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Protagonists
David "Dave" Stutler
Do not judge a magic grimoire by its cover.
- Portrayed by: Jay Baruchel, Jake Cherry (as a ten-year-old)
- Action Survivor: At first.
- Always Save the Girl: When Horvath captures Becky, Dave willingly gives him Merlin's ring and the Grimhold to save her. Balthazar later admits he would have done the same thing.
- The Apprentice: The one the title is about.
- The Archmage: Becomes this after he fully accepts being the Prime Merlinean.
- Bad Liar: Although Balthazar does say that this is a good thing.
- Badass Bookworm: The reason Dave is good at physics is because he has natural magical talent. Even after becoming a sorcerer, he prefers defeating foes with his intellect and his knowledge of science.
- Badass Bystander: He was with Becky when she got mugged, and immediately ran after the much bigger and stronger guy, using his newfound powers to mop the floor with him and win Becky's incredulous gratitude.
- Beam Spam: His main means of attack after he masters his powers.
- Beware the Nice Ones: Dave would rather avoid fighting, even against villains out to kill him, but if the threat is too big, he will not hesitate.
- Big Damn Heroes: He arrives just in time to save Balthazar from Horvath, telekinetically stopping his daggers.
- Brainy Brunette: Has dark brown hair and is extremely knowledgeable in physics.
- The Call Knows Where You Live: Maxim Horvath knows his name and tracks him down to his apartment ten years after they first meet.
- Cassandra Truth: Due to lack of evidence, his class doesn't believe that there really are uber-dangerous spellcasters inside Balthazar's antique shop. They also think he'd wet his pants, when in reality, a jar filled with water had spilled all over him in the chaos.
- Character Development: His master-apprentice relationship with Balthazar, growing mastery of magic, and blooming romance with Becky gives him much needed self-confidence and assurance. Compare the meek Manchild easily frightened by Horvath (though understandably so), to the badass Prime Merlinean who trounces the Big Bad and takes Becky to Paris on a whim.
- Chekhov's Skill: His makeshift Tesla Coils. He uses them to turn the tides against both Horvath and Morgana Le Fay.
- The Chosen One: Dave is the Prime Merlinian.
- Cool Ride: Dave gets on in the form of Balthazar's steel eagle at the end of the film.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: Several instances.
- The mugger stood no chance against his magic.
- In the Final Battle, he knew he was no match against Horvath in a Wizard Duel, but handily used his foes' power-ups against him to turn the tide with science.
- Morgana overwhelms him at first ... but as soon as he makes her physical again and vulnerable to his magic, he reduces her to nothing with a barrage of energy blasts she cannot hope to counter.
- Die or Fly: Being an inexperienced sorcerer, most of his magic only tends to come out when he's under extreme and/or life-threatening stress.
- Dork Knight: Dave is a nerd with a capital N, even after becoming a powerful and reliable hero. He even weaponizes his nerdiness in the most awesome way.
- Earn Your Happy Ending: He earns his mentor's respect and the affection of his Love Interest, saves the day, and goes to Paris with his girlfriend for breakfast, flying into the sunrise atop a giant, animated bronze eagle.
- Embarrassing Last Name: Dave Stutler (sounds like "stutter") doesn't sound particularly badass.
- Exactly What I Aimed At: He keeps blasting spells at Morgana after seeing her dodge them all. In fact he pretends to keep firing at her as a distraction, to bewitch the mop that will start the chain reaction leading to her demise.
- Fat and Skinny: The skinny to his roommate and best friend Bennet.
- Good Counterpart: To Drake Stone, as they are both apprentices to the Big Good and the Big Bad, both came from humble roots, and are not taken seriously due to their quirks, despite their potential.
- Good Is Not Soft: The nicest guy around, but fully willing to kill Horvath and Morgana, being well aware that this is the only way to stop them for good.
- Good with Numbers: According to Balthazar, Dave's expertise at physics is proof of his magic potential.
- The Hero: Not at first. He fully becomes one at the climax.
- Heroes Love Dogs: Dave is very fond of his bulldog, Tank, having had him since childhood.
- Heroic Lineage: Coming from very, very, very far in history, as he is Merlin's descendant.
- Heroic Resolve: He slowly builds it throughout the movie.
- I Just Want to Be Normal: At first. He later fully accepts his responsibilities as the Prime Merlinian.
- Inept Mage: At first. However, he quickly gets the gist of his powers and starts taking multiple levels in badass for breakfast.
- Intergenerational Friendship: At first, Dave does not trust Balthazar at all, due to the man repeatedly withholding information from him. Over time, Dave starts looking up to him and they become very close.
- Lovable Nerd: A very endearing one. It helps him earn Becky's affection, especially when he makes his Tesla coils play a song that he'd heard on her radio show.
- Mind over Matter: Through his magic, he gains telekinesis that enables him to block revolving doors, levitate trashcans, and stop flying daggers, among others.
- Nerd Action Hero: A nerd who saves the world and kicks Evil Sorcerers' backsides ... with science!
- Now It's My Turn: Says this word for word to the Final Boss, who dodges his attacks and gives an Ironic Echo.
- Official Couple: With Becky.
- Once Done, Never Forgotten: Dave is still infamous for supposedly wetting himself and babbling about dueling wizards as a fourth grader. According to him, there are still parts of New York who call a nervous breakdown, "pulling a David Stutler."
- Ordinary High-School Student: Older as he is in college, but aside from that, he pretty much fits the mold.
- Protagonist Title: The titular apprentice.
- Red Is Heroic: He's often seen wearing a red hoodie.
- Refusal of the Call: At first, Dave rejects his magical heritage and the burden of being The Chosen One. Who could blame him? That's a lot to swallow after all.
- He eventually comes around as his relationship to Balthazar starts improving.
- Ridiculously Average Guy: In addition to the above, to drive in the point that appearances hardly matter.
- Science Hero: Manages to be both a sorcerer and this.
- Science Wizard: Dave is a physics major and technically inclined genius prior to being taught sorcery by Balthazar. In fact, it's implied that an understanding of science is necessary to perform magic.
- Stereotypical Nerd: Downplayed. Dave is scrawny, meek, socially awkward, and a Teen Genius, with his interests seemingly comprising of only physics (and Becky). However, there is more to him than meets the eye, and he becomes a more well-rounded person later on after undergoing Character Development.
- Supporting Protagonist: While he is The Hero, Balthazar is the one who does the traditional heroic deeds. Justified as he is only an apprentice, and therefore, not suited to fight fully trained sorcerers like Horvath or Drake. At the climax, he fully awakens his magic powers and is ready to kick some ass.
- Surpassed the Teacher: By the end of the movie, Dave is considerably mightier than Balthazar. However, he has yet to become more skilled and accomplished.
- Teen Genius: He's around twenty during the present-day plot, but the point still stands that Dave is a highly intelligent grade-A student, able to build Tesla Coils and conduct music on radio waves with them.
- Theme Initials: He and Drake Stone share the same initials.
- Took a Level in Badass: And how! This scrawny, easily scared nerd takes level upon level of badass throughout the movie as he progressively masters magic, culminating in awakening Merlin's powers and blasting Morgana into oblivion.
- Unlikely Hero: At first glance, this timid, meek, and scrawny nerd with a nasal voice would not be one's first bet to save the world.
- Unskilled, but Strong: As Morgana herself lampshades it, Dave awakening as the Prime Merlinean grants him Merlin's tremendous powers and might, but he is not trained enough to fully master it. However, Dave manages to compensate with his intelligence, scientific knowledge, and quick thinking.
- World's Best Warrior: By the end of the movie, he is the single most powerful sorcerer in existence.
- You're Insane!: Asks Balthazar if he is unstable, which he never truly denies.
Balthazar Blake
- Portrayed by: Nicolas Cage
- Alliterative Name: Balthazar Blake.
- Always Save the Girl: When Horvath captures Becky, Dave willingly gives him Merlin's ring and the Grimhold to save her. Balthazar later admits he would have done the same thing.
- And I Must Scream: He spends ten whole years trapped in an urn, fully conscious.
- The Apprentice: Along with Horvath and Veronica, he was Merlin's student. Inverted when he trains Dave.
- Arch-Enemy: To Horvath.
- Badass Bookworm: Balthazar is extremely powerful and is often seen reading.
- Badass Longcoat: His trademark outfit.
- Badass Teacher: Tremendously powerful and Dave's master.
- Big Eater: Dave is disgusted at how much he eats when they first meet again. Considering it's his first meal in ten years, though, it's pretty justified.
- Big Good: The mightiest and most influential force of good in-story, who takes The Hero under his wing.
- Cool Car: He owes one.
- Deadpan Snarker: Boy howdy, is he ever. He's barely capable of speaking to Dave or Horvath without snarking.
- Dented Iron: He hides it admirably, but it is clear that his centuries of battling evil have taken their toll and that he just wants to spend his remaining years in peace.
- Disney Death: Don't worry, people. Dave is right here to help!
- Dramatic Deadpan: He states matters of life and death calmly, as if just speaking about what he had for breakfast.
- Earn Your Happy Ending: After over a millennium fighting Evil Sorcerers by the dozens, he gets to live his remaining years in peace with the woman he loves.
- Good Counterpart: To Horvath.
- Good Witch Versus Bad Witch: Good sorcerers versus bad ones. He leads the camp of good.
- Heartbroken Badass: He is a supreme badass and has painfully missed his girlfriend since he had to seal her away over a thousand years prior.
- The Hero: While Dave is the main character, Balthazar does the heroic deeds for most of the movie and the story is about his feud with his Evil Former Friend, which only Dave can end for good.
- Heroic Sacrifice: Subverted. He was planning on fighting Horvath and Morgana alone, but Dave intervenes and saves the day.
- Insult Backfire: When asked if he is unstable, he makes a "little bit" hand sign.
- Knight in Sour Armor: Only implied. After all, this is a Disney movie.
- Kung-Fu Wizard: Downplayed, but despite his enormous magic power, he is also very good in a purely physical brawl. He did grew up during The Dark Ages after all.
- Large Ham: Nicolas Cage clearly had fun while doing this movie.
- Like a Son to Me: Balthazar grows to care deeply for Dave, and the feeling's clearly mutual.
- The Little Shop That Wasn't There Yesterday: Played with. Balthazar owns an antique shop for a cover. It is always there and Muggles can see it, but the magical stuff is not.
- Long-Lived: Thanks (or not) to Merlin's magic.
- Master-Apprentice Chain: Apprentice to Merlin, teacher to Dave.
- Miles to Go Before I Sleep: He can't die until the finds the Prime Merlinian.
- Mentor Archetype: The powerful but ageing master who finds the ordinary college student to tell him about his supernatural potential, his destiny as The Chosen One, and training him to defeat the uber powerful Big Bad threatening the entire world. Yeah, he fits the mold to a T.
- Obi-Wan Moment: He knows he stands little to no chance of survival when confronting Morgana and Horvath on his own, but he does not care. He even sacrifices himself to seal Morgana within him, and nearly gets killed later on, but Dave heals him.
- Old Master: Not that much physically, but he has lived for centuries and is a tremendously powerful sorcerer with loads of experience and skill.
- Passing the Torch: He wants to find and train the Prime Merlinean to entrust him with leading the good sorcerers all over the world, like he did for centuries. He does so in the end.
- Really 700 Years Old: Closer to 1300.
- Sealed Good in a Can: He was accidentally sealed in a Chinese vase along with Horvath. He escaped ten years later.
- Snark-to-Snark Combat: With Horvath, constantly.
- Trickster Mentor: Balthazar is fully committed to making Dave a powerful sorcerer, but if he can get a laugh at his expense or pull out a weird, embarrassing lesson in the process, he won't hesitate.
- Voice of the Legion: His voice takes on this tone briefly when Morgana possesses him.
- Walking the Earth: Before he set up shop in New York, Balthazar spent years trying to find the Prime Merlinian across the world.
- Wizard Classic: Was one in the prologue and is now a modern take on the archetype.
Rebecca "Becky" Barnes
- Portrayed by: Teresa Palmer, Peyton List (as ten-year-old Becky)
- Badass Normal: Gotta grant her that. It takes major guts to climb a skyscraper while being deathly afraid of heights and disable a satellite dish on her own.
- Big Damn Heroes: She is the one who interrupts the Rising and averts The End of the World as We Know It, foiling the villains' Evil Plan.
- Damsel in Distress: She gets taken by surprise and kidnapped by Abigail Williams.
- Give Geeks a Chance: She would gladly, and without second thoughts. Becky's and Dave's romance starts blooming when he shows her his Tesla Coils broadcasting music.
- Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold: As fair-minded as she is fair-haired.
- Hostage for MacGuffin: Horvath and Abigail kidnap her to force Dave to give up Merlin's ring and the Grimhold.
- It Was a Gift: Becky is distraught when she gets mugged and has to give up her bracelet, which belonged to her (presumably deceased) grandmother. Dave rushing after the mugger to get it back earns him his first points for being a potential boyfriend.
- Leg Focus: The introduction to her older self is a shot that pans up from her legs, which is complete with a Stocking Filler. It's lampshaded when she thinks Dave searching for a paper under her table is him peeking at her legs.
- The Load: Delightfully averted. Despite being The Hero's muggle Love Interest, Becky sweetly tells the trope to suck it by being essential in foiling the Evil Plan.
- Love Interest: Dave has been in love with her since childhood. Their romance mirrors what that of Balthazar and Veronica could have been and gives him a much needed anchor in the normal world.
- Muggle : A totally normal young woman, but still a major character.
- Nice Gal: She's genuinely sweet, friendly, and open with everyone. Even though she witnessed Dave's public humiliation when they were kids, she does not think less of him.
- Nerves of Steel: Reasonably downplayed. After being kidnapped by a Voluntary Shape Shifting sorceress, being held hostage, witnessing her Love Interest casting spells, then learning about magic and the incoming apocalypse, she is understandably shaken and frightened. Yet, she quickly regains composure and insists to take part in the battle, despite Dave urging her to stay safe. And taking part she does.
- Official Couple: With Dave.
- Satellite Love Interest: Very nicely subverted. She has a major hobby and friends apart from Dave, and they spend the movie getting to know each other and growing close, with romance slowly but realistically blooming. She also helps Dave foil Morgana's plot.
- Single Woman Seeks Good Man: Becky genuinely falls in love with Dave, who is the sweetest guy she'll ever meet.
- Spanner in the Works: Becky would obviously be useless in a fight, but that won't mean she cannot help. She proves essential in derailing the Evil Plan while the sorcerers are out to fight.
- Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?: She doesn't like heights. Later, she must confront her fears in order to help Dave defeat Morgana.
- Will Not Be a Victim: So, Horvath? You kidnapped her and thought she was just a Damsel in Distress? Say goodbye to your super apocalypse curse.
Veronica Gorloisen
- Portrayed by: Monica Bellucci
- Action Girl: Spending most of the movie as a Sealed Good in a Can, she gets little chance to shine, but she was apprenticed to Merlin for a reason and is clearly as powerful and skilled as Balthazar and Horvath. The intro shows her unleashing powerful magic and taking on the Final Boss herself.
- And I Must Scream: The poor lady spent about a thousand years trapped in a doll, and within her own mind, not even in control of herself.
- Demonic Possession: Self-inflicted so that Morgana can be sealed into the Grimhold.
- Hot Witch: She's played by Monica Belucci herself, what else?
- Earn Your Happy Ending: After a millennia of suffering as a Sealed Good in a Can, she can spend her remaining years in peace with the man she loves.
- Good Counterpart: To Morgana herself. Both are female apprentices to Merlin and tremendously powerful sorceresses, but where Veronica greatly respected her master and was altruistic, noble and caring, Morgana was selfish, ambitious, evil, and was the one who killed him in the first place. Them Sharing a Body confirms this.
- Heroic Sacrifice: She tries to absorb Morgana and almost dominates her soul, but the evil sorceress is too much for her and she ends up overwhelmed.
- I Just Want to Be Normal: Just like Dave.
- Lady of Black Magic: A benevolent example. She is beautiful, noble, and poised, and her spells pack a mean punch.
- The Lost Lenore: Sealed instead of dead, but she still counts. Even nearly a millennium after her disappearance, Balthazar is still pining for her. Horvath as well demonstrates genuine heartbreak when he sees her rising, fully possessed by Morgana.
- Love Interest: To Balthazar, which she reciprocates. In a villainous example, she's a one-sided version of this to Horvath as well.
- Sealed Good in a Can: Double version. She is the good can in which Morgana is sealed. At the same time, both her and Morgana were sealed in the Grimhold.
- Sealed in a Person-Shaped Can: Morgana's soul is trapped within her.
- Simple, yet Opulent: Clad in a rich robe, though without much ornaments.
Merlin
- Portrayed by: James A Stephens
- Arch-Enemy: To Morgana Le Fay, his former beloved apprentice.
- The Archmage: Far and away the mightiest and most revered benevolent sorcerer in all of history. Only he (and his heir) can match Morgana.
- Badass Longrobe: He's clad in one in his scenes.
- Badass Teacher: He is the mightiest mage and trained the very best ones, to both his utmost pride and direst despair.
- Died in Your Arms Tonight: Passes away in Balthazar's arms, tasking him to train the Prime Merlinean.
- Fling a Light into the Future: Merlin himself died, but knows that his descendant and heir will end the fight once and for all.
- Good Counterpart: The Greater-Scope Paragon to Morgana's Greater-Scope Villain.
- Greater-Scope Paragon: The greatest sorcerer to ever live, the master of the Big Good, and the source of power of The Hero.
- Long-Lived: He lived over a millennium and apparently outlived King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table.
- Magic Knight: As good with magic as with a sword in hand. He fought Morgana with one.
- Master-Apprentice Chain: Merlin trained Balthazar, who in turn trains Dave.
- Mentor Archetype: The one who taught the Sorcerer of the title, his Love Interest, and alas his Arch-Enemy.
- Mentor Occupational Hazard: Those familiar with this kind of Fantasy movies know that mentors don't last long and poor Merlin is no exception.
- Merlin and Nimue: He taught Morgana, and spent his last years dearly wishing he hadn't.
- Old Master: He lived for centuries, but remains a peerless master of magic.
- Passing the Torch: Merlin was hoping to pass it to his heir, but due to his untimely death, he had to pass his mission onto his best student instead.
- Posthumous Character: Merlin dies in the prologue, but the search and training of his heir shapes the entire story.
- Public Domain Character: One of the most famous there is.
- Really 700 Years Old: Over a thousand years.
- Robe and Wizard Hat: He only wears the hat in illustrations though.
- With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility: Merlin and his followers state that a sorcerer is a servant of the world whose mission is to help make it a better place. Morgana disagrees.
- Wizard Beard: He's an extremely powerful sorcerer, and most adaptations portray him with one. This movie is no exception.
- Wizard Classic: One of the Trope Codifiers, no less.
- Wizards Live Longer: The most likely explanation to his very, very, very long life.
Antagonists
Maxim Horvath
Subtle isn't it?
- Portrayed by: Alfred Molina
- And I Must Scream: His time trapped in the Grimhold, then the urn, though he deserved no less. He describes the latter as particularly grating due to having nothing to do but to read a ten-year-old's lackluster essay.
- All Your Powers Combined: In the Final Battle, the magic rings he took from his apprentices add their power to his own, making him so powerful that even Balthazar no longer stands a chance. However, this proves to be a double-edged sword.
- Arch-Enemy: To think he and Balthazar were once best friends...
- Art Initiates Life: Not his own art, but turning photographic wolves into the real deal still qualifies.
- Badass Bookworm: As powerful and skilled as he is well-read, cultured, and knowledgeable.
- Badass in a Nice Suit: Highly dangerous and dressed to the nines.
- Badass Teacher: He is a grade-A sorcerer and the students he releases from the Grimhold are very well taught.
- Bad Boss: Horvath pretty much screws over everyone he ever works with.
- Big Bad: He might defer to Morgana Le Fay, but it is Horvath who leads the villains for most of the backstory and the story itself, whose actions drive the conflict, and whose centuries-long feud with Balthazar writes the plot, providing an emotional challenge in addition to the magical threat.
- Cane Fu: He can use his Classy Cane as a blunt weapon.
- Card-Carrying Villain: The movie being an Affectionate Parody of all Fantasy clichés, Horvath is quite upfront about his evilness and his desire to kill people.
- Charm Person: Can use magic to influence people's actions, much to his apprentice's amusement.
- Classy Cane: He is never seen without his ornate cane, completing his Sharp-Dressed Man looks. Overlaps with Magic Staff, as it is his catalyst.
- Cold Ham: Always perfectly poised, dignified, and stoic, but still hammy as hell.
- Cool Sword: He had one in the prologue, but nowadays it is a Classy Cane.
- Deadpan Snarker: Like Balthazar. His humour is much more macabre and cutting, but his snark hits home.
- Death Glare: A master of the trade, which he directs towards his apprentice nearly as often as towards his foes.
- Devour the Dragon: Uses the parasite spell to drain the magic of Drake Stone and Abigail Williams.
- Disproportionate Retribution: You dare love my best friend instead of me? Fine, I'll kill you both, our mentor, and everyone! That will teach you!
- Dissonant Serenity: Tells Dave that he is about to kill him in the middle of an almost cordial conversation, and remarks about the death of children as if commenting on today's weather.
- The Dragon: To Morgana.
- Dragon-in-Chief: While Morgana is the more powerful threat, Horvath remains the central villain. Justified by Morgana's status as a Sealed Evil in a Can.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: When Morgana is freed, Horvath initially mistakes her for Veronica, with his reaction indicating that he still longs for her, something which Morgana is contemptuous of, sneering, "It's me, Horvath. Morgana. No need to look so pathetic!" when Horvath timidly asks, "Veronica...?"
- Evil Brit: Looks like your quintessential British gentleman, but wants to Take Over the World and kill everyone on his way.
- Evil Counterpart: To Balthazar.
- Evil Former Friend: With Balthazar. They jump at each other's throats with intent to kill as soon as they see each other, but still trade banter like old friends disagreeing in a philosophical debate.
- Evil Has a Bad Sense of Humor: Averted. His jokes are gloomy and dry, but he does have a witty sense of humor.
- Evil Is Hammy: Seems incapable of not overacting for more than five minutes straight.
- Evil Is Petty: And how!! The guy prepares the doom of everyone on the planet, just because he could not handle having his crush unrequited.
- Evil Sorcerer: A tremendously powerful one, leader of all evil sorcerers and sorceresses.
- Faux Affably Evil: He is polite, well-mannered, poised, and erudite, but can be scathingly disparaging, not to mention perfectly willing to kill any innocents on his way.
- Freudian Excuse Is No Excuse: Oh, woe is him, he became an Evil Sorcerer out to unleash The End of the World as We Know It, just because his crush loved another. Disproportionate Retribution doesn't even begin to cover how petty and disgusting it is.
- Gentleman Wizard: A villainous version.
- Good Witch Versus Bad Witch: Good sorcerers versus bad ones. He leads the camp of evil.
- The Heavy: The one through whom everything bad happens.
- Kick the Dog: That driver definitely should have known better than to mess with Horvath.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: Horvath steals the rings/amulets of Dave and the various Morganians he's allied himself with, making himself powerful enough to free Morgana unaided. However, all that extra power makes him an easy conductor for Dave's Tesla coil.
- Karma Houdini: As evidenced by a quick end-credits scene, he's still loose out there. Likely subverted given that he was electrocuted, which according to Balthazar deprives a sorcerer of their power. He also loses his Magic Staff, which renders him powerless and destitute.
- Love Makes You Evil: His entire reason for becoming Morgana's disciple is because Veronica did not return his feelings.
- Magic Knight: A considerably powerful sorcerer and a very good fighter. He used to fight with a sword and still fights with one through telekinesis, but nowadays he's traded it for a classy (but no less lethal) cane.
- Magic Staff: He channels his magic through his trademark Classy Cane.
- Mind over Matter: Every sorcerer worth his salt is a master of telekinesis, but Horvath displays the best feats with this form of magic.
- Pet the Dog: He fully keeps his part of the bargain and releases Becky unharmed before leaving without killing Dave. However, he still fires a plasma bolt at the two, just because he can.
- A Pupil of Mine Until He Turned to Evil: Once apprenticed to Merlin, his betrayal caused his demise.
- Really 700 Years Old: Well, over a thousand years old, if not more.
- Sealed Evil in a Can: Twice. First, Balthazar traps him in the Grimhold. He escapes. Later, they are both sealed in a Chinese urn. They both escape ten years later.
- Sharp-Dressed Man: Impeccably groomed and elegant.
- Snark-to-Snark Combat: With Balthazar, more than once.
- Voluntary Shape Shifting: Like his students, he knows how to take an unassuming aspect to catch foes off-guard. He likely taught them.
Drake Stone
- Portrayed by: Toby Kebbell
- Anti-Villain: He tries to kill Balthazar and Dave, but it's obvious that he only wants to belong and to feel validated more than to Take Over the World. He is clearly implied to not realize the full extent of his master's depravity.
- Beware the Silly Ones: Just by looking at his entire attire and mannerisms, he may not seem like the kind of guy you'd take seriously. Under Horvath's tutelage however, he becomes more competent as the film progresses and even learns to morph into Dave. He even manages to hold his own against Balthazar rather fine for a while.
- Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: It might be tempting, but don't underestimate him.
- The Dragon: To Horvath.
- Et Tu, Brute?: À villainous version. Drake is visibly heartbroken when Horvath pulls a You Have Outlived Your Usefulness on him. This makes the second, and worst, betrayal he suffers from a mentor he trusted.
- Even Evil Has Standards: He is fine lording over people and amassing power, but he balks at mass murder, especially if children are involved. Too bad Horvath doesn't care.
- Evil Brit: An Evil Sorcerer of British origin.
- Evil Counterpart: To Dave, fitting the story's theme of the good sorcerers opposing an evil reflection of themselves. He is a young man taken under wing by a powerful master sorcerer, and a bit of a ditz who nevertheless proves skilled and craves recognition.
- Evil Is Not a Toy: He really should have stayed a famous stage performer...
- Freudian Excuse: His mentor (and implied Parental Substitute) bailed on him without notice, leaving him to fend for himself while he was but a teenager without full training. Ouch...
- Incompletely Trained: His own mentor disappeared without a trace before he ever finished teaching Drake.
- I Just Want to Be Special: Drake just wanted to complete his training and join the sorcerers he idolized. Again, it's in contrast to Dave's I Just Want to Be Normal. Too bad, he chose the wrong side...
- Laughably Evil: Quirky and funny, but still very dangerous.
- A Lighter Shade of Black: Drake is willing to cheat, steal, and even kill Merlineans, but he remains by far the less evil of all Morganians.
- Master of Illusion: His way of making a living.
- Magicians Are Wizards: He uses his magic in public, but of course, people don't really cotton on, chalking it up to sleight-of-hand and other common magic cheats.
- Minion with an F in Evil: Drake simply follows Horvath because he admires the Morganians. However, he is more selfish than fully evil and looks quite uncomfortable when Horvath casually remarks that his plan involves the death of a few children. His initial battle with Dave grinds to a halt after initial success because he decides to give his opponent encouragement and helpful advice.
- No Celebrities Were Harmed: Drake is David Copperfield with real magic powers, or maybe Criss Angel due to his alternative fashion sense.
- Out-of-Character Alert: His impersonation of Dave was genuinely good, but his use of British slang (plus the black painted nails) gave him away.
- Shrine to Self: Drake Stone's condo sports many portraits of himself, some half-naked, around the house. Dave calls them horrifying.
- Theme Initials: He and Dave share the same initials.
- Voluntary Shape Shifting: Uses Dave's appearance to fool Balthazar.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: He should have been revived after the ending, but this is never shown.
- You Have Out Lived Your Usefulness: Horvath steals Drake's life-force to further his plans, after he is done with him.
Abigail Williams
- Portrayed by: Nicole Ehinger
- Been There, Shaped History: She was responsible for the Salem Witch Trials.
- Creepy Child: Of course, she's an evil witch.
- Cute Witch: A thorough aversion.
- The Dragon: Briefly to Horvath in place of Drake.
- Evil Wears Black: Does she ever.
- Glowing Eyes of Doom: Her eyes glow red when she uses her magic.
- Pint-Sized Powerhouse: A small, eleven-year-old child, and one of the worst Morganians in history.
- Red Eyes, Take Warning: As if the above wasn't enough.
- Salem Is Witch Country: Part of her past crimes as an evil witch was starting the Salem Witch Trials.
- Small Role, Big Impact: She is not there for long, but she is essential to kick-start the final act.
- Voluntary Shape Shifting: Uses the appearance of a Perky Goth to get close to her target, Becky.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: She should have been revived after the ending, but this is never shown.
- You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: Horvath pulls this on her, as usual.
Morgana le Fay
- Portrayed by: Alice Krige
- All There in the Manual: It was explained that she was Merlin's first apprentice before becoming his equal and worst enemy.
- Apocalypse How: Her plan is either Class 2 or Class 3a by raising an army of undead sorcerers.
- Arch-Enemy: She's got a serious bone to pick with Merlin.
- The Archmage: Far and away the most powerful evil spellcaster in the story, defeating the ageing Merlin and Curb Stomping his apprentices. Until Dave comes around...
- Beam Spam: Attacks with deadly rapid-fire barrages of plasma bolts.
- Cold Ham: She is both poised and regal, and hammy as hell.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: The only one who can stand against her is Merlin (or his heir) after all.
- Balthazar and Veronica combining their power stood no chance against her. Granted, they were recovering from her Demonic Possession and the previous battles.
- Morgana overwhelms Dave at first... but as soon as he makes her physical again and vulnerable to his magic, he reduces her to nothing with a barrage of energy blasts she cannot hope to counter.
- Demonic Possession: Ends up in complete control of Veronica.
- Balthazar absorbs her within him in the Final Battle, but she promptly escapes.
- Evil Counterpart: The Greater-Scope Villain to Merlin's Greater-Scope Paragon.
- Evil Is Burning Hot: She's one rotten mage who can create fire blasts.
- Evil Redhead: Red hair and the vilest mage to ever live.
- Evil Sorcerer: A female example who puts every other in the movie to shame.
- Final Boss: Ultimately what her role is about, with Horvath as The Heavy.
- Flat Character: Uber powerful, uber evil, uber dangerous, uber scary, yadda, yadda, yadda. But she doesn't have much going on beyond that.
- Grand Theft Me: After spending years trapped inside Veronica's body, Morgana obtains full control of Veronica and uses her body to further her plans. Later on, she abandons Veronica's body and manifests as an energy projection.
- Greater-Scope Villain: The most powerful villain by far, and the one who leads every other, but she spends the entire story as a Sealed Evil in a Can and it is Horvath who does all the villainous stuff, while she provides an epic battle at the prologue and at the end and little more.
- Hero Killer: Kills Merlin in the prologue and inflicts a Disney Death to Balthazar in the Final Battle.
- Hot Witch: Evil but beautiful.
- Lady of Black Magic: She's very elegant, dressed in a feminine black dress and carrying herself with grace and dignity, and a powerful sorceress of black magic.
- Lady of War: Elegant, graceful, regal and dignified, and deadly with a sword in hand. Just ask Merlin.
- Made of Air: Morgana exists as a spirit and can completely control her physical form, allowing her to dodge attacks by creating openings for them to pass through. Dave beats her by turning the nearby lights into makeshift Tesla Coils, hardening her form so he can blast her apart.
- Magic Knight: Extremely powerful, and a highly skilled swordswoman, who battles Merlin with a makeshift sword in the prologue with great proficiency.
- Merlin and Nimue: She was Merlin's first and best apprentice, before everything went to sh*t.
- Now It's My Turn: Says it after nonchalantly dodging all of Dave's attacks, repeating his use of the trope as an Ironic Echo.
- Night of the Living Mooks: Her Evil Plan in a nutshell. Though she aims to raise sentient ones wielding powerful magic instead of the shambling, brainless stuff.
- Our Spirits Are Different: Only her soul remains at the end, but it does not make her any less dangerous.
- The Paragon Always Rebels: The first and most powerful apprentice of Merlin is the one who became his Arch-Enemy.
- Playing with Fire: Unleashes devastating fire blasts.
- Predecessor Villain: Given how powerful and famous she became, all evil sorcerers became known as Morganians.
- Pride: Morgana's most defining feature. She has exceedingly high opinion of herself, and regards Muggles and weaker people as servants at best.
- Public Domain Character: One of the most famous villains in fiction.
- A Pupil of Mine Until She Turned to Evil: She learnt magic from Merlin, but could not stand his With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility worldview and ended up in open conflict with him.
- Sealed Evil in a Can: Combined with....
- Sealed Inside a Person-Shaped Can: She was trapped inside Veronica's body.
- Sorcerous Overlord: A female example. The enormously powerful leader of all Evil Sorcerers of history, who aims to Take Over the World.
- With Great Power Comes Great Insanity: Her enormous power went to her head. Refusing to serve anyone? Suit yourself. Using your power for your own gain? Still legit but can be dangerous. Enslaving everyone because they are less powerful? Rot in hell, bitch!
