Warning: Spoilers for Fallout season 1

Summary

• The show will feature an original story set in the Fallout universe but will incorporate references to the games and fresh twists on existing lore.
• Walton Goggins plays a prominent character called The Ghoul, who is a mutated survivor of the nuclear holocaust and serves as a bounty hunter.
• Unlike typical ghouls in the games, The Ghoul is portrayed as a more human-like figure with a complex backstory.

Though he isn't the show's Vault Dweller, Walton Goggins' character is instrumental to the story of Prime Video's Fallout adaptation. Although there are plenty of ghouls in the Fallout franchise, the creature played by Goggins is a new addition to the memorable race of mutated post-humans. Developed by Bethesda Game Studios, Fallout 3 reinvigorated a dormant series, infusing the game's post-apocalyptic, open-world environment with a new sense of scope and terror. Praised for its open-ended gameplay and emphasis on players' choices, Fallout doesn't have the typical hallmarks of a game that's begging to be adapted.

Nonetheless, Westworld duo Lisa Joy and Jonathan Nolan have pulled threads from the Fallout franchise at large to tell an original story within the property's existing continuity. Taking place in a new corner of Fallout's post-apocalyptic landscape, Prime Video's series centers its narrative on three original characters: Lucy, Maximus of the Fallout's main cast of characters.

Walton Goggins' Ghoul Character In Fallout Explained

The Ghoul's Backstory Emphasizes How Much The Apocalypse Can Change A Person

Played by Walton Goggins, who's had prominent roles in projects like Django Unchained and Justified, The Ghoul is a bounty hunter by trade. But as the flashbacks quickly make clear, he wasn't always the ruthless killer he's often proved himself to be at this point in the Fallout timeline. In fact, he was once a highly principled husband and father. Before becoming known as The Ghoul, Goggins' character was a renowned actor by the name of Cooper Howard. Howard established himself as a well-respected film star who primarily starred in Western movies.

His work in Westerns represented a side of his personality off the camera as well, as evidenced by Cooper's appreciation for horseback riding. During a conversation with his wife, Barb, Cooper also expressed an interest in moving away from the city and enjoying a quiet life on a ranch. He was also a person deeply committed to his values and preserving his image. This aspect of his personality was on display during a quarrel with a director over his character executing a criminal in a scene.

Unfortunately, the events of Fallout season 1 demonstrate that Cooper's values died along with civilization. In the present-day story, his Cooper Howard persona has all but eroded away, as he now lives only as a cold-blooded mercenary. As The Ghoul, he's not afraid to kill anyone who gets in his way and now has little use for morals. Through his activities, The Ghoul has built a reputation as one of the most competent bounty hunters in the Wasteland.

Cooper Howard's Connection To Vault-Tec Explained

The Ghoul knows all too well what Vault-Tec is capable of

Over the course of the series, it becomes apparent that in addition to being one of the few people on the surface who experienced life before the apocalypse, The Ghoul is well-acquainted with Vault-Tec. Barb had a high-level position in Vault-Tec and arranged for Cooper to appear in ments for the company. But as time ed and Cooper's association with Vault-Tec grew, he began to develop suspicions about their real motives. After hearing Barb claim that she wanted their family to be placed in "one of the good vaults," Cooper took steps to find out what was really going on at Vault-Tec.

Egged on by Muldaver, Cooper used a listening device to discover the depth of Barb's connection to what Vault-Tec was up to. Not only was his wife culpable in the company's evil acts, but Cooper's eavesdropping yielded the surprising reveal that Barb was in favor of the bombs being dropped by Vault-Tec themselves so that they could personally ensure that the vaults wouldn't go unused.

How Goggins' Fallout Character Compares To Ghouls In The Video Games

Ghouls Play Key Roles In The Fallout Canon

At first glance, Purnell and MacLachlan's characters resemble Fallout 3's core duo, but Walton Goggins' character seems, by necessity, different from his video game counterpart(s). In the games, ghouls are mutated survivors of the nuclear holocaust. Essentially, they exist primarily as faceless enemies for the player to kill. Given his brush with radiation, Goggins' Ghoul has lived for hundreds of years. In that time, he turned from father and husband Cooper Howard into a callous gunslinger. While Prime Video's Fallout draws inspiration from the games, The Ghoul is a more human look at a decidedly post-human being.

All eight episodes of Fallout are streaming on Prime Video.

In the Fallout games, players can come across so-called feral ghouls. Also referred to as mindless zombies and "ghoul crazies," these Fallout monsters are ghouls that have completely lost their ability to reason. That said, they are incredibly aggressive and attack any human being in their line of sight. The actions of feral ghouls don't just have violent consequences: plenty of humans who haven't undergone radiation-induced mutations harbor bigoted views against all ghouls, even those who have retained their mental faculties, as humans assume every ghoul will eventually descend into a feral state of being.

How Old Is The Ghoul Supposed To Be In Fallout?

Cooper has avoided becoming a Feral Ghoul for over two centuries

In the Fallout franchise, all feral ghouls were once regular ghouls, meaning that people like Cooper Howard are doomed to undergo this transformation at some point or another. What makes Cooper's ability to avoid this fate so impressive is the amount of time he's spent at the ghoul stage. Episode 1 confirmed that Fallout's main story takes place 219 years after the apocalypse. With that in mind, it's fair to say that The Ghoul is close to 270 years old, given that Goggins is 52 years old. By using mysterious vials of yellow liquid that appear to slow down the process, Cooper has succeeded in outliving most ghouls in Fallout's world.