I often need to play games like Oblivion Remastered more than once to fully enjoy them. I get impatient to know the resolution to the main story quest, so I'll typically run through the game quickly for the first time, then go back for a second playthrough that I intend to complete more thoroughly. It's also fun to test out new builds and abilities each time. I recently booted up my game for a second playthrough and was surprised to learn a detail about Martin that I had missed my first time around.

Something about Martin felt very familiar, but that isn't all that surprising to me. Video game actors are often very prolific, so it isn't strange to hear a voice in one game that sounds eerily similar to one from another. However, after actually looking into who voices Martin in Oblivion, I was shocked to discover that he is played by one of my favorite actors from film and TV.

Martin Is Played By LOTR & Game Of Thrones' Sean Bean

Sean Bean Is Well Known For Fantasy Roles

Boromir holding the Ring in Lord of the Rings.

Martin is played by Sean Bean, probably best known for either his portrayal of Ned Stark in Game of Thrones, or Boromir in The Lord of the Rings. Although I knew Bean was a prolific film and television actor, I didn't realize that I'd also been hearing his voice in other games without realizing it. Bean was the narrator in Civilization 6, and he also played Regis Lucis Caelum in Final Fantasy 15. Bean also starred in one of the live action adaptations of Silent Hill.

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I would assume that more people probably knew Sean Bean was in Oblivion back when it originally came out in 2006. After all, it had only been three years since The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King came out, and fantasy fans likely would have been excited that an alum from the trilogy would be starring in a game like Oblivion. However, I never played Oblivion when it was originally released. Oblivion Remastered's surprise release took me so off guard that I never looked into who was in it, though in hindsight I should have figured it out.

Martin Even Looks A Bit Like Sean Bean In Oblivion

Martin's Model Has Similar Hair To Sean Bean's Fantasy Characters

Oblivion character Martin standing in front of a blurred screenshot of a green field

Now that I know Sean Bean plays Martin in Oblivion, it's really easy to see it. Not only is his voice recognizable, but Martin actually bears some resemblance to Sean Bean. When he played both Boromir and Ned Stark, Bean had the same medium-length hair that Martin does, and it is even close to the same color and style.

I wouldn't be surprised if this was intentional on the part of Oblivion's development team. After all, if you've scored a high-profile actor from one of the most popular fantasy films of all time, you probably don't want to hide that fact. However, there are also a few other recognizable actors in Oblivion whose appearances are not as easily telegraphed.

Oblivion's Cast Includes Several Familiar Faces

Sean Bean Is ed By Lynda Carter, Terrance Stamp, And Patrick Stewart In Oblivion's Cast

While looking into the cast of Oblivion, I was surprised to learn that Wonder Woman star Lynda Carter voices the female Nords and Orcs in the game. In fact, Carter also voiced Nords in Morrowind, and plays a few characters in both Skyrim and The Elder Scrolls Online. Apparently, Oblivion also had a file for an unused NPC named Lynda Carter, who was a Nord woman, so she would have been voiced by and named after Carter. This would have made her inclusion in the game's cast much more obvious than it is in the final game.

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I was also shocked to see that Mankar Camoran, the leader of the Order of the Mythic Dawn, was played by Terrance Stamp. Superhero fans may know Stamp as General Zod from Superman 2 and Jor-El in Smallville. I did already know that the emperor in Oblivion Remastered was voiced by Patrick Stewart, but I had no idea that there were so many other known actors in the game.

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Your Rating

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered
Top Critic Avg: 82/100 Critics Rec: 86%
Released
April 22, 2025
ESRB
Mature 17+ // Blood and Gore, Sexual Themes, Violence
Developer(s)
Virtuos, Bethesda
Publisher(s)
Bethesda
Engine
Unreal Engine 5