Artemis Fowl
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"Artemis Jr., I presume? I have your father."
―Opal Koboi to Artemis Fowl[src]

Opal Koboi is the main antagonist of the 2020 film Artemis Fowl. She is a pixie and kidnaps Artemis Fowl's father, warning him that he will never see him again. Diabolical and maniacal, she wanted the power of the Aculos to rule fairy-kind and wipe out humanity.

History[]

"Say hello to Beechwood for me."
―Opal Koboi, preparing to kill Artemis Fowl Sr.[src]
Briar Cudgeon and Opal Koboi

Briar Cudgeon and Opal Koboi

She called Artemis Fowl Jr. and told him that she had his father. He demanded proof and she told him that he would have it, briefly putting Artemis Fowl Sr. on the line, who told him to stay out of it. She then told the young Artemis that his father had stole something from her and hid it. He told him to find the Aculos or he would never see his father again. When he asked what it was, she told him that he was clever and would figure it out, and that he had three days.

She appeared before Briar Cudgeon, telling him that he would be a commander again, with all charges against him dropped. She told him that she had convinced the executors to grant him a pardon after his court martial and that Commander Root was powerless to stop it. She continued that he now worked for her and that with the Fowl boy in play, she wanted him to infiltrate fairy command on her behalf. She warned him that he would die if he didn't spy for her, then left.

As a siege developed at Fowl Manor, Koboi told Artemis Sr. that his son had kidnapped a fairy and that he had a flair for the dramatic, like him. He asked why she was doing what she was doing and she told him that it was revenge. His people had waged war on hers and reduced them to silly stories. He told her that she couldn't win, that she had underestimated both their peoples. She answered that she would use the Aculos to rise to the surface and release her army to own both worlds, wiping out mankind. Some hadn't listened to her before, but they were listening now. Later, upon learning from Cudgeon that the young Artemis had found the Aculos, she ordered Cudgeon to take action, telling him that if she wanted to survive and thrive in her brave new world, then he would intervene.

Cudgeon's plan, sending a troll into Fowl Manor, ultimately did not accomplish its goal. Not hearing anything back, Koboi told Artemis Sr. that is time was up and that his son had failed him. She told him to say hello to his partner, Beechwood Short, for her, readying herself to use magic to finish him off. At that very moment, however, the elf Holly Short was using the power of the Aculos to try to send him across time and space, back to Fowl Manor. "Die, Fowl!" she declared, raising her arm and summoning magic energy, but at that moment, Short activated the power of the Aculos. Artemis Sr. reappeared at Fowl Manor, and she was left to stare at his empty chains, raising her arms and shouting "No!" Later, she took a phone call from the young Artemis. He told her that she had failed and that he and his allies were coming for her. She asked who he was, to think he could beat her. He told her that he was Artemis Fowl and that he was a criminal mastermind.

Personality and traits[]

Opal Casting Magic

"Die, Fowl!"

"Fairies and humans are incapable of friendship. Incapable of coexistence. With the Aculos I will rise to the surface, then release my army to take over the Earth and rule both worlds and systematically wipe all of mankind."
―Opal Koboi to Artemis Fowl Sr.[src]

Genocidal and ruthless, Koboi resented everything about the human people. She blamed them for the previous war between the People and humans, and was appalled how her race had been reduced among humans to silly stories, the objects of laughter or to frighten children. She coveted the Aculos, convinced that it would grant her ultimate power. She wished to annihilate mankind and stayed in the shadows, never showing her face and speaking with a raspy voice. Artemis Fowl Sr. considered her to be a brilliant fairy and perhaps the greatest of them all, but nevertheless gone to the bad.

Quotes[]

>Briar: "I spy?"

>Opal: "You spy or you die."

-Opal, recruiting Briar to follow her command, with the empty promise that he will become the LEP Commander. (23:42)

Behind the scenes[]

Although Hong Chau was widely reported as portraying Opal Koboi prior to the film's release, she is not credited as Opal Koboi in the final version of the film and all scenes involving her were left on the cutting room floor. Emily Brockmann, Jessica Rhodes and Charlie Cameron are all credited as portraying the shadowy female figure form of Opal Koboi.

In the original Artemis Fowl novels, Opal Koboi first appears in Artemis Fowl and the Arctic Incident. Whereas in the novels she is described as being extremely beautiful, in the film she is a heavily shrouded figure who keeps her appearance hidden the entire time and what little is seen of her is decidedly unpleasant.

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