LeChuck

LeChuck was created by Ron Gilbert. Gilbert's concept for LeChuck, especially the character's heavy use of voodoo magic, was influenced by the characters in the 1988 novel On Stranger Tides.[3] The "Chuck" portion of the character's name comes from Lucasfilm general manager Steve Arnold, who told Gilbert that he really liked the name Chuck and would like to see it appear in more games.[4]

While the first two games in the series did not feature voice acting, actor Earl Boen provided LeChuck's voice for both The Curse of Monkey Island and Escape from Monkey Island, reprising the role for the later Special Editions of the first two games.[5] Boen was initially absent from Telltale Games' Tales of Monkey Island; LeChuck was instead voiced by Adam Harrington in the first chapter,[6] with Kevin Blackton voicing the human version of the character in the subsequent chapters. Boen returned to the role for the final two chapters, in which LeChuck is restored to his undead form; Boen has since recorded Harrington's lines for the first chapter for the DVD release of the game.[7] Boen retired from voice acting in 2017 and when approached by Gilbert to voice LeChuck again in Return to Monkey Island ultimately decided he was too old and instead gave his approval to replace him,[8] with Jess Harnell taking over the role.

Gilbert has drawn parallels between LeChuck and the character of Davy Jones in the later Pirates of the Caribbean film series, implying that LeChuck may have served as an inspiration for the character's attitude, tone and design. Regarding Jones' appearance, Gilbert wrote: "If I'd thought of the squid tentacles for a beard, I would have done that".[9]

LeChuck is introduced in The Secret of Monkey Island as a ghost pirate captain of a ship of undead pirates. He schemes to force Mêlée Island governor Elaine Marley to marry him, but is foiled by new pirate-in-training Guybrush Threepwood, who destroys his spirit form by spraying him with root beer. In Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge, LeChuck's corpse is reanimated by his former first mate, Largo LaGrande. LeChuck attempts to destroy Guybrush and beat him to the treasure of Big Whoop, but Guybrush defeats him once more. In The Curse of Monkey Island, Guybrush inadvertently destroys LeChuck's zombie form, but he is reincarnated as a demon. He attempts to open a portal to hell to bolster his crew and turn Elaine into his undead bride, but Guybrush traps him in a mountain of ice.

In Escape from Monkey Island, LeChuck is freed by capitalist Ozzie Mandrill, and the two team up to retrieve a powerful voodoo talisman, the Ultimate Insult. He disguises himself and attempts to run against Elaine for governorship, but is exposed by Guybrush. Mandrill eventually turns on LeChuck, forcing him to destroy both Mandrill and the Ultimate Insult. In Tales of Monkey Island, Guybrush inadvertently turns LeChuck into a human and releases a voodoo pox over the Gulf of Melange. Though initially appearing to be reformed, LeChuck reveals this to have been a scheme to open a gateway to the crossroads of the afterlife and become a pirate god. His physical and spiritual forms are ultimately destroyed by Guybrush, Elaine, and Morgan LeFlay, though his voodoo essence survives. In Return to Monkey Island, a reconstituted LeChuck teams up with the new pirate leaders to locate the lost "Secret of Monkey Island" before Guybrush.

Outside the Monkey Island series, LeChuck appears in Sea of Thieves as part of the expansion "The Legend of Monkey Island". Set between Curse and Escape, LeChuck intercepts Guybrush and Elaine during their honeymoon in the Sea of Thieves, and traps them in a dream version of Mêlée Island, plotting to restore the fabled Burning Blade and conquer the Sea of Thieves.[10]

The character was very well received. IGN described him alongside Guybrush and Elaine as one of "the most beloved adventure characters of all time".[11] Electronic Gaming Monthly ranked LeChuck eighth on a 2008 list of top ten "badass" undead, stating that LeChuck is "a not entirely brilliant villain who usually clues you in to his weakness (hint: it's always voodoo), LeChuck's versatility makes up for what he lacks in common sense; he shows up as an evil ghost pirate, and an evil undead-demon-zombie-ghost pirate. That covers the undead-pirate spectrum".[12] ScrewAttack placed LeChuck at number 9 in top ten Ghosts in video game history,[13] and also ranked him number one on their list of top beards in video games.[14]

The character is considered one of top video game villains of all time. In 2010, IGN listed LeChuck as the 24th best game villain, and also praised his adaptability, having been a ghost, zombie, demon, and a human.[15] While GamesRadar put this "one scary demon/zombie/ghost pirate" in their list of the best villains in video game history at number nine,[16] WhatCulture! ranked him 48th on its list of the greatest video game villains of all time.[17] On the list of the "coolest" video game villains by Complex in 2012, LeChuck placed tenth.[18] He was also listed as the eighth best character in PC gaming history in 2008 by PC Zone. It commented: "Guybrush Threepwood and Stan the Used Ship Salesman were stars, but it was the evil Pirate LeChuck who became the poster boy/ghost/zombie/demon of the Monkey Island series".[19]