| “ | I am not a zealot, Mr. Freeman. The limits of my belief in tradition and ceremony stop at the fact that the others believe it. Titus used the Book of Names to spell his body to be more powerful, and you're a reservoir of that power, diluted, no doubt, and also tainted somewhat, but still useful for the work I have to do. | „ |
| ~ To Atticus |
Samuel Braithwhite is a minor villain appearing in the HBO horror television series Lovecraft Country.
He is played by Tony Goldwyn, who also played Carl Bruner in Ghost, the Gentleman Caller in Kiss the Girls, and Michael Drucker in The 6th Day.
Samuel is the leader of the Order of the Ancient Dawn, a cult dedicated to attaining immortality by accessing the Garden of Eden. He is a distant relative of Titus Braithwhite and the father of Christina Braithwhite. He meets with Atticus Freeman after undergoing a painful organ removal while conscious. He comments on Atticus’s skin color and shows him a painting of the Biblical Adam by Josef Tannhauser titled “Genesis 2:19.” He explains that, at the dawn of Creation, Adam put all creatures in their place by naming each of them. He then compares himself to Adam, remarking he’s worked long to reach Paradise.
Samuel later hosts a dinner for his fellow cultists, telling them how they follow in Titus’s image just as Titus followed in Adam’s. As Adam gave of his rib to create Eve, so did Titus give of himself to empower the Order’s founders, so Samuel offers his removed organ to his guests. He then sits and listens as Atticus, purported to be Titus’s last remaining direct heir through his slave Hanna, orders everyone but him (Samuel) to leave. When ordered by Atticus to hand over his missing father Montrose, Samuel explains that Titus used the Book of Names to enhance his body, and Atticus is a reservoir of that power, however tainted and diluted.
After Atticus, his friend Leti Lewis, George, and Montrose crash into an invisible barrier, Samuel approaches the group, accompanied by Christina. Angered by Atticus’s earlier brazenness, he shoots Leti. Then he coldly gives Atticus a choice of who he will shoot next. When Atticus fails to choose, he shoots George. When Atticus agrees to participate in the ceremony to open a gate to Eden, Samuel resurrects Leti and agrees to heal George after the ceremony. He recites the spell, with Atticus acting as a conduit for a portal to the Garden of Eden. Unfortunately for him, Hanna appears on the other side of the portal and disrupts the ceremony, resulting in Samuel and his fellow cultists turning to stone.
Quotes
| “ | At the dawn of time, just for a moment, everything was where and as it should be... from God to man to woman, down to the lowliest wriggling creature. It was Nirvana. | „ |
| ~ To Atticus |