| Roman Godfrey | |
|---|---|
| |
| Born |
1995/1996 (Age 23/24) |
| Home |
Hemlock Grove, Pennsylvania, United States of America |
| Occupation |
CEO of Godfrey Industries |
| Species | |
| Status |
Deceased |
| Cause of Death |
Suicide (1st time) |
| Killed By |
Himself (1st) |
| Relatives |
Olivia Godfrey † |
| Portrayed By |
Bill Skarsgård |
| Season(s) | |
| First Appearance | |
| Last Appearance | |
Roman Godfrey is half human, half Upir, and one of two children of Olivia Godfrey and J.R. Godfrey. He is from and resided in the supernatural-esque town of Hemlock Grove, Pennsylvania in the Godfrey estate with his mother Olivia with whom he had a volatile relationship and his younger sibling Shelley Godfrey, of whom he is very protective and loved dearly. Roman was the friend of Peter Rumancek, whom he first met in episode one. They had a close relationship. He was also very close with his cousin Letha Godfrey.
Early Life
Roman is the eldest living child and only son of Olivia and J.R. Godfrey. His parentage, however, has come into question since Olivia was having an ongoing affair with J.R.'s brother Norman Godfrey at the time of his conception. Norman is Roman's biological father. He was born with a caul (a skin membrane covering the head and face), a fact in which Olivia took great pride.
In Roman mythology, the caul indicates that the child would be destined for greatness, which Olivia firmly believed. It is easy to see how much his mother believes in this: after removing the caul, Olivia later eats it. When Roman was just a child, he found his father dead on the living room floor and discovers that he had committed suicide. He later tells Peter that his firsts thought was that he believed his father would get into a lot of trouble for making such a mess.
Personality
Outwardly, Roman personifies the stereotypical "rich boy". Though, as the show progresses, Roman is revealed to be sensitive, as seen in how he cares for Shelley. He is loyal and kind to Peter, his cousin Letha, and his younger sister Shelley.
Physical Appearance
Roman is tall, very attractive, and fairly well-built. He has pale skin, brown hair, and green/hazel eyes. He is always clean shaven and very well dressed at all times, embodying his wealthy persona.
In season one, his hair is often unkempt and pushed back all the time. At times, he sports cuts on his face from drug-induced self-harm. His clothes are also mostly lazy/casually styled as well.
In season two, Roman's hair is very well kept and usually slicked back formally. He's seen wearing more suits and less casual clothing, as he's taken his spot within the corporate world.
In the third and final season, Roman still wears the corporate suit attire featuring some lighter colored shirts and ties with his dark suits when he's at work in The White Tower. On his own time, his clothing is very dark in color and casual; simple yet undoubtedly expensive. He is still always clean shaven and appears well groomed. His hair is the one significant difference to his appearance as it is now worn loose frequently and has grown longer, often falling across his forehead into his eyes.
When revealing his upir nature, either when he is overcome with aggressive instinct or hunger or if he wills it, his inhumanly flexible jaws and mouth will stretch and grow until his bite can engulf the entire throat of a victim.
Relationships
- Peter Rumancek: Friend and also potentially familially related, due to Olivia giving away her first child to the slave workers, creating the lineage of the gypsies. (??? idk what any of this is)
- Shelley Godfrey: Sister
- Olive Oil Godfrey: Mother
- J.R. Godfrey: Roman thought J.R was his biological father but sike hes not
- Letha Godfrey: Half sister (same father) and mother of his child
- Dr. Norman Godfrey: Biological Father
- Nadia Godfrey: Daughter
Powers & Abilities
Can will people into doing what he asks, by looking into their eyes. It comes at a cost of a blood nose.
Inhuman, snake-like ability to expand his jaw, to engulf the victims whole throat. He also has upper incisor fangs, but these don't get much spotlight :-(
Psychic dreams he shares with Peter, portraying the future.
Weaknesses
Roman has a lower tolerance to pain and more human ease in his strength and other physical abilities when he loses blood, proved when a Caul member fought him on equal grounds and he needed a shovel to fight the member who had a knife and cut his arm
Roman had limited weaknesses as an Upir; such as the near-inability to be killed, no aging and healing abilities. He also had a near insatible hunger for blood,
After finishing his treatments to become human, Roman will continue to age, become injued and die, like any other human.
Name
- Roman comes from the Latin word "romanus", which means "of Rome". In this initial sense, the title "Roman" means "a citizen of the Roman Empire", a man of Roman (or Byzantine) culture, Latin or Greek.
- The name is significant because it comes from the Etruscan founder of Rome, Romulus, who was raised by a she-wolf, and was known for being both ruthless and fair, and was also a god separate from men as he was himself the descendant of Mars, the god of blood and war.
- Olivia's Romanian origin also gives the name significance because Romania and is populous that come from the intermarriages of the Romanians and the Goths.
- Godfrey, is, however, of Germanic origins. It derives from the personal name 'God-Freida'. This was composed of the elements 'guda', meaning good, and 'frid' - peace, which is somewhat ironic for the show's portrayal.
Quotes
- 1312 ACAB
- "I'm in love with my car."
- "Stupid ass birds."
- "Sheiiiiiiiiiitt"
Trivia
- Roman drives a Jaguar XK150 (this is the only car he had that matters 80s american cars are cool)
- Roman was born with a caul (in Roman mythology, a sign that child was born for greatness) which may be significant in Olivia's decision to name him so, given her apparent belief in the Roman myth.
