What is Old Man Coyote in Castlevania: Nocturne Season 2?

This article contains spoilers “Castlevania: Nocturne” for season 2.

In many ways, Castlevania: Nocturne Season 2 mirrors Castlevania Season 2. Considering that Season 2 of “Castlevania” is widely considered to be the best season of the showthat's a huge compliment. They both step up the ideas, plots and action of their debuts, deepening the main themes and giving the villains more screen time. And just like “Castlevania” Season 2, “Nocturne”'s sophomore release closes most of the major arcs that began in its first season. However, some clues are deliberately left hanging in the case of Season 3.

Members of the “Castlevania” creative team have made it clear that they're not done yet and would love to continue working on “Nocturne” if Netflix approves another set of episodes. If that happens, Season 3 will likely feature the mysterious dark spirit that has been lurking around in the background of Season 2. The character never speaks, nor is he given an official name, although the vampire Olroc (Zahn McClarnon) refers to them several times as Old Man Coyote, a trickster figure in some Native American folklore. Ohlrock also calls them Mephistopheles at one point, a diabolical figure from the Faust legend of old German folklore.

Although this character never reveals his true nature or intentions, they appear at several key points in the story, including one of the final shots of the season 2 finale. So who exactly is “Old Man Coyote” and what can they expect in “Castlevania: Nocturne” Season 3?

Since “Castlevania” is a video game adaptationit needed a final leader, and since Dracula was defeated in Season 2, Season 4 needed a new villain to fill that role to end the streak. A candidate? Death itself, expressed Malcolm McDowell. Trevor Belmont (Richard Armitage) battles the Grim Reaper at the very end of the first installment of Castlevania, paying homage to the character's frequent appearances in the games. However, the Netflix version of Death is a little different. He is less an agent of some dark cosmic purpose and more a corporeal creature that feeds on the life force that leaves humans as they die. Death attempts to revive Dracula so he can continue to claim souls and “feed” Death, but Trevor bests him in battle, destroying his physical form. Dracula still comes back to life in secret, but not in the way the troop trigger Death wanted.

While Death has been defeated, it is clear that he would not be completely gone. If the heroes of “Castlevania” couldn't erase Dracula from existence just by killing his body, then surely Death would somehow linger. In “Nocturne” Season 2, three of Old Man Coyote's four appearances are directly related to death. They come to retrieve the soul of Abbot Emanuel (Richard Dormer) after Maria (Pixie Davis) kills him, they loom over Mizrak (Aaron Neill) after he is mortally wounded, and they appear behind Tera (Nastasja Kinski) , as she watches executions by guillotine in Paris in the season finale.

Additionally, Old Man Coyote's smoky form resembles Death's skeletal form, and their only non-Death-related appearance in “Nocturne” is when Olroc addresses them right before Emanuel's Dark Spellbook is destroyed.

When Olrok summons a spirit he names The Old Man, he seems to know the dark figure well. “I know who you are,” he says, referring to the creature's many different names. “I know what promises you make and how tempting they are.” It's understandable that some of the more religious characters in the show assume that Old Man Coyote is the devil, since according to Olrox, they're operating from dark deals. However, Castlevania has never indicated that the “devil” in its mythology is real, meaning that this is likely another type of creature that various groups throughout history have attached their folklore and beliefs to.

The biggest clue to the dark spirit's intentions is in that very first scene with Olrox. The vampire finds a book of dark spells that Emanuel used to operate his blacksmithing machine and create creatures of the night from human corpses. He mentions that the book is written in Enochian, an occult language from the beginning of the world, and he tells Old Man Coyote that neither they nor the book belong to the mortal realm. He then burns the book.

If Old Man Coyote is indeed Death with a new face, they could have been the ones providing Emanuel with tools and knowledge all along. This fits the image of death, as the creation of creatures of the night and the empowerment of Erzsebet Batory would cause widespread death, giving Death more power.

If “Castlevania: Nocturne” gets a third season, it is likely that the show will adapt some of the scenes from the video game “Castlevania: Symphony of the Night”. Richter Belmont (Edward Blumel in the Netflix series), Maria Renard, and Alucar (James Callis in the Netflix series) are prominently featured in this game. It's also the most famous and widely praised “Castlevania” game of all time, so it would make sense for Netflix to adapt it.

Death is prominent in Symphony of the Night, so if this is indeed the true identity of the dark spirit in Nocturne, they could play into some custom arcs in the game. Even though they're brand new characters, it's pretty clear that the show is setting them up as the next big bad. In the season finale, they place a ghostly hand on Tera's shoulder as she watches her daughter from the shadows. Tera is clearly torn between her old life and her new vampire identity, and she just might be conflicted enough to be a tool for Old Man Coyote.

“Castlevania: Nocturne” seasons 1 and 2 are now streaming on Netflix.