The Borgias/Characters

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The Borgia Family

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.

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?

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.

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. History tells us that Juan was murdered, and likely at Cesare's command. 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 killing Paolo for being in love with Lucrezia and the father of her child went above and beyond.
      • He wasn't just content with killing Paolo. He staged it as a suicide, meaning that Paolo wouldn't have been given a Christian burial, thereby condemning his soul to purgatory for eternity. Juan was going to, as far as he knew, cast a young boy's soul - his nephew's father, no less - beyond the grace of God, just because he loved Lucrezia. If she hadn't known that Paolo couldn't read or write, his plan would have worked.
  • 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. Needless to say, Juan's probably right.
  • 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.


Allies of the Borgias

Giulia Farnese (Lotte Verbeek)

"Beauty can be deadly when well used."

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

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.

  • 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 have murdered infants in their beds... but only when the parents paid me.

Micheletto: I think someone as pitiless as you might have need of someone as pitiless as me.

  • 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

Micheletto: What is your name, boy?
Paolo: Paolo.
Micheletto: Tell me of love, Paolo. I know nothing of it.

Apprentice/Master Vittorio/Vittoria (Jemima West)

A youthful apprentice artisan whose cleverness and talent draws Rodrigo's attention, and is shortly thereafter promoted to master. In reality a young woman disguised as a boy because women, of course, can't become artisans. Rodrigo is taken with her, probably because he knows she is very capable of discretion.

Rodrigo: You are more Eve than Adam.

Enemies

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.

Cardinal Ascanio Sforza (Peter Sullivan)

Part-time Dragon to Rodrigo, Ascanio's loyalties seem to lie with his family and the church in general.

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.

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.
  • Death by Adaptation: In real life he outlived both Rodrigo and Cesare.
  • Humiliation Conga: Rodrigo puts him through one in front of the entire College of Cardinals and later, the people of Rome, for abusing Lucrezia.
  • Killed Off for Real
  • Marital Rape License
  • Pet the Dog: The part where, after his "accident" 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!

Charles: You think the blood of the Borgia pope could cure us, Catherina Sforza?
Caterina: We could bathe together, your highness.

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

Others

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 is the father of her child. Killed by Juan when his affair with Lucrezia is discovered.

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.

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