Richard Cypher is the protagonist of a series of books in the epic fantasy genre, created by American writer Terry Goodkind. A series of sixteen novels is known as the Sword of Truth. The author invented for his characters a fantastic universe in which magic exists and representatives of the forces of good and evil fight each other for control of the world. Based on this literary work, the television series Legend of the Seeker was filmed. The role of the protagonist in it was played by the Australian actor Craig Horner.
Author
The writer Terry Goodkind gives the impression of an unusual and mysterious personality. He first tried his hand at literature at the age of forty-five. Goodkind did not receive a formal education and until the beginning of his career as a writer worked as a restorer of antiques. He was also known as an artist and sold his paintings in galleries depicting the sea and wildlife.
In 1994, Goodkind wrote the novel The Wizard's First Rule, which marked the beginning of the famous book cycle. A work in the genre of epic fantasy turned out to be incredibly successful. The novels from the Sword of Truth series have been translated into many languages. Their total circulation exceeded 25 million copies. In the fantasy world, Terry Goodkind has become a figure comparable to Stephen King and Terry Pratchett. The protagonist of almost all the author’s novels is the wizard and warrior Richard Cypher.
Cycle of books
The plot of “The Sword of Truth” is not original and resembles dozens of classic stories in the fantasy genre. The main character, a young forest conductor Richard Cypher, sets off on a journey to avenge his father, who was mysteriously killed by magic ritual. He becomes an invincible sorcerer knight. From an old hermit endowed with ancient magical powers, Richard receives a magic sword, restores justice, fights with a powerful villain named Darken Rahl and reveals the secret of his origin.
As often happens in similar stories, the negative and positive heroes turn out to be a father and a son. The real name Richard Cypher should wear is Rahl. He belongs to the family of the main representative of the dark forces, but was raised by foster parents.
Features
The Sword of Truth saga surpasses most of the cycles of literary works of other fantasy authors in the number of books and their volume. The writer Terry Goodkind, when creating the world in which Richard Cypher lives, did not focus on the generally recognized laws of the genre. In the books of the series “Sword of Truth” there are no familiar elves and gnomes, but there are many incredible creatures that are not found in other works in the style of epic fantasy. The novels of this series are intended for adult readers and contain detailed scenes of brutal violence.
The series "Legend of the Seeker"
For the adaptation of the saga of the adventures of the knight-sorcerer Richard took the famous American film director Sam Raimi. The author of the literary work Terry Goodkind directly participated in the work on the script. The location of the shooting was New Zealand. The picturesque landscapes of this country have become one of the main advantages of the series. The television version premiered in 2008. In total, two episodes of "Legends of the Seeker" were filmed for 22 episodes each. The series is a free interpretation of the content of Goodkind's novels. All the main characters are present in it, but significant changes have been made to the plot.
Lead actor
Fans of the Sword of Truth series of books were eagerly awaiting the television premiere to see how well Richard Cypher was embodied on the screen. The photo of the Australian actor Craig Horner as a whole corresponds to the description of the appearance of the protagonist in the literary source. However, many critics and connoisseurs of the work of Terry Goodkind were unsatisfied with the image in the series of the character and personality of Richard Cypher. In their opinion, Craig Horner was unable to show the audience the willpower and a tenacious mind that is endowed with a literary hero. The fantasy genre turned out to be unsuitable for this actor. Richard Cypher, in his performance, resembles a modern character, not a warrior, living in the mysterious world of magic. But despite the differences between the series and the literary work, Legend of the Seeker is an example of high-quality television production.