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All hail the Crimson King.
~ The Crimson King.

The Crimson King is one of the overarching antagonists of the Stephen King mythos.

He is a transdimensional demonic were-spider who wishes to remake the multiverse in his own image so he can rule it all in chaos. He is the master of Randall Flagg and Atropos, and the ultimate enemy of Roland Deschain, the Last Gunslinger. His last setback of killing his own court and his own physical body seems to be what finally drove the King irredeemably insane, and while a creature of pure nightmare, he is able to be defeated by mortals.

Biography[]

Background[]

The Crimson King is described as a demonic creature who rules over evil and everts demonic creatures (with some notable exceptions such as Tak and possibly It) as their "king" in several universes of the Stephen King collective multiverse.

It is revealed in Marvel Comics' comic book adaptations of The Dark Tower series that he was born of a union between a female elder demon of the primordial Prim (the chaos/nothingness before the cosmos formed), only known as the Crimson Queen; and the difficult-to-place icon of Roland's world, a male human named King Arthur Eld. Arthur Eld was seemingly the first unified ruler of the world since the Great Old Ones had caused an apocalypse on many levels, destruction so thorough, all was thought lost. This is likely what was meant by him being mentioned as born from chaos.

Whether Eld was supposed to have any connection to the legendary and historical Arthur of our time and place is never spoken of. Celebrating his united crown, Eld and his court threw a celebration that was stated to be open to anyone. Using this opening, the Spider Queen demon and her followers assumed pleasing Human forms and reveled with the Human celebrants, with the Queen seducing Eld and producing the Crimson King. Since Roland is also a descendant of Eld, the two are distantly related, and he even referred to Roland as his "cousin".

Insomnia[]

The Crimson King selects Susan Day to be killed in a mass slaughter alongside many of her followers and sends his own follower Atropos to convince Ed Deepneau to create it, as part of a plan to spark chaos in the universe he's in. Over the course of the novel, Ralph Roberts and Lois Chasse become aware of the Crimson King's existence, with Ralph getting a vision of the Dark Tower, which holds the entire multiverse together.

Soon, the King manages to drive Deepneau insane, causing him to crash an airplane right next to the Derry Civic Center, and the attack kills Day and her followers as the Crimson King had planned. As Ralph races against time to save Natalie, Deepneau's daughter, he and Lois discover that the success of Deepneau's attack could determine the fate of the entire multiverse and that the King's real target is none other than Patrick Danville, a young boy who is prophesized to play an important role in saving the Dark Tower, and the entire multiverse along with it.

The Crimson King is now finally able to undo the prophecy because the story takes place in Derry, a town with convergence. However, his plot is ultimately foiled as Clotho and Lachesis manage to save Patrick and his mother, and the multiverse remains intact.

Black House[]

The King sends out a demonic being known as Mr. Munshun, or the Fisherman, to hunt down and capture children Breakers, or people with psychic powers. These children are enslaved so that they are forced to work at the Big Combination, a power plant where disharmony is unleashed from and the Breakers' powers can be utilized in the Crimson King's goal of toppling the Dark Tower and remaking the multiverse as he sees fit. Upon the capture of Tyler Marshall, Munshun's fourth victim and presumably the most powerful Breaker to have ever lived, Jack Sawyer, now in his thirties, realizes that the boy may be the key for the Crimson King to finally achieve his goal. Unfortunately for the King, Tyler destroys the Big Combination, foiling his plan once again.

The Dark Tower series[]

Background[]

The King supported the rise to power of pawns such as Randall Flagg and John Farson in his quest to drive All-World to its final ruin, and the collapse of the Tower. Through a particularly twisted and convoluted scheme, he caused Susannah Dean, apprentice gunslinger under Roland, to become impregnated with a child who would be both his own and Roland's, giving this child access to the Dark Tower, the King could never have. The child (tellingly called "Mordred") was all his fathers were, squared and cubed, but their flaws were also magnified in him, and he in essence self-destructed.

The Dark Tower[]

The Crimson King enslaves many powerful psychics known as the Breakers to destroy the Dark Tower, an eldritch monument that is the base of every existing universe, so that everything in existence would collapse with, being replaced by chaotic darkness that he could rule and manipulate forever.

The Crimson King first appears as a menacing, dangerous, and intimidating dark lord, but he fittingly becomes more and more insane as the story progresses, ultimately murdering everything around himself and ultimately himself. After his demise, he becomes an undead abomination who attacks the protagonists and is ultimately defeated as he is erased from existence through a magical picture that represents him being created then erased.

Even after his erasure, the King endured as a bodiless wraith, reduced to a set of eyes, becoming his namesake sigil, the "Crimson King's Eye" or "Crimson Eye", and because Roland's journey was revealed to be a cyclical one, it is unknown whether he defeats the King the same way in each iteration.

Personality[]

The Crimson King himself is portrayed as an intelligent creature who is bent on destroying the multiverse by knocking down the Dark Tower, so he can remake it in his own image. Despite his intelligence, over the course of the The Dark Tower book series, he seems to grow more insane and his homicidal urges seem to happen more often.

He tends to promise his allies power and prestige, but also tends to demand that they serve him with no questions. He is shown to have no problem of having anyone including young children murdered, as he is known to of ordered his servants to have children murdered in order to secure his plans go without fail.

The Crimson King also seems to be a rather pretentious and paranoid creature who fears a prophecy that he will meet his end to the point he eventually kills all those around him and later himself, so he can become an undead abomination that retains not only his mind but powers. This is done so no conventional means could kill him and he could continue his mad quest to remake the multiverse into a chaotic void to rule for all eternity.

Gallery[]

Images[]

Videos[]

Trivia[]

  • The Deadlights

    The Deadlights

    One of the Crimson King's many deadly arsenals at his command is writhing bright orange lights called "Deadlights", a dangerous and eldritch form of energy, which composes the very life essence of another inhuman Stephen King villain known as It.
  • The SCP Foundation's mythos includes a similar eldritch demon called the Scarlet King, who is presumably based on the Crimson King.
  • His downfall embodies Stephen King's idea that while true evil seems alluring and seductive from a distance, up close, it is usually quite pathetic.

External Links[]

Navigation[]

           Kingster KingVillain

Novels/Novellas
Carrie: Carrie White | Mortimer Snerds (Chris Hargensen, Donna and Mary Lila Grace Thibodeau, Helen Shyres, Heather Shyres & Tina Blake) | Margaret White | Billy Nolan | Ralph White
Salem's Lot: Kurt Barlow | Richard Straker | Marsten House
The Shining: Overlook Hotel | Jack Torrance | Hotel Caretaker | Grady Sisters | Lorraine Massey
Children of the Corn: Children of the Corn (Isaac Chroner & Malachai Boardman) | He Who Walks Behind the Rows
Rage: Charlie Decker | Mr. Decker
The Stand: Randall Flagg | Barry Dorgan | Bobby Terry | Harold Lauder | Julie Lawry | Lloyd Henreid | Nadine Cross | The Kid | The Rat Man | Trashcan Man | Whitney Horgan
The Long Walk: The Major | Gary Barkovitch
The Dead Zone: Greg Stillson | Frank Dodd
The Mist: Adrian Garff Mrs. Carmody | The Mist
Firestarter: Captain Hollister | Doctor Herman Pynchot | John Rainbird
Roadwork: Barton George Dawes | Sal Magliore
Cujo: Cujo | Joe Camber | Stephen Kemp
The Running Man: Damon Killian | United States of America
Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption: Samuel Norton | Byron Hadley | Sisters (Bogs Diamond) | Elmo Blatch
Apt Pupil: Kurt Dussander | Todd Bowden
The Body: The Cobras (John "Ace" Merrill, Richard "Eyeball" Chambers, Billy Tessio, Charlie Hogan, Vince Desjardins, Jack Mudgett & Norman "Fuzzy" Bracowicz)
Christine: Arnie Cunningham | Christine | Repperton Gang | Roland D. LeBay
Pet Sematary: Wendigo | Church | Gage Creed | Rachel Creed | Timmy Baterman
Cycle of the Werewolf: Lester Lowe
The Tailsman: Morgan Sloat
Thinner: Billy Halleck | Tadzu Lempke | Cary Rossington | Duncan Hopley | Gabe Romani | Gina Lempke | Richie Ginelli
Dolan's Cadillac: Jimmy Dolan
It: It | Bowers Gang (Belch Huggins, Henry Bowers, Marcia Fadden, Patrick Hockstetter, Peter Gordon & Vic Criss) | Alvin Marsh | Butch Bowers | Richard Macklin | Tom Rogan | Christopher Unwin | Webby Garton
Misery: Annie Wilkes
The Tommyknockers: Tommyknockers | Nancy Voss
The Dark Half: George Stark
Secret Window, Secret Garden: John Shooter
The Langoliers: Craig Toomey | Langoliers | Roger Toomey
Needful Things: Leland Gaunt | John "Ace" Merrill | Danforth Keeton III | Brian Rusk | Wilma Jerzyck | Nettie Cobb | Hugh Preist | Father Brigham (Father Meehan) | Reverend Rose
Gerald's Game: Gerald Burlingame | Moonlight Man | Tom Mahout
Dolores Claiborne: Joe St. George
Insomnia: Atropos | Crimson King
Rose Madder: Norman Daniels
The Green Mile: William Wharton | Percy Wetmore
Desperation: Tak | Sheriff Collie Entragian
The Regulators: Tak
Bag of Bones: Max Devore | Sara Tidwell | Roggete Whitmore
The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon: God of the Lost
Dreamcatcher: Byrus | Mr. Gray
Black House: Charles Burnside | The Crow Gorg | Mr. Munshun
From a Buick 8: The Buick
Cell: Phone Crazies | Raggedy Man
Lisey's Story: Andrew Landon | Jim Dooley | Long Boy
The Gingerbread Girl: Jim Pickering
Duma Key: Perse | Undead Victims
Under the Dome: Jim Rennie | Junior Rennie | Phil Bushey | Leatherheads
1922: Wilfred James | Henry James | Shannon Cotterie
Big Driver: Lester Norville | Ramona Norville
A Good Marriage: Robert Bob Anderson
11/22/63: Lee Harvey Oswald | Frank Dunning
In The Tall Grass: Ross Humboldt | Cal Demuth
Doctor Sleep: The True Knot (Rose the Hat, Crow Daddy, Grandpa Flick, Barry the Chink & Snakebite Andi) | Andy Hallorann
Bill Hodges Trilogy: Brady Hartsfield | Morris Bellamy
Gwendy's Button Box: Richard Farris
The Outsider: The Outsider
Fairy Tale: Gogmagog | Elden | Petra | Kellin | Hana | Red Molly | Peterkin | Christopher Polley

Short Stories
Cain Rose Up: Curt Garrish
The Mangler: Bill Gartley | The Mangler
The Boogeyman: The Boogeyman
Trucks: Westway Refrigerated Truck | Bulldozer
The Ledge: Cressner
Jerusalem's Lot: Philip Boone | James Boon | The Worm
Quitter's Inc.: Mr. Donatti | Quitters Inc.
The Crate: Crate Beast
Crouch End: The Children | The Goat with a Thousand Young
The Monkey: The Monkey
The Raft: Lake Blob
Word Processor of the Gods: Richard Hagstrom | Roger Hagstrom
Gramma: Gramma Bruckner
The Night Flier: Dwight Renfield
Low Men in Yellow Coats: Harry Doolin
Blind Willie: Raymond Fiegler
Why We're In Vietnam: Ronnie Malenfant
Lunch at the Gotham Café: Guy

Films
The Shining: Overlook Hotel (Lloyd, Lorraine Massey & Hotel Caretaker) | Jack Torrance
Creepshow: Creepshow Creep | Crate Beast | Nathan Grantham | Richard Vickers | Upson Pratt | Wilma Northrup
Cat's Eye: Cressner | Mr. Donatti | Quitters Inc. | Troll
Maximum Overdrive: Bubba Hendershot | Camp Loman | Happy Toyz Truck | Ice Cream Truck | M274 Mule | Vending Machine
A Return to Salem`s Lot: Judge Axle
Creepshow 2: Creepshow Creep | Creepshow Bullies | Lake Blob | Sam Whitemoon | The HitchHiker
Sleepwalkers: Charles Brady | Mary Brady | Sleepwalkers
Pet Sematary 2: Gus Gilbert | Renee Hallow | Clyde Parker | Zowie
The Mangler Trilogy: Bill Gartley | The Mangler | Lin Sue | The Mangler Virus
The Rage: Carrie 2: Rachel Lang | Mark Bing
Creepshow 3: Creepshow Creep | Rachel
The Dark Tower: Randall Flagg
It: Part One: It | Bowers Gang (Henry Bowers, Vic Criss | Belch Huggins & Patrick Hockstetter)
Pet Sematary (2019): Ellie Creed
It: Part Two: It | Henry Bowers | Tom Rogan
Doctor Sleep: The True Knot (Rose the Hat, Crow Daddy, Grandpa Flick, Barry the Chink & Snakebite Andi) | Overlook Hotel (Jack Torrance, Hotel Caretaker & Lorraine Massey)
The Boogeyman: Boogeyman

TV Series
The Stand: Randall Flagg | Harold Lauder | Julie Lawry | Nadine Cross | The Rat Woman | Trashcan Man
The Shining: Overlook Hotel | Jack Torrance | Hotel Caretaker | Lorraine Massey
Storm of the Century: André Linoge
Rose Red: Professor Joyce Reardon | Ellen Rimbauer
Under the Dome: Big Jim Rennie | Junior Rennie | Phil Bushey | The Kinship (Christine Price & Dawn Sinclair-Barbara)

Other
The Diary of Ellen Rimbauer: Ellen Rimbauer

See Also
The Dark Tower Villains

           Dark Tower Logo Villains

The Red
Crimson King | Man in Black | Mordred Deschain | Wolves | John Farson | Rhea of the Cöos | Eldred Jonas

Others
Hax | Jack Mort | Detta Walker | Enrico Balazar | Jack Andolini | Tick-Tock Man | Gasher | Blaine the Mono | Big Coffin Hunters | Cordelia Delgado | Mia | Hitler Brothers | Kurt Barlow | Maerlyn | Bern Kells | Dandelo

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