understandable that.

Apprentice/Master Vittorio/ (Jemima West)
A youthful apprentice artisan whose cleverness and talent draws Rodrigo's attention, and is shortly thereafter promoted to master.

"Rodrigo: You are."
 * Living a Double Life
 * Sexier Alter Ego
 * The Smart Guy: Painting, sculpture, history, medicine - can even design and build cannons.
 * Unusual Euphemism
 * Unusual Euphemism
 * Unusual Euphemism

Cardinal Giuliano della Rovere (Colm Feore)
Rodrigo's most persistent opponent among the college of cardinals, and the man who will eventually become the next Pope.


 * Action Survivor: Has survived stabbing, strangling, and poisoning so far.
 * Badass Preacher
 * Foregone Conclusion: della Rovere will become Pope Julius III.
 * Hero Antagonist
 * Properly Paranoid: At the beginning of season 2, the Borgias . From that point on he refuses to eat or drink anything that has not been tested by a Capuchin monkey he acquires.
 * Which is a Call Back to Cesare's monkey from "The Assassin" that drinks the poisoned wine.
 * Religious Bruiser: della Rovere is pretty handy with a knife, for a priest.
 * Took a Level in Badass: Being continuously in fear for his life has really toughened this guy up.

Cardinal Ascanio Sforza (Peter Sullivan)
Part-time Dragon to Rodrigo, Ascanio's loyalties seem to lie with his family and the church in general.


 * Deadpan Snarker
 * The Dragon: Maneuvers himself into being Rodrigo's, in exchange for taking over Rodrigo's old position.
 * Dragon with an Agenda: Unfortunately, he's still a Sforza.
 * Only Sane Man

King Charles VIII (Michel Muller)
The arrogant, warmongering King of France. He believes Naples is his by birthright, and the Borgias are standing in his way.


 * Affably Evil: He's extremely blunt but he also shows that he's willing to Pet the Dog at times.
 * Anti-Villain: Like the Borgias themselves, he comes off as this because he's merely ruthless and Affably Evil in a series full of Ax Crazy Jerkass Complete Monster.
 * Big Eater
 * Butt Monkey: He really is unattractive, but people take great pains to point out his shortcomings.
 * However, it should be noted that he insists on Brutal Honesty from everyone around him. He has no interest in polite lies, and refuses to talk to della Rovere until he acknowledges his ugliness.
 * Blood Knight
 * Deadpan Snarker
 * Pragmatic Villainy: Willing to use whomever comes his way, whether it be della Rovere, Giulia Farnese, or Lucrezia.
 * The Strategist.

Giovanni Sforza (Ronan Vibert)
A noble from a formidable Roman family, married to Lucrezia for the benefit of political connections.


 * The Brute
 * Complete Monster: Possibly. Rapist, murderer, abuser . . . he just keeps ticking off boxes. It's a good thing he lacks brains, or he might be even more dangerous. However, he does have one half-assed Pet the Dog moment which might just save him from this.
 * Humiliation Conga: Rodrigo puts him through one in front of the entire College of Cardinals and later, the people of Rome, for abusing Lucrezia.
 * Marital Rape License
 * Pet the Dog: The part where,  he accepts that he "was not kind" to Lucrezia and "forgives [her] for the accident of her birth" (ie. being lower-born than him) may be a combination of massive understatement and truly staggering arrogance, but it is at least some attempt by him to be nice to his wife, and is the one moment that might save him from Complete Monsterdom.
 * Marital Rape License
 * Pet the Dog: The part where,  he accepts that he "was not kind" to Lucrezia and "forgives [her] for the accident of her birth" (ie. being lower-born than him) may be a combination of massive understatement and truly staggering arrogance, but it is at least some attempt by him to be nice to his wife, and is the one moment that might save him from Complete Monsterdom.

Caterina Sforza (Gina McKee)
Cousin of Giovanni, Lodovico, and Ascanio; she emerges as a force to be reckoned with.

"Caterina: This is my answer. You can take my son, but do you see? Here! I have the means to produce ten more sons, and they will hunt you down, and send you to your grave!"
 * Badass Boast: In The Siege of Forlì

"Charles: You think the blood of the Borgia pope could cure us, Catherina Sforza? Caterina: We could bathe together, your highness."
 * The Baroness
 * The Chessmaster: Seems to be the brains behind the Sforza family.
 * Dating Catwoman: She manages to seduce Cesare.
 * Femme Fatale
 * Iron Lady
 * Lady of War:


 * Manipulative Bitch
 * More Deadly Than the Male: The Sforza men tend to be overblown, blustering physically-imposing lugs; Caterina runs rings around them and is acknowledged by the Borgias to be the most dangerous of the lot.
 * Silk Hiding Steel

Girolamo Savonarola (Steven Berkoff)

 * Badass Preacher: Not violent...yet, though his preaching has inspired much violence, some self-inflicted, some...not. Still utterly devoted to God and utterly unafraid of the Borgias.
 * Cult: The people of Florence are still Catholics...but they are so devoted to Savonarola they probably count.
 * Dark Shepherd
 * The Day of Reckoning: Preaches it early and often.
 * Easy Evangelism: Some of his converts are obviously intimidated, but the vast majority seem to truly believe. It helps that Berkoff, as a veteran actor, is quite charismatic.
 * The Fundamentalist
 * The Heretic: See also Cult; because of his disobedience and preaching against the Pope, this is Alexander's plan to get rid of him.
 * Holier Than Thou: Noteworthy in that Savonarola turned down a cardinalship, which has apparently never been done.
 * Suspiciously Specific Sermon: In-universe version.
 * Turbulent Priest

Prince Djem
A prince who stays with the Borgia family as a hostage so his brother no longer has to worry about him taking his throne. He develops close relationships with the family, but his brother pays Rodrigo to murder him.


 * Implied Love Interest: To Lucrezia. Though their romantic inclinations toward each other are never stated, they develop a close relationship where they share each other's cultures and Djem promises to avenge her should her husband harm her. The dance they share also heavily implies romance, scaring Rodrigo to the point where he agrees to have Djem killed.
 * Wide-Eyed Idealist

Paolo (Luke Pasquelino)
A young stable boy in the employ of Giovanni Sforza. Falls in love with Lucrezia and


 * Good Is Dumb: Yes, Paolo, it's a fantastic idea to wander the streets of Rome declaring your love for the Pope's daughter.
 * Never Learned to Read

Ursula Bonadeo (Ruta Gedmintas)
A beautiful woman who caught Cesare's eye at Lucrezia's wedding, she was married to an abusive husband. Cesare takes care of that, but it drives Ursula to a convent. Even though she is a nun, she cannot escape Cesare's influence.


 * Damsel in Distress
 * Hair of Gold
 * Naughty Nuns: Subverted. Ursula takes vows to escape Cesare's possessiveness, and she makes it clear she no longer returns his affections.
 * Replacement Goldfish: Let's see - blonde, mostly innocent, married to an abusive husband, in need of rescue, attracted to Cesare . . . who else does she remind you of?
 * Replacement Goldfish: Let's see - blonde, mostly innocent, married to an abusive husband, in need of rescue, attracted to Cesare . . . who else does she remind you of?