Hey Sully. How's it feel to betray your own race? You think you're one of them? Time to wake up.
Quaritch to Jake Sully
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Colonel Miles Quaritch was the main antagonist of the first Avatar film. He was an RDASecurity Operations commander, serving as the chief of security on Pandora in the early 2150s.
During late 2153 to early 2154, Quaritch fathered a son with Scorpion pilot Paz Socorro, who was born at some point during 2154 before the start of the war in the first film.[2]
Quaritch was born sometime between 2096 to 2103.[4] Before joining SecOps, Colonel Quaritch served as an infantry officer in the United States Marine Corps. He saw combat in numerous Earth military engagements, such as the Resource Wars, without injury. He survived three tours in Nigeria with the Marines' First Reconnaissance Battalion.
However, on his first day on Pandora, he was attacked by viperwolf, ending his lucky streak and caused him to become fearful and resentful of the moon. This also gave him a trio of trademark scars to the right side of his head and face. He was given the option to return home to Earth for reconstructive surgery but opted to stay on Pandora. With his impressive record, he was eventually chosen as the chief of security operations on Pandora in 2152.
Quaritch was the chief of security for at least two years.[5] He was responsible for the security of the RDA operation and its personnel, which necessitated keeping the Na'vi in check. He had his own Dragon Assault Ship, which was personalized with an orange-colored Chinese dragon painted below the cockpit. During this time Quaritch also included a sexual relationship with one of his scorpion pilots named Paz Socorro which resulted with the birth of a son named Miles Socorro shortly before the Battle of Ayram Alusìng.
3D Version: red/cyan, cross-eyedColonel Quaritch in a security briefing.
Quaritch was impressed by Jake Sully and made Jake a bargain that, in return for intelligence on the Na'vi, he would talk to the RDA corporate executives and get approval for Jake to receive the expensive treatment for his spinal injury, which would return the use of his legs. However, as time passed, Quaritch began to question where Jake's loyalties lay, becoming suspicious that his contact with the Na'vi to be distancing him from his humanity and mission.
When Jake, in his avatar form, attacked and damaged a bulldozer, Quaritch personally went to arrest him, deactivating Jake's link pod and then punching him after telling him he crossed the line. Based upon Jake's video logs which lamented the hopelessness of convincing the Omatikaya to leave Hometree, along with the report from Corporal Lyle Wainfleet that the Na'vi had retaliated for the destruction of the Trees of Voices by burning the bulldozers and killing the squad of troopers protecting them, Quaritch came to the conclusion that the Omatikaya were a threat to the RDA's operation and could not be peacefully convinced to vacate their Hometree.
Quaritch during Hometree's destruction.
Quaritch asked for Parker Selfridge's permission to go forward with the Destruction of the Hometree, claiming it would be non-lethal and humane. Quaritch personally led the operation, first launching non-lethal gas canisters to force out the Na'vi, then ordering the destruction of the tree using missile strikes. Despite the attempt to flush out the Na'vi with gas, this operation resulted in the death of a number of Na'vi, including the Omatikaya's clan leader, Eytukan.
Quaritch fatally wounds Grace.
When Jake Sully, Grace Augustine, Norm Spellman and Trudy Chacón escaped custody, Quaritch was the first to act, moving outside of the Operations Center without an exo pack, attempting to stop their escape by firing on their SA-2 Sampson with a CARB Submachine Gun and his Wasp sidearm. He fatally wounded Dr. Augustine, but failed to stop the team from escaping Hell's Gate.
Quaritch devised to destroy the Tree of Souls as a means to permanently sever the Na'vi's connection with Eywa and to decisively end the Pandoran War. He personally led the operation against the Na'vi in his Dragon Assault Gunship. While the Na'vi's numbers initially appeared to give them the advantage, Quaritch's heavily armed and well trained SecOps soldiers quickly dispatched the lightly-armed Na'vi, despite some losses. During the battle, while pursuing Jake, his gunship was attacked by the rebel Trudy in a stolen SA-2 Samson, allowing Jake to escape being killed. Quaritch's gunship was able to destroy the Samson and killed Trudy.
Quaritch surviving the Valkyrie crash.
Advancing relatively unopposed towards the Tree of Souls, the tide of the battle is unexpectedly changed when Pandora's wildlife, seemingly at the direction of Eywa herself, attacked RDA forces in mass. With all escorts distracted or destroyed, Jake was able to board the Valkyrie shuttle containing two "daisy cutter" bombs, and destroyed it, leaving only Quaritch in his Dragon gunship. Despite Quaritch's best efforts, Jake still managed to inflict catastrophic damage to the gunship, causing it to lose control. Boarding his AMP suit, Quaritch jumped from the Dragon before it crashed.
Quaritch calls Jake a race traitor during the battle.
Now alone, Quaritch advanced to the Tree of Souls, where he stumbled across the module containing the link pod being used by Jake, but was attacked by Neytiri riding a thanator before he could destroy it. He lost control of the GAU-90, but killed the thanator with his AMP suit knife, leaving Neytiri trapped beneath her slain mount. Jake's timely arrival caused Quaritch to focus on him, saving Neytiri. Using the bayonet of the wrecked GAU-90, Jake was able to deflect Quaritch's attacks in a fierce bout of melee combat long enough to destroy his AMP suit knife and land a piercing blow to the glass canopy. The damage to the AMP suit canopy reduced visibility to near-zero and allowed toxic Pandoran air into the suit, forcing Quaritch to don an exopack. Realizing Jake's same weakness, Quaritch made a break for the module and managed to smash a window and an empty Link Unit open before resuming combat. This exposed Jake's human body to the toxic air, interrupting the link between Jake and his avatar, allowing Quaritch to subdue Jake.
Neytiri stops Quaritch from cutting Jake.
Quaritch picked up Jake by his hair, specifically his queue which is why Jake made an intense scream of pain. Quaritch intended to use Jake's own dagger to cut his avatar's throat in an act of retribution for his betrayal of humanity. However, before Quaritch could do so, Neytiri, who had taken the time to free herself from under the thanator's carcass during the fight between Jake and Quaritch, fired an arrow into the Colonel's chest. Although the one arrow would have probably been more than enough to kill him, Neytiri decided to fire a second arrow anyway, then hissed at him while guarding Jake.
Quaritch with an expression of horror.
Before he died and his AMP suit fell, Quaritch had an expression of sheer horror, with his mouth agape and his eyes fixated in one direction. For unknown reasons, but likely due to the animosity of his actions, the Na'vi did not give Quaritch a proper burial. For over a decade, his body was simply left to rot in the forest of the old battlefield, consumed by the nature and the animals of the forest. This would leave only a skeleton remaining, although his skull's exopack managed to remain unshattered. Despite being universally hated by the Na'vi as well as his own son growing up, the RDA propped up Miles Quaritch as a revered war hero who sacrificed his life to protect humanity from the Na'vi.[6]
When Jake falls into a coma after being poisoned by Arvok during First Blood, the image of Tsu'tey is replaced by that of a giant Colonel Quaritch, standing with two arrows protruding from his chest. Jake still blames himself for the destruction of the Omatikaya Hometree and the deaths that resulted from it. Quaritch calls Jake a fool "playing house" and kicks him to the ground where he is surrounded by the apparitions of the dead Omatikaya and the giant Tsu'tey. However, the dream suddenly shifts, and the spirits of Eytukan and the real Tsu'tey appear to Jake to help heal Jake. Later, while viewing the real world, Tsu'tey and Jake's spiritual selves visit what seems to be Quaritch's AMP suit.
Two hours before Quaritch went on his mission to attack and destroy the Tree of Souls, his memories were copied and uploaded onto a device known as a Soul Drive via using a Link Unit in the Link Room at Hell's Gate. This storage drive was then sent back to Earth, where a recombinant body for Quaritch had already been engineered and was currently growing in a lab.
Several years later, Recom Quaritch (still in an Amnio Tank) is sent to Pandora aboard the ISV Vindicator; arriving a year after the RDA's invasion began to reestablish a presence on the moon. While in orbit, the dormant hybrid clone is decanted and Quaritch's memories are downloaded into its brain. When the recom body first awakens, memories tied to human Quaritch's immense disdain and fear of the Na'vi is immediately displayed in Recom Quaritch's panic and aggressive behavior towards his fellow recombinant soldiers. It takes a long moment and three recoms to restrain him for the situation to register, recognizing them, and the fact that he himself is also not human as well; unhappy to be living in the body of his enemy.
Recom Quaritch being briefed by his human counterpart.
After calming, Recom Quaritch views a recording made by his human self before the Battle of Ayram Alusìng, in which he tells his recombinant version that in the event of his death, he believes that Jake Sully would be at the top of his list of those responsible.
At some point later, while still in orbit above Pandora after all of the recoms are decanted, Recom Quaritch conducts a briefing for his new recom squad. He begins with the exact same phrase human Quaritch used to open his safety briefing for new arrivals at Hell's Gate, which is: "You're not in Kansas anymore."
Recom Quaritch holding human Quaritch's skull.
After arriving on Pandora, to test the theorized 'immunity' that the recombinant soldiers are believed to have to Pandora's hostility towards the RDA, Recom Quaritch and the rest of the first recom squad are dropped at the site of the Old Battlefield. They make their way to human Quaritch's last location, finding his downed AMP Suit and his decayed skeletal remains. Recom Quaritch has Recom Wainfleet gather the dash cam footage from the AMP. After a surprise appearance of the Sully kids and Quaritch's son Miles Socorro - who goes by the name Spider - (whom he though was sent back to Earth), Recom Quaritch views the video of Quaritch's death. Recom Wainfleet collects Quaritch's dog tags and offers to collect the remains, however Recom Quaritch instead picks up Quaritch's skull (showing that human Quaritch's scars were bone deep), observing it for a moment before crushing it in his bare hand, then wipes away the bone and brain dust on his hands.
After an ambushed extraction to get out of the forest, at Bridgehead Recom Quaritch attempts to gain Spider's trust and cooperation by using a 'personal approach'. General Frances Ardmore warns him that the boy is not his son. He enters Spider's holding cell and at first offers then forcefully gives him Quaritch's recovered dog tags to which Spider promptly throws them across the room. Recom Quaritch claims he's "not that man", then picks up the dog tags, and mentions that he knows from having Quaritch's memories that Quaritch "wasn't always the best father." Recom Quaritch then says he knows that he's not Spider's father and addresses the fact that both he and Spider are technically nothing to each other.
This however doesn't stop Recom Quaritch from eventually bonding with Spider over the next few months, and though he tries to deny it, ends up giving up during the ending knifepoint hostage stalemate between himself holding Kiri and Neytiri holding Spider in order to save Spider's life. As the Sully's retreat, Recom Quaritch bitterly promises to Neytiri that he 'owes her a death' in retaliation for her having killed human Quaritch fifteen plus years ago. After Recom Quaritch loses to Jake in the final fight, Spider reciprocates the bond he made with Recom Quaritch by saving him from drowning. After Spider pulls Recom Quaritch to a rocky outcrop, Recom Quaritch calls Spider "Son" and offers his hand out to him, wanting Spider to join him. Spider refuses, returning instead to the Sully family, leaving Recom Quaritch to fly off wounded and alone.
Quaritch had the appearance of a lifelong military man. He wore his hair short and was in outstanding physical condition despite his age, and regularly worked out to offset the low gravity on Pandora so he did not get soft.
He was covered with battle scars, most notably a trio of claw marks on the side of his head which he sustained during his first day on Pandora. As seen on his corpse in The Way of Water, these scars went down to the bone, with the three marks having raked across his skull. He views the scars as a badge of pride.
Quaritch's Recombinant body was similar to that of an avatar. The Recom has many physical similarities to the original Quaritch, including a tattoo of an eagle taking flight on his left arm. The Recom also has a few noticeable differences. He lacks the scars of the original Quaritch. Being younger and a different species, the Recom's hair is black and styled somewhat differently. Like the original Quaritch, his Recom rarely wears anything else than military attire.
Personality and Traits
Quaritch Profile
Quaritch has been hardened by a tough military life. Despite that he has fought with honor, it is said that he has been "without ever really having a cause worth fighting for." This suggests that he was not alleged to any one nation or country on Earth, and that he realized humans fighting each other on Earth for resources was, ultimately, pointless and detrimental to humanity as a whole. On Pandora, he finally found a cause he finally believed in: the survival of the human race, which he feels far outweighs the livelihoods of the Na'vi. Quaritch, however, became influenced by the greed of his corporate employers such as Selfridge, manifesting in his strong desire to obtain unobtanium.
Quaritch giving a presentation on why they must destroy the Tree of Souls.
It can easily be thought that one of the more terrifying aspects of Quaritch is not necessarily Quaritch himself, but rather, the fact that people actually listen to him and are persuaded by his charisma and propaganda. He is shown to be able to go so far as to rally his soldiers into killing innocent Na'vi and destroying their home and spiritual sites. Quaritch is also shown to be emotionally manipulative; he blames Jake for killing "good men and women", despite that these supposed good people are working for a corporation oppressing the Na'vi, as well as massacring the tulkun, sentient beings who can suffer. Additionally, Quaritch is shown to have invaded Jake's privacy, having spied on his video logs.
Quaritch's supposedly "humane" evacuation of Hometree.
Quaritch was apathetic and callous towards the Na'vi due to their resistance against the RDA. He would refer to the Na'vi as aboriginals, savages, "dumb bastards" and also compared them to roaches. He actually had some faith in them, saying he bet they would be willing to evacuate Hometree. He told Parker that the evacuation of Hometree would be humane "more or less" with minimal casualties and they would use tear gas first. He was surprised when the Na'vi began to fire back with arrows, causing him to authorize destroying their Hometree using incendiaries despite that he knew there could be hundreds of Na'vi inside. The Hometree was set on fire and toppled, killing numerous Na'vi in the process. After it was over, he displayed no remorse and saw his actions as merely a mission and remained mostly indifferent about the destruction. In fact, he actually made a callous comment about how the RDA should throw a dance party ("let's boogie!") and offered to buy everyone drinks.
He also seemed very concerned about the idea of race. When he fought Jake, he called him a race betrayer and when he was a Recom, he tried to claim he did not care about Spider being killed due to them being different species.
Quaritch claiming he will pay for Jake's spinal surgery in exchange for intel.
Despite his menacing actions towards the Na'vi, Quaritch was not completely evil and had some redeemable qualities. Quaritch believed he was fighting for humanity's future and he took care of his own, and had good relations with his SecOps soldiers, who respected him as a commander and leader. However, he also acknowledged during an initial briefing that he would not be able to save all of those he was charged with protection, due to Pandora's harsh environment. He showed great admiration for the dedication Jake showed by willingly performing covert intelligence gathering from within the Na'vi people, and he promised to repay Jake by paying for his spinal operation, although it is uncertain if he would have followed through with it.
Abilities
Quaritch was a dedicated soldier. He claimed to have survived three tours of Nigeria without a scratch. Quaritch was also an expert with his AMP suit; his prowess in close range combat was considerable as it took the combined efforts of Jake and Neytiri to finally defeat him.
After The Secret of the Spires DLC is completed, Quaritch's voice is heard in a radio message by Teylan. Quaritch says, "Your job is on the line here, I'm damn sick and tired of this. You understand? I don't want anymore shilly-shallying, you go in there and you do what needs to be done, because the whole damn frontier has gone to hell. I say it's high-time we bring in the big guns. Total elimination, Major, understood? You take that insurgency out."
Canonicity Notice The contents of this section are non-canon to the Avatar franchise.
Quaritch appears in Avatar: The Game, only appearing if the player sides with the RDA. After Commander Karl Falco went over the edge, Miles Quaritch took over the operation from the Central Command in the Plains of Goliath. He ordered Able Ryder to take out the Na'vi commanders and stop the battle in the Plains of Goliath so that they could retrieve Falco.
Quaritch at the Plains of Goliath.
Later, Ryder receives a radio transmission from Quaritch who says that Na'vi all across Pandora have lost control of their war animals, and are retreating en-masse from every defensive position. Quaritch then congratulates Ryder for greatly helping RDA forces to win the day, and tells them that, "Your Dragon better be spotless when you get back".
In the mobile game, the character does not physically appear, but is mentioned as the commander of the ground forces and John Cage's superior. In this version of the game, his last name is misspelled as "Quarritch".
Quaritch appeared in the game as a Soldier class Commander. He was a Legendary-type Commander and therefore harder to obtain.
Biography
"Marine Colonel Miles Quaritch has taken charge of RDA security on Pandora and has been in charge of security for fifteen years. On his first day on this moon, he was attacked by a Viperwolf, and this caused him to develop an ongoing hatred of Pandora's population, including the Na'vi. Quaritch is a born soldier who knows duty and honor, and while he never had a good reason to fight, he found one on Pandora: the survival of the human race, which in his opinion far outweighs the needs of the trees, animals or noble savages."
Trivia
Character Appearance and Creation
James Cameron envisioned Quaritch as being an extremely muscular character. According to Stephen Lang, "Jim wanted Quaritch to be massive. He said, 'Get as big as you can. Then get bigger." The reason Quaritch is not bigger in the final film is because Lang did not want to take steroids of any sort to get there (this should not be misconstrued as Cameron wanting Lang to take steroids, however.) [12]
Quaritch's ring.
Quaritch wears what seems to be a ring made out of a nail on his right hand for unclear reasons. It may imply he is Christian Orthodox, or hint he was once married.
The name Miles means "soldier" in Latin.
In the original script, Quaritch held the same position and had the same name, but there were some additional scenes with his participation, in particular, during the battle at the Well of Souls, he shot down one of the leonopteryxes with a missile. Additionally, during the battle on the ground, Jake finished off Quaritch in a different way: he himself untied the AMP's cockpit and pulled Quaritch out, after which he let him escape, until he was devoured by a pack of viperwolves.
Michael Biehn, who is a frequent collaborator of James Cameron, was considered for the role of Quaritch and even watched some 3D test footage with Cameron. After Sigourney Weaver was cast as Grace Augustine, Cameron rejected him for the role, for fear of audiences drawing Aliens comparisons.[13]
During his speech in Avatar, it can be seen that the window behind him strongly resembles the flag of the USA which is potential symbolism through environmental storytelling.
In a non-final version of the script, Quaritch is more profane, asking Jake Sully if he's found some "local pussy" instead of "local tail" and he tells Grace Augustine to shut her "fucking hole" (mouth) which was changed to "shut your pie hole".
Quaritch threatening Parker.
In a deleted scene, Quaritch threatens Parker Selfridge when Selfridge tries to wrestle authority away from Quaritch. Quaritch puts his hands on Selfridge's neck and warns him that he's a long way from Earth.
Stephen Lang says that he does not really want to know people who like Quaritch or agree with him.[15]
In October 2013, James Cameron confirmed that Quaritch would return in the sequels.[16]
Multiple interviews with Stephen Lang suggest that Quaritch will be a part of all five films.[17][18]
Quaritch's outfit is in the files of the cancelled MMORPG Avatar: Reckoning. This can be seen as strange, as the game did not allow the player to play as a human, possibly hinting he would appear in a virtual simulation or video recording.
„You are not in Kansas anymore. You are on Pandora, ladies, and gentlemen. Respect that fact.“- Quaritch welcoming his team.
„It is my job to keep you alive. I will not succeed. Not with all of you.“- Quaritch getting the attention of the 'fresh meat'.
„You crossed the line.“- Quaritch to Jake after witnessing him disable an RDA bulldozer.
„So, you find yourself some local tail, and you just completely forget what team you're playin' for?“- Quaritch to Jake after he attacks a dozer.
„I'm getting all emotional. I might just give you a big wet kiss.“- To Jake after he accidentally provides intel.
„This is Papa Dragon. I want this mission high and tight. I wanna be home for dinner.“- Quaritch speaking prior to the assault on the Tree of Souls.
„We will fight terror with terror.“
„When we destroy it, we will blast a crater in their racial memory so deep that they won't come within a thousand klicks of this place ever again.“- Regarding destroying the Tree of Souls to inflict generational fear into the Na'vi.
„Scorpions, pursue and destroy!“- Quaritch ordering Scorpion Gunships to engage Na'vi forces on the ground and in the air.
„Light her up!“- Quaritch orders his pilot to engage Trudy Chacón, who had just defected to the Na'vi.
„Nothing's over while I'm breathing!“- Quaritch speaking to Jake before their battle.
„Hey Sully, how's it feel to betray your own race? You think you're one of them? Time to wake up.“- Quaritch going after Jake's human body.
„In case you haven't figured it out yet, you're Colonel Miles Quaritch, only younger, taller, bluer, and not nearly as good-looking.“- The human Quaritch to his Recom.
„Remember, kid, a Marine can't be defeated. Oh, you can kill us, but we'll just regroup in hell.“- The human Quaritch to his Recom.
↑Avatar deleted extended scenes 164-172 "The Challenge". As Trudy Chacón flies Miles Quaritch an his squad to Site 26. After Quaritch scolds her for announcing their arrival, he inconsiderately opens the cabin door to exit, contaminating the cockpit's atmosphere which forces Trudy to apply an oxygen mask.
