Maxim Horvath

"Time for a little revenge."

- Maxim Horvath

Maxim Horvath is the secondary antagonist of the 2010 Disney fantasy film, The Sorcerer's Apprentice. He was once one of Merlin's apprentices, but turned to the dark arts after his love interest favored his best friend and became a follower of Morgana le Fay. He leads the Morganians and seeks to set Morgana free and help her unleash the curse known as The Rising.

He was portrayed by the British actor, Alfred Molina, who also played Doctor Octopus in Spider-Man 2, Johann Tetzel in the 2003 film Luther and Satipo in Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Background
During the Arthurian Era, Maxim Horvath, Balthazar Blake and Veronica Gorloisen were disciples of the legendary Merlin. The aging sorcerer granted them eternal youth until they found and trained his heir. For centuries, they assisted their master against his worst enemy, the dreaded Morgana Le Fay. The three were at first very close, but their mutual love for Veronica eventually split Maxim and Balthazar. Maxim could not bear that Veronica chose Balthazar over him and turned to Morgana out of petty jealousy.

With Horvath's help, Morgana murdered Merlin and gained the secret of the most evil curse in existence: the Rising, which would raise every dead sorcerers from the grave under their control, as an army they could use to take over the entire world. Balthazar and Veronica confronted and defeated Morgana, but at a terrible price for Veronica was forced to seal Morgana's soul within herself and Balthazar had to seal her into a magic nesting doll called The Grimhold, to save her from being possessed. Horvath then disappeared, spending the following centuries recruiting and forming evil sorcerers to aid in his search for the Grimhold.

Horvath and Balthazar battled throughout the ages, with Balthazar trapping several of Horvath's agents into the Grimhold, finally bringing their conflict to modern-day Manhattan (It is implied that he defeated many more of Horvath's agents in more classical ways, only sealing the most powerful of them.) Balthazar is now leader of the Merlineans: wizards who use magic for the benefit of mankind; while Horvath is the leader of the Morganians, who use magic as a mean to subjugate humans. This conflict lasted until Balthazar defeated Horvath and sealed him away in the Grimhold in his turn. (The novelization reveals that Horvath got trapped during the 1920s.)

Appearance
Maxim Horvath is a short and portly man with dark hair and brown eyes, sporting a trimmed mustache and a goatee. (In the middle ages, he was much thinner and fitter, and wore his hair at shoulder length.) He is very elegant, wearing an expensive grey coat with a large fur collar, a black suit, a tie with a spider jewel on it, black rubber gloves, and a bowler hat.

Horvath's Cane, his most prized possession, is a long black staff-like cane with blue crystals that glows whenever he cast spells to channel his magic. (Originally, the cane was a long, medieval sword with the same, blue crystals on its pommel, which he had transformed into a cane, presumably to suit modern era and avoid unwanted attention.)

Personality and Traits
Maxim Horvath is a suave, sophisticated, well-mannered, well-read and erudite man, always impeccably collected, dignified and courteous, even when about to kill someone. He never ever raises his voice or expresses stronger emotion than irritation. He is witty and sarcastic, with a strong sense of dry, dark humour.

Yet, this refined facade hardly veils his cruelty. He is intensely cold-hearted, remorseless and power-hungry; only caring about himself and disposing of his followers without batting an eyelid the second he stops needing them. He is horribly jealous, insensitive, bitter, petty, and self-centered, betraying the people that were closest to him in a heartbeat and being willing to endanger the entire world, just because he could not get over a heartbreak. When Balthazar attempts to talk him out of hit, he react with scathing, spiteful contempt, hinting that in his twisted point of view he considers Balthazar and Veronica to blame.

Horvath is cautious, observant, perceptive, and clever, being familiar with both magic tricks and how his foes work, and knowing how to further his goals. He likes disparaging his foes and rubbing his success to their faces in an almost playful tone, and seems to enjoy trading quips. But at the same time, he cannot stand when things do not get in his way and shows little tolerance for his apprentices' antics, dismissing and belittling them at every opportunity. Though he teaches them well and praises their successes, making them very powerful and dangerous sorcerers, he does so because he only needs them as powerful assets.

However, he does have (or had) strong feelings of love for Veronica, and retains a grudging respect for Balthazar. Even when fighting his former friend to the death, he still converses with him like an old acquaintance and fully acknowledges his merits. Moreover, the only time he displayed genuine grief is when he saw Veronica fully possessed by Morgana. Also, as long as he gets what he wants, he holds his parts of bargains and leaves his foes alive (when he has no interest in killing them, that is).

Powers and Abilities
As one of Merlin's apprentices, Maxim Horvath is a sorcerer of the 777th degree, with centuries of experience and practice. This makes him highly powerful and skilled, expert in altering his surroundings and toying with the laws of physics to suit his needs. Horvath, Balthazar and Veronica are equals, and second only to Merlin and Morgana themselves, the mightiest sorcerers to ever live.

Like all sorcerers except from Merlin, his successor and Morgana, he needs a Magic Catalyst to channel his power; in his case his sword turned cane. Without it he is completely powerless. In addition, he is a highly skilled swordsman, as evidenced when he remotely controls a sword, who can use his cane as a blunt weapon with great proficiency and always keeps daggers with him to throw with his magic. And despite his unassuming appearance, he can hold his own very well in a purely physical brawl.

In the climax, he steals Merlin's Dragon Ring from the primary protagonist Dave Stutler, and steals the catalysts of both his followers, attaching them all to his cane, becoming extremely powerful in the process. With that, he was able to effortlessly defeat Balthazar himself, but vulnerable to electric currents.

Here is a list of the spells Horvath was seen casting throughout the story:


 * Mental Spells: Horvath displays exceptional proficiency in mental magic such as:
 * Telekinesis: Horvath can perform high-level telekinesis on objects or persons, without any gesture, to either crush people against walls or make things fly and remotely control them like a marionette. He can even move only small part of an object, like when he uses the metallic railings around a huge fan to ensnare Balthazar.
 * Hypnotism: Horvath can make suggestions on someone's subconscious, and influence his thoughts and behavior, to the point of compelling them do whatever he wants or to command animals.
 * Psychic Vision: Horvath can perceive the residual information of an object and/or person to have visions of past events that occurred in their vicinity.
 * Illusions: Horvath is also able to induce illusions to blur people's vision and confuse them.
 * Enchantment Spells: Horvath is expert in bewitching things and people, displaying spells such as:
 * Animation Spell: Horvath can bring statues and other objects to life and make them act like sapient animals acting independently, though doing his biddings. Even worst, he can bring drawings and pictures to life, turning them into living specimen of what they represent.
 * Transformation Spells: Horvath masters shape-shifting magic and can use it to transform himself or other people into someone or something else, either for disguise or fooling his foes. Balthazar once mentions that he could turn Dave into a pig, but he is never seen doing so, though he obviously can. He can also reshape objects as he pleases, changing the brand of a car and turning it into a taxi or a huge truck.
 * Ectoplasm Trap: With this powerful spell, Horvath can conjure ectoplasmic energy looking like a transparent, liquid fluid engulfing its target, be it people and even speeding trains, and considerably reduce its speed as if time was slowed down around them for about a minute.
 * Hungarian Mirror Trap: Horvath can bewitch mirrors and other reflective surfaces (usually on solid objects) to lock someone into a reverse world, limited by what is reflected by said mirror, of which they can only escape through another mirror or with external help. Balthazar mentions that if the target does not escape quick enough they might get trapped forever or even die.
 * Persian Quickrug: Horvath can enchant rugs into taking traits of actual quicksand, having it trap and swallow anyone or anything unfortunate enough to stand on it. It apparently only activates when someone steps on it.
 * Elemental Spells: Horvath has mastered various element-based spells, enabling the conjurers to blast targets with potent gusts of wind, to catch things in a vacuum, to conjure fog, or to freeze things, to conjure, shape and carve earth, and even hurl lightning. He proves exceptionally adept with fire and heat based magic, and displayed the abilities to cause spontaneous combustion, to conjure fire, to seize flames in his hand, and to hurl fireballs and fire streams akin to a flamethrower, or to raise walls of fire from his conjured flame or from an already existing source. He can also focus heat to draw burning symbols on walls, or even on a New York fry cook's patties to catch his attention.
 * Parasite Spell: Horvath masters this very dangerous curse, with which he can absorb their life-force, usually to lethal effect.
 * Magic Combat: A sorcerer of Horvath's level is of course considerably adept in magic-based duels:
 * Plasma Bolts: A basic attack spell that fires softball-sized orbs of blue energy. Expert fighters can fire many of them in quick succession, bigger and more damaging (if not lethal) ones, and a fast-paced barrage of highly potent Bolts.
 * Plasma Deflection: Horvath can unleash a wide, bluish shockwave that not only pushes away anything in his path, but also deflects back normal projectiles or blasts of magic.
 * Magic Shield: Horvath can conjure shields of blue energy to counter any attack coming his way.
 * Air Blast: Horvath can conjure a powerful gust of wind.

Imprisoned and Temporary Freedom
In the year 2000, a ten-year-old boy named Dave Stutler ventured into Balthazar's antique shop, the Arcana Cabana, and was recognized by Merlin's magic Dragon Ring as none other than the fabled Prime Merlinean: Merlin's descendant who is to inherit all his powers and defeat Morgana once and for all. Unfamiliar with his newfound power, Dave accidentally stumbled upon the Grimhold and freed Horvath. Balthazar battled his old enemy once again, and after a violent struggle the two got stuck in a magic urn called The Grimlock for ten years.

Ten years later, Dave his now a physics student traumatized by the battle, about which none believed him due to the magic disappearing with both sorcerers, making him the target of much ridicule. As Dave is spending time with Becky Barnes, a music student and the girl he loves since his childhood, the two feuding sorcerers are finally freed. Horvath escapes first and throws the Grimlock through the window, but Balthazar escapes before the urn shatters dozens of stories below.

Horvath's Revenge
Horvath sneaks into Dave's flat and demands the Grimhold, but Dave threw it away. As Dave escapes, he brings to life a pack of wolves from a calendar's picture and sends them after him. Dave only owes his life to Balthazar, who turns the wolves into puppies and takes him away on one of the Chrysler Building's giant eagle statues Building, which he animated. He then starts training Dave in basic form of sorcery, much to his student's dismay.

On his track of the Grimhold, Horvath casually kills a passer-by after using used a form of clairvoyance magic to track down the Grimhold, finding out that it was taken by a Chinese woman. Knowing this, he goes to Chinatown during a celebration, but Dave and Balthazar are on their way as well. Horvath transforms into an old Chinese shop-keeping lady (probably the one who took the Grimhold whom he murdered) to ambush Balthazar, but he sees through the disguise. Unfortunately, Horvath found the Grimhold and released his old apprentice Sun Lok, who turns the parade dragon into a real one. Balthazar subdues his old foe and takes away the Grimhold, while Dave succeeds in defeating the Dragon, crushing Sun Lok under its weight. They take shelter into Dave's laboratory, but not before Horvath witnesses Dave's spellcasting.

Recruiting Drake Stone and Retrieving the Grimhold
Through suggestion of a fry cook who follows Morganians, Horvath recruits the foolish illusionist Drake Stone as his apprentice and sends him after Dave. Both sorcerers attack Dave in New York University's bathroom, but Balthazar once again saves his disciple, trapping Horvath in a Hungarian Mirror Trap. Once freed by Drake, Horvath compels the school's clerk into telling him Dave's whereabouts.

Drake transforms into Dave to take Balthazar by surprise and subdues him, and Horvath casts a fog spell to locate the Grimhold, which Balthazar turned invisible. Balthazar frees himself and engages a fight, getting nearly killed by Horvath's daggers, but Dave barges him and saves him at the last second. Horvath and Drake escape in Drake's car, with Dave and Balthazar in hot pursuit. During the ensuing car race, Horvath transform his car following his needs (stealth or speed) before trapping them into a Hungarian Mirror Trap of his own and destroying all the mirrors through which they could exit, but they escape through a shard before it shatters, so he turns his car into a truck to crush their own, before temporarily shape-shifting a woman into Veronica to distract Balthazar and flee.

Empowering His Cane and Set the trap for Merlineans
Back at Drake's lavish condo, Horvath uses the Parasite Spell to drain his now useless apprentice's life-force, taking his Magic Catalyst as well, and uses them to free the legendary witch Abigail Williams from the Grimhold. He sends her capture Becky and steals her life-force and Magic Catalyst as well after she succeeds. When Dave and Balthazar venture in to settle the score, they find the plans he drawn for casting the Rising, but Balthazar gets trapped by a Persian Quickrug. With Horvath holding Becky hostage and Balthazar too busy to save himself from the quickrug, Dave has no choice but to relinquish his Dragon Ring. Horvath then scares both Dave and Becky with a stray plasma bolt before leaving satisfied.

The Final Battle
Horvath goes to Battery Park, at the centre of the buildings he chose for the pentagram formation needed for the Rising ritual. He frees Morgana, who is fully possessing Veronica, and Balthazar resolves to face them alone. Morgana orders Horvath to destroy the Grimhold and starts casting the Rising, but they are stopped by Balthazar who engages a decisive duel against his old foe. Alas, he is no longer a match for Horvath, who wields with Drake's Ring, Abigail's Talisman and the Dragon Ring.

Horvath animates a nearby Charging Bull statue to kill Balthazar. Fortunately, Dave comes to the rescue in Balthazar's car, on which he installed a makeshift Tesla coil (his expert subject in physics), knowing that all the Talismans Horvath put on his cane would make it a better conductor. Before Horvath can attack, he gets zapped by the coils’ discharge and blasted away by Balthazar, while the giant eagle statue flies off with the bull statue.

Just as the ritual starts rising dead sorcerers from the grave all over the world, Becky (who was told about Magic and Morganians and insisted on helping Dave) succeeds in disabling the satellite dish on top of one of the buildings, disrupting the energy flow and dispelling the Rising. With Morgana knocked out by the backlash, Balthazar attempts to absorb her soul to free Veronica, but Morgana briefly possesses him and escapes as a spirit.

With both Veronica and Balthazar recovering from the possession, Morgana attempts to kill them with a tremendous onslaught of fire that they can barely block, but Dave rushes to shield them and conjures a huge magic screen without his ring, awakening as the Prime Merlinean. Morgana blasts them all with powerful Plasma Bolts, grievously wounding Balthazar. Enraged, Dave retaliates with equally powerful bolts, however, being a spirit, she makes them pass through her. She unleashes a tremendous barrage of Plasma Bolts and seemingly gains the upper-hand. Still, it turns out that one of Dave spells, which only looked like a Plasma Bolt, animated a janitor's mop to activate the high-voltage cabin, turning the surrounding lamps into another makeshift Tesla coil. Morgana is then zapped and turned solid by all the power in the district, enabling Dave to blast her into oblivion and destroy her once and for all.

Immediately after, Dave heals Balthazar, who can now reopen the Arcana Cabana and live his remaining time with Veronica, while Dave and Becky fly away on the eagle statue across the Atlantic Ocean to take breakfast in Paris.

What happened to Horvath after the final battle remains unknown, but since Balthazar mentioned that electrocution causes a sorcerer to lose his magic, it is fair to assume that he is now powerless, and will finish his life destitute, unable to threaten anyone ever again and having to provide for himself with normal means.

However, the film's stinger shows the unidentified figure of a man with a cane, heavily implied to be him, hand retrieving his hat from the Arcana Cabana. This was meant to tease for a possible sequel with possibility of him somehow regained his magic, which was never made.

Trivia
(Like other characters in the film, Maxim Horvath undergoes several changes over the course of screenwriting.
 * In the movie opening where Horvath was introduced via his depiction in the Encantus, he appears to held a bottle of some kind of potion, suggesting that he held a degree of knowledge in magical potion brewery and/or even alchemy albeit his said talent neither seen nor explored in the movie itself.
 * The bull statue animated by Horvath, is based the real-life Charging Bull statue in Bowling Green Park near Wall Street in Manhattan, New York.
 * In terms of his backstory prior to his betrayal, his former friendship with Balthazar, and also his status as de facto leader of Morganians, Horvath is similar with Megatron in the Transformers franchise, particularly in the Transformers film series:
 * Both organizations that they affiliated with shares similar racial ideology and beliefs.
 * Much like Megatron's Michael Bay film incarnation who on the run after The Fallen defeated, Horvath is on the run after Morgana defeated by Dave.
 * Though he is intended to be British, "Maxim" is a Russian given name and "Horvath" (Horváth) is a Hungarian surname.
 * In the early draft of the film, instead of a centuries-old former Merlinean, Horvath was the leader of the Morganians of the XXth Century. Not only that, but Horvath was stated to be previous Prime Merlinean before Dave as well as former master of Balthazar (who was originally intended to be a former Morganian assassin and apprentice). Also, Horvath has an established civilian identity as the wealthy chairman of Horvath Global Insurance Group and had resources as a Morganian sorcerer, which explained with his own collection of occult tomes. His catalyst of choice also stated to be a skull ring that had glowing red eyes, unlike the magic staff in the final film. By the end of the script, he and the rest of unleashed Morganians were sealed inside the Grimhold that kept within the second Arcana Cabana.
 * Major difference between Horvath's portrayal in early draft and in final film was his relationships with some characters: Early draft of the film showed that he was not as selfish as his portrayal in final film as he never disposed his own allies nor steal other sorcerers' rings (the only exception was when he stole Dave's Dragon Ring that required to unlock final layer of Grimhold and that ring eventually returned to Dave in the end). He was also already enemies with Veronica from the beginning instead of former love interests.