- "What happens in Italy, stays in Italy"
- ― Charlie to Clara Von Gluckfberg before destroying the antidote factory she was in.
Charles "Charlie" Hesketh was a Kingsman candidate selected by Chester King for the position of Lancelot. After he failed the Kingsman test, he became one of Richmond Valentine's converts. He is the tertiary antagonist in Kingsman: The Secret Service, and the secondary antagonist of Kingsman: The Golden Circle.
Kingsman: The Secret Service[]
Following Agent Lancelot's death by the hands of Richmond Valentine and his henchwoman Gazelle, secret intelligence agency Kingsman had a vacancy for a new agent. Kingsman leader Arthur (Chester King) chose Charlie as a candidate with high hopes that he would succeed. During the training, Charlie and his friends Rufus, Hugo and Digby began bullying "Eggsy" Unwin (one of the other candidates) on his background.
Charlie, Eggsy, and Roxy became the last three candidates in the training program, but Charlie ultimately failed a test in which he was tied to the tracks of an active railway and made to choose between keeping his confidentiality agreement and keeping his life. Unbeknownst to him, the whole thing was a simulation. In the heat of the moment, he started spurting information about Kingsman in an effort to save his own skin. At the last moment, his portion of the track dipped below the surface as another set of track slid above to hold the train. When he rose back up out of the ground, Arthur (who had actually disguised himself as the interrogator) was standing, observing him. He realised that it was simulation and Arthur condemned Charlie's cowardice by calling him a "bloody disgrace". Gary and Roxy continued their training, while Charlie was sent home.
When Valentine was trying to convince influential people around the world to join him in his "new world" following his mass culling, Charlie and his family were amongst those invited to do so due to their status and joined the internet billionaire at his mountain bunker. During Eggsy's mission to defeat Valentine and save the world from chaos, he had a surprise encounter with Charlie. Wielding a knife, Charlie apprehended Eggsy and blew his cover to Valentine as payback against Kingsman. In response, Eggsy tasered Charlie with his ring and punched him in the face, knocking Charlie unconscious.
It was revealed later that when Eggsy shocked Charlie it caused the implant in his neck to malfunction. Instead of killing him, Charlie's implant only blew up his vocal cords and severed the connection to one of his arms. Charlie, a dangerous man with nothing to lose, was left alive.
Meeting Poppy[]
At some point, he met Poppy Adams and became a member of The Golden Circle cartel, where he received a cybernetic arm and voice box.
Kingsman: The Golden Circle[]
Ambushing Eggsy[]
When making his way home one day, Charlie attacked Eggsy and revealed his new mechanical arm. Eggsy fought Charlie inside Eggsy's Kingsman Taxi, followed by Charlie's henchmen, killing Eggsy’s driver, Pete in the process. When the taxi crashed, Charlie was propelled out of the taxi, ripping his cybernetic arm from his body. Eggsy then led the henchmen to Hyde Park, where they were killed in an explosion while Eggsy himself drove the taxi into the lake and into an underwater room as the police arrived.
Destroying Kingsman's Headquarters[]
Eager to get home in time for his friend's birthday, Eggsy swam through the sewer, leaving the taxi in the underwater room.
As Eggsy left, Charlie's cybernetic arm hacked into the Kingsman (via remote control) database and retrieved the locations of the Kingsman Agents. On the night after, as Eggsy was dining with Princess Tilde and her parents, a volley of missiles destroyed the Kingsman headquarters, killing JB, Eggsy's friend Brandon who was house-sitting for Eggsy and all the Kingsman agents (including Roxy) leaving only Eggsy and Merlin.
Helping and Killing Clara[]
When Charlie's ex-girlfriend Clara called him asking for the cure to the virus transmitted through the drugs, he instructed her to go to Italy. Unknown to Charlie, Clara was being tracked by Eggsy. When Eggsy arrived, he stole a vial of the antidote. When Eggsy and Whiskey went down the lift, Charlie used his tablet to make the lift spin at extreme speeds.
He later left in a helicopter. Clara called him and begged him not to tell Poppy that it was her who led the spies to the factory, to which he promised not to. Shortly afterwards, Charlie betrayed her and triggered the explosion in the factory, killing her.
Attack at Poppy Land[]
When Eggsy, Merlin and Harry found the location of Poppy's base, they attacked it and killed the majority of Poppy's soldiers, before entering the 1950s styled diner she had built. Poppy had one of her robotic dogs (the other still charging) pursue Harry, whilst Charlie pursued Eggsy who had stolen Poppy's laptop (which had the command to release the antidote for the 'blue rash' disease).
After a long chase through the ruins which Poppy Land was built in, Charlie had knocked down Eggsy and was about to smash a bowling ball on his head, but Eggsy used the Kingsman Watch to hack into his new arm, and caused him to punch himself in his own face.
Death[]
Once Eggsy had Charlie's arm ripped off, he decided to even the playing field, and placed his arm behind his back. Eggsy still beat Charlie though, and noted how he was more of a gentlemen that Charlie ever was, despite their different upbringings. Eggsy then finished off Charlie by violently snapping his neck, avenging Roxy, JB, Merlin, Brandon and the fallen Kingsman Agents.
Personality[]
Charlie was a traitorous, arrogant and spoiled young man who took pleasure in belittling Eggsy and Roxy. Despite showing remarkable physical skills during his training at Kingsman, Charlie was later revealed to be a coward under pressure and held a grudge against Eggsy and the agency after his failure to replace Lancelot (even though it was Charlie's own fault).
During his membership in the Golden Circle, Charlie was shown to be much more reserved, overconfident, nihilistic, ruthless and was loyal to Poppy to a fault. Angered by the deaths of his family and the crippling wounds he had suffered, he was more than willing to aid Poppy in eliminating the Kingsman.
Abilities/Skills[]
- Peak-Human Condition: Being a rejected Kingsman applicant, Charlie is in top physical condition, although he is still slightly inferior to the likes of Eggsy. Nonetheless, he is capable of showcasing tremendous strength, stamina and reflexes when combating Eggsy.
- Expert Combatant: Charlie was a highly trained hand to hand combatant.
- Cybernetic Right Arm: Charlie was provided with an advanced prosthetic arm by Poppy Adams who sought to make him a key member of her organization. The cybernetic arm, combined with Charlie's Kingsman training, made Charlie a more powerful combatant than someone as highly skilled as Eggsy.
- Super Strength: With the cybernetic arm, Charlie displays feats of superhuman strength, such as bringing down a worn out temple pillar, overpowering Eggsy and even tossing a bowling ball with superhuman force.
- Expert Tactician: Charlie has shown tactical abilities while combating Eggsy. He is able to ambush Eggsy by calculating the plotted route of the temple ruins and overpower him with his cybernetic arm.
Relationships[]
Allies[]
- Richmond Valentine
- The Golden Circle
- Poppy Adams - Leader and Friend
Enemies[]
- Kingsman - Allies, turned Enemies
- Eggsy Unwin/Galahad - Former Rival, turned Killer
- Roxy Morton/Lancelot
- Merlin - Former Trainer
- Chester King/Arthur - Former Mentor
- Harry Hart/Galahad
- Amelia
- Brandon - Inadvertent Victim
- Clara Von Gluckfberg - Ex-Girlfriend and Victim
Gallery[]
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