- “As a lifelong author, I have often drawn inspiration for the more chilling of my tales from my own experiences as a young man living in Louisiana after the Civil War. Oh. But the story of Ezekiel Holloway...that I have not dared tell before now.”
- ―Zeke Holloway, during the game's introduction
Ezekiel "Zeke" Holloway is the protagonist of the video game adaptation of The Haunted Mansion.
Role in the game[]
According to the storyline, Zeke was presumably born in New Orleans, Louisiana, somewhere around the 1850's or the 1860's during the American Civil War. Sadly, his father perished in the war and his mother disappeared around the same time, leaving the young Zeke deserted and on his own.
During his early years, he met and lived with several caretakers. At some point, he was left on his own again to pursue a career. Though his true passion was writing and dreamed of becoming a reputable writer, his lack of any enchanting experience became a huge setback for his dream and had to focus on different jobs for the time being in order to help his finances in his dream work of passion. A seemingly endless struggle to find employment eventually leads him to discover a newspaper advertisement that provides a job as an assistant caretaker to a mansion in close proximity.
Making the decision to take this job, Zeke journeys to the cold and dreary outskirts of New Orleans on October 17, 1879 and finds the mansion. As he opens the gates, he slowly strides towards the estates and gazes at the unfamiliar landscape with discomfort. Upon entering the mansion, Zeke examines the main hall, but fails to notice a group of six friendly ghosts who argue over his appearance and his worth right above him. As a result, when the ghosts appear before him, it prompts Zeke to faint in horror much to the ghosts' disappointment.
The six friendly ghosts carry Zeke to Madame Leota's parlor and nurse him back to health. When he awakes, he is met by Leota as a disembodied head within a glowing crystal ball, who proudly presents herself as a speaker of the spirit world and a medium. After revealing the reason why Zeke was lured into the mansion; to defeat a malevolent entity known as Atticus Thorn who, along with his organization known as Order of Shadows, has taken over their estate and the souls residing within, Leota reveals the mansion's history. She then introduces Zeke to a magical artifact known as the Beacon of Souls; a sacred lantern that can be used to attack various enemies throughout the mansion as well as undo the corruption done within the shriveled souls that are forced into hiding when the lights are turned on and open magical barriers on the doors of each room. Finally, she adds that the Beacon relies on the power of the six legendary Soul Gems, which she entrusts to the same friendly ghosts encountered by Zeke earlier, in order to safeguard it from Thorn, but informs him that the Beacon currently possesses the White Soul Gem, and he will have to find the rest throughout the mansion.
Despite his fears, Zeke agrees to help them and is entrusted the lantern. With Leota riding in his satchel, Zeke goes around the mansion, overcoming the dark barriers and twisted spells Thorn has erected around each of the rooms and locations, fights several enemies, restores light, and frees shriveled souls. Along the way, he submits death certificates to the friendly ghosts in exchange for Soul Gems to restore the Beacon's powers and capture more Shriveled Souls. During the course of the events, Atticus Thorn, whom he meets and fights four times, watches him in sadistic delight. It is also here that Leota tells her history with the Mansion and how she helped the Brotherhood of Souls fight against Thorn.
Finally, after acquiring the Seaman's Ring from the Captain's ghost, Zeke unlocks a hidden chamber in the foyer using the said ring. The chamber is revealed to be the Order of Shadows' secret lair. There, Thorn reveals his true form as an insect/worm monster and announces his plan to take over both the Afterlife and the Land of the Living. Not allowing this to happen, Zeke and Leota, with the many souls they gained during the ordeal, fight Thorn in a massive battle wherein the former two gain the upper hand, destroying him once and for all.
With the battle ended, the six ghosts express gratitude to Zeke and Leota and move to the Afterlife along with the other ghosts of the Mansion. Zeke then becomes the chief caretaker of the estate while harmoniously living with Leota and some ghosts who remain. At some point, as he finally decides on pursuing his career as a writer, wherein he wrote stories and books based on his experiences at the mansion, with Leota and the ghosts acting as his mentors, guides, and editors.
For his whole life as an author, Zeke lived in the mansion
Trivia[]
- He is inspired by the Caretaker from attractions, albeit that he is much younger.
- The main Caretaker in the attraction appears as a disgruntled friendly ghost in the Winter Gardens, wherein he complains that no one came to pay him for his work.
- He could be named after the late Sterling Holloway.
- He bears a striking resemblance to Ichabod Crane.
Gallery[]
