| “ | Rameses: One damaged temple does not destroy centuries of tradition. Seti: But one weak link can break the chain of a mighty dynasty! |
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| ~ Pharaoh Seti I to Rameses, also the same quote that lead to Rameses' descent into villainy. |
| “ | Seti: The Hebrews grew too numerous. They might have risen against us. Moses: Father, tell me you didn't do this. Seti: Moses… sometimes, for the greater good… sacrifices must be made. |
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| ~ Seti I admitting the massacre of Hebrew children to Moses. |
Pharaoh Seti I is the overarching antagonist of DreamWorks' 2nd full-length animated feature film The Prince of Egypt, which is based on the Book of Exodus.
He is the husband of Tuya, the father of Rameses, and the adoptive father of Moses (the protagonist of the film). Although most of his antagonistic actions occur offscreen such as the murder of children of the slaves, they are the primary cause for the events of the story as well everyone’s misery later on in the story.
He was voiced by Sir Patrick Stewart, who also played Locutus in Star Trek: The Next Generation, Dr. Jonas in Conspiracy Theory, Rafe Bentley in Masterminds, Napoleon in the 1999 Animal Farm film, King Goobot in Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, Avery Bullock in American Dad!, King Claudius in the 2008 Hamlet stage play, Zobek in the Castlevania video game series, the Master of the Hunt in Futurama, Darcy Banker in Green Room, John Bosley in the 2019 Charlie's Angels film and Nettlebrand in Dragon Rider.
History[]
Film[]
Little is known of Pharaoh Seti or his reign before he committed the act that would immortalize him as a monster forever. Fearing that the enslaved Hebrews were growing too numerous and might rebel against him, he ordered a mass execution of all male infants born to the Hebrews and Jews, having his army invade Hebrew and Jewish homes and kidnap the male infants like wild animals from their terrified mothers and tossing them into the river Nile, a decision that would haunt him for the rest of his life.
However, one Hebrew woman named Yocheved managed to sent her infant son adrift on the river Nile using a small basket to escape the massacre. After a perilous journey, the infant would reach the royal palace where Seti's wife Queen Tuya picked him up and took him under her wings. By that time, Seti and Tuya had already had a son named Rameses, and despite his previous aggression towards the Hebrews and the Jews, Seti willingly agreed to Tuya's proposal to adopt the child and named him Moses.
Years later, Seti is shown to be a stern leader, even to his own sons - though he is especially harsh towards Rameses, due to him being the heir to the throne. However, he was also shown to have a softer side. He tried his best not to show it regardless. (In Seti's defense, many rulers before him of that period did the same, being raised from birth to believe that they were incarnations of gods, particularly Osiris and his son Horus.)
Later in the film, Seti appoints Rameses as Prince Regent (on the advice of Moses), placing him in charge of overseeing the construction of the temples. When Moses suggests that the priests Hotep and Huy offer a tribute to Rameses, Seti happily concurs and orders the priests to do so. The priests does so by giving a Midian woman named Tzipporah, but Rameses decides to give Tzipporah to Moses, who eventually sets her free.
Eventually, Moses discovered his true heritage after having a nightmare involving the massacre and exploring the royal palace, where he came across a depiction of the massacre, much to his horror. Upon seeing Moses grieving over this, a guilt-ridden Seti tries to comfort his adoptive son by explaining his reasons for the massacre and how he supposedly had no choice. However, his seemingly uncaring attitude towards the "slaves" simply serve to alienate him from Moses, who flees from his adoptive father - repulsed and disgusted by his attempts to justify the infanticide.
Seti died at some point following Moses' exile into the desert, passing his kingdom to a now fully-grown Rameses - who would do all in his power to try and build a "better" Egypt than his father could ever have dreamed of.
Musical[]
In this stage adaptation of the film, Seti's role remains mostly the same with some exceptions.
In this adaptation as part of a political alliance, Seti betroths Rameses to a princess named Nefertari. It is also he, not Hotep and Hoy, who brings Tzipporah to the palace, whom he gives to Rameses to be his slave.
After Moses flees Egypt, Seti dies and is succeeded as Pharaoh by Rameses.
Personality[]
Pharaoh Seti I is held up as a wise and powerful ruler in his kingdom of Egypt and is initially shown to be a sympathetic if strict father figure, but his true nature as a, demanding, abusive, argumentative, and power-hungry tyrant doesn't take long to seep through. He was willing to have every Hebrew baby boy killed because they were "only slaves", though he admitted that he did it out of fear that the Hebrews might one day rise in numbers and power to start a rebellion that will threaten the dynasty according to an old prophecy.
However, despite his stern and cold behavior, especially towards his subjects, Seti does display some level of genuine love and care for his family, as he agreed to his wife's proposal to adopt Moses (although he never found out he was a Hebrew) and appointed Rameses as High Regent despite being continually hard on him, likely due to considering Moses' words about him living up to his expectations. He even tried to comfort Moses over his responsibility behind the massacre and enslaving all the Hebrews when their population increased, implying a sense of guilt for the killing of the Hebrew infants as he is shown to have been disturbed by what he did, but believed it was necessary to preserve his life and power. He also seems to be in a loving relationship with his wife as he would listen to her when she believed he was being too harsh on his sons.
However, his words that the Hebrews were "only slaves" revealed that underneath his seemingly regretful and burdened demeanor was that of a tyrant who did not see the Hebrews as fellow human beings and nothing more than property to perform hard labor for the Egyptians, and that their lives were of no consequence to him.
Relationships[]
Relatives[]
- Tuya (wife) †
- Rameses (son)
- Moses (adoptive son)
- Amun (grandson) †
- Tzipporah (adoptive daughter-in-law)
Allies[]
- Egyptians
- Egyptian soldiers
Enemies[]
- Hebrews
Quotes[]
| “ | Why do the gods torment me with such reckless, destructive, blasphemous sons?! (Rameses: Father, hear what I say--) Be still! Pharaoh speaks! I seek to build an empire, and your only goal is to amuse yourselves by tearing it down! Have I taught you nothing? | „ |
| ~ Pharaoh Seti I confronting Moses and Rameses for the mischief they have caused with their chariot races. |
| “ | Moses, you will never have to carry a burden like the crown I will pass to Rameses. He must not allow himself to be lead astray. Not even by you, my son. | „ |
| ~ Pharaoh Seti explaining to Moses why he was harder on Rameses. |
| “ | Oh my son, they were only slaves. | „ |
| ~ Pharaoh Seti I's last words to his adopted son Moses. |
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- As a Pharaoh, Seti I is represented with a lion motif (as his son also is later on). In real life, Pharaohs were known to keep big cats as pets and lions were linked to royalty and were viewed as a symbol of kingship.
- Seti means "of Set", specifically the Egyptian god Set, who represents fish. Set is also often seen as a god of war and chaos, somewhat befitting of the genocidal actions Seti would order in the film.
- In real life, Pharaoh Seti I reigned for a relatively brief 11-15 years during the New Kingdom period and was most notable for his wars with the Hittites, during which he captured the city of Kadesh (on the modern-day Syria-Lebanon border) for Egypt.
- When Seti explains to Moses why he was harsh on Rameses, he tells him that he wouldn't have to carry a burden of a leader like Rameses; ironically, Moses would later carry a burden of a leader as he would lead the Hebrews after discovering the truth about his heritage.
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Book of  Villains
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