James Marcus
Dr. James Marcus is a male video game character that features in Resident Evil.
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Biography
Dr. James Marcus was, alongside Lord Ozwell E. Spencer and Edward Ashford, one of the three discoverers of the Progenitor Virus. Unlike his profit-hungry colleagues, Spencer in particular, Marcus cared only for his research with Progenitor. One of his students was Brandon Bailey who accompanied his mentor to Africa during the study of the Stairway to Heaven that contained the Progenitor Virus.
When Spencer asked him to become the director of Umbrella's training facility in the Arklay Mountains, Marcus agreed only so that he could have privacy there, in which to conduct his experiments. He mostly neglected his duties, pawning them off on his assistant, although at the urging of Spencer, Marcus tutored Albert Wesker and William Birkin. He had his assistant play them against one another to develop a rivalry between the two, apparently under the mindset that students functioned best when in competition. He was so involved in his research that he began to use Umbrella employees as test subjects in his experiments with nearly 20 people sacrificed in this manner.
It was during his time as the facility director that Marcus succeeded in combining the Progenitor Virus with the DNA of a leech, creating what he dubbed the Tyrant Virus. He initially held off on announcing the virus' existence, but after discovering evidence that someone had tried to break into his private lab, he decided to announce the T-Virus' creation at his next meeting with Spencer and the board of directors. Spencer, seeing the T-Virus only as a potential cash cow, persuaded Wesker and Birkin to betray their mentor. The two young researchers murdered Marcus and stole all of his data on the T-Virus, which they then gave to Spencer.
Overview
Personality and attributes
He was an introvert, detesting the company of most other people, developing an unhealthy emotional attachment to leeches which he used for his work.
Powers and abilities
Notes
- James Marcus was created by Shinji Mikami where he made his first appearance in Resident Evil 0.
In other media
Films
- In Resident Evil: The Final Chapter, Dr. James Marcus appeared in the live-action film where he was portrayed by actor Mark Simpson. This version was a virologist who had a daughter named Alicia Marcus who suffered from Progeria which led to him studying viruses for a cure. The research led to the creation of the T-Virus that saved her from an early death and came to the attention of Dr. Alexander Isaacs with the pair founding the Umbrella Corporation. Dr. Marcus intended for the virus to be used to cure other conditions but it was discovered that it turned people into violent cannibalistic undead with this being covered by Dr. Isaacs. James sought to end continued research on the program though Isaacs saw the potential use for it as a bio-weapon and had Wesker eliminate Marcus. He was survived by his daughter Alicia who remained as one of the heads of the Umbrella Corporation.
Books
- In Resident Evil: Zero Hour, James Marcus appeared in the novel adaptation of the video-game storyline where it was shown to be him rather than the Queen Leech that was in control of their body.
Appearances
- Resident Evil 0:
