Ezio Auditore da Firenze () is a fictional character in the video game series Assassin's Creed, serving as the principal protagonist of the series' games set during the Italian Renaissance. An Italian Master Assassin, his life and career as an Assassin are chronicled in Assassin's Creed II, II: Discovery (both 2009), Brotherhood (2010), and Revelations (2011), as well as the short films Assassin's Creed: Lineage (2009), Ascendance (2010), and Embers (2011) and various spin-off media of the franchise. In 2016, all three major games featuring Ezio, as well as Lineage and Embers, were re-released as an enhanced bundle titled Assassin's Creed: The Ezio Collection. Throughout most of his appearances, the character has been voiced by American actor Roger Craig Smith, while Canadian actor Devon Bostick portrayed him in live-action in Lineage.
Within the series' alternate historical setting, Ezio was born into Italian nobility from Florence in 1459. His family had long been loyal to the Assassin Brotherhood, a secret organization inspired by the real-life Order of Assassins dedicated to safeguarding peace and freedom, though Ezio did not learn about his Assassin heritage until his late teens, after most of his immediate kin was executed during the Pazzi conspiracy. His quest to track down those responsible sets him up against the Templar Order, the Assassins' mortal enemies, led locally by the House of Borgia. Spending decades fighting Rodrigo and Cesare Borgia and their henchmen, Ezio is eventually successful in restoring the Assassins to prominence in Italy, and becomes their Mentor in 1503. His further adventures lead him to Spain and the Ottoman Empire, where he again proves to be essential in helping the local Assassins overcome Templar threats. Following his retirement from the Brotherhood, Ezio settles down in Tuscany with his family, eventually dying from a heart attack in Florence in 1524.
The character has received critical acclaim and is often named among the greatest video game characters of all time. While most of the praise focuses on his portrayal and growth throughout the series, as well as the unique chronicling of his entire life, he has also been noted as one of the most attractive video game characters of all time. Due to his reception and the fact that he is the only character who is the protagonist of multiple major installments of the franchise, he is usually considered the face and most popular character of Assassin's Creed. Ezio's popularity has led to several crossover appearances outside of the series, notably in titles such as Soulcalibur V, For Honor, Fortnite, Brawlhalla, and Reverse: 1999, where he appears as a guest character.
Development When creating Ezio's character, the developers were keen on establishing similarities between the series' previous protagonist Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad in style and general appearance, while at the same time differentiating Ezio from the former characterwise. His name, meaning eagle in Italian, was chosen to keep up the tradition of Altaïr, whose name meant "flying one" in Arabic. While Altaïr was described as a warrior monk bred for combat and the life of an assassin, Ezio's backstory was consciously designed in sharp contrast to make playing him feel like an "empowering experience". Unlike Altaïr, Ezio is not born into the Assassin Order and discovers his heritage only in his teens, while his main goal for most of the first game is to seek revenge on those who murdered his family. Even though this was made to be his main motivation for the early part of the game, his personal growth was to enable him to seek justice as the game progressed. Additionally, Ezio does not start out as a Master Assassin but has to hone his craft throughout, which was intended to make him more relatable to players. He learns new moves and abilities by being taught by friends and allies, unlike a progression tree, to make the players' immersion into the character feel more natural. In general, Ezio was designed to be a Renaissance man, who was to be open-minded and truth-seeking, but also fun-loving. The creative director of Assassin's Creed III, Alex Hutchinson, compared Ezio to actor Errol Flynn, as he was designed to be an over-the-top womanizer and braggart.
Fictional character biography Assassin's Creed II and II: Discovery Ezio is an ancestor of Desmond Miles, the protagonist of most of the early series' modern-day sequences, who experiences Ezio's life through the Animus, a device unlocking hidden memories inside his DNA. As shown in the beginning of Assassin's Creed II, Ezio was born into the House of Auditore, a dynasty from the Italian city of Florence, in 1459. Tutored by the banker Giovanni Tornabuoni until the age of 17, Ezio led an affluent, care-free lifestyle until his father Giovanni discovered a plot to assassinate the leaders of Florence.Assassin's Creed II, Chapter 1 Giovanni accused Francesco de' Pazzi as a conspirator, but when he presented the evidence to the gonfaloniere of Florence, Uberto Alberti, the latter is revealed to also be a conspirator and orders for the Auditore family's arrest. Out running errands for his father, Ezio is not home when his father and two brothers are arrested and later publicly hanged. Ezio, following his father's final advice, finds his Assassin tools and flees the city with his mother and sister to his uncle Mario's estate in Monteriggioni. Mario assists Ezio in discovering the people behind the conspiracy and trains him to become an Assassin.Assassin's Creed II, Chapters 2 and 3
While exacting revenge on the Pazzi dynasty, Ezio discovers that more people from outside Florence are involved in the conspiracy that got his father and brothers killed.Assassin's Creed II, Chapter 4 The search for those responsible spans over a decade and leads Ezio from Florence to San Gimignano, Forlì, and eventually Venice. As he identifies and assassinates the Templar conspirators, Ezio gains several allies, including Niccolò Machiavelli, Caterina Sforza, and Leonardo da Vinci. These allies partly set Ezio on a path of redemption, helping him overcome his desire for revenge, and guide him on his quest. Eventually, Ezio confronts the mastermind behind the conspiracy, Rodrigo Borgia, who sought to unify Italy under the Templar banner and acquire a powerful artifact known as the Apple of Eden, which would lead the Templars to the fabled "Vault." Ezio recovers the Apple from Rodrigo, who manages to escape, and is formally inducted into the Assassin Brotherhood.Assassin's Creed II, Chapter 11
During the events of Assassin's Creed II: Discovery, which takes place from 1491 to 1492, Ezio travels to Spain to free his fellow Assassins, who have been imprisoned under the guise of the Spanish Inquisition. In the process, he discovers that the Templars are planning to sail west to discover the New World. Ezio has to save Christopher Columbus and confront Tomás de Torquemada to end the Templar threat. During his quest, he also befriends a number of Spanish Assassins who offer him aid, including Luis de Santángel and Raphael Sanchez. In the end, Granada is taken under siege by the Templars, and Ezio has to save the Nasrid King Muhammad XI.
By 1499, the Italian Assassins have discovered that the Vault sought by Rodrigo lies in Rome, prompting Ezio to infiltrate the Vatican to assassinate the Templar Grand Master, who has become Pope Alexander VI and wields the Staff of Eden. Ezio battles Rodrigo using the Apple, and despite being initially overpowered, he manages to defeat his opponent after challenging him to a fist-fight. Declaring an end to his personal vendetta, Ezio spares Rodrigo's life and opens the Vault after combining the Apple and the Staff. Inside, he is greeted by a hologram of Minerva, a member of the extinct First Civilization that created humanity and the Pieces of Eden. Minerva delivers a message intended for Desmond, warning him about a cataclysmic solar flare only he can prevent, which leaves Ezio confused as he questions who Desmond is.Assassin's Creed II, Chapter 14
Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood At the start of Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, Monteriggioni is besieged by the Papal Armies led by Cesare Borgia, Rodrigo's son and co-leader of the Templar Order. During the siege, the Apple of Eden is lost, Monteriggioni is destroyed, and Ezio's uncle Mario is killed. Escaping the city with his mother and sister, an injured Ezio sets off for Rome to destroy the Borgia once and for all; however, he collapses shortly thereafter.Assassin's Creed Brotherhood, Chapter 1 Days later, Ezio awakens in Rome and receives a new set of gear from Niccolò Machiavelli, who also saved him days earlier. After his wounds heal, Ezio and Machiavelli set their plan into motion: to liberate Rome and remove the Borgias from power permanently, as well as retrieve the Apple.Assassin's Creed Brotherhood, Chapter 2
Slowly, over the next three and a half years, Ezio and his allies win a series of victories over the Borgias, restoring the city while destroying the Borgia's allies and resources. Ezio rebuilds the ranks of the Assassins and in time succeeds Machiavelli as Mentor, the leader of the Brotherhood.Assassin's Creed Brotherhood, Chapter 7 By 1503, Ezio has assassinated the clan's banker, Juan Borgia, and their French ally, the Baron de Valois, and incapacitated Lucrezia Borgia, leaving the Templars' power base in disarray. Cesare, in a fit of rage, kills his father and begins losing control over Rome. After retrieving the Apple, Ezio uses its power to destroy what is left of Cesare's army. By the end of the year, Borgia control over the city is completely broken, and Cesare is arrested by the new Pope, Julius II.Assassin's Creed Brotherhood, Chapter 8 After Cesare escapes imprisonment a few years later, Ezio uses the Apple to track him down before hiding the artifact in a secret vault beneath the Colosseum. In 1507, Ezio travels to Spain and catches up with Cesare at the siege of Viana. Ultimately defeating Cesare, Ezio throws him off the castle walls to his death.Assassin's Creed Brotherhood, Chapter 9
Assassin's Creed: Revelations After the events of Brotherhood, Ezio discovers a letter left behind by his father that talks about a hidden library full of vast knowledge underneath Masyaf Castle, left there by the legendary Assassin Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, setting the events of Assassin's Creed: Revelations in motion. Arriving at Masyaf in early 1511, Ezio is ambushed by Templar forces who occupy the fortress, also searching for Altaïr's library. After escaping capture and assassinating the Templar captain, Ezio recovers the journal of Niccolò Polo, which tells of five seals hidden in Constantinople that will open the door to Altaïr's library.Assassin's Creed Revelations, Chapter 1 Arriving in Constantinople, Ezio begins his search for the seals, while helping the local Assassins Guild, led by Yusuf Tazim, overthrow Byzantine Templar control.Assassin's Creed Revelations, Chapters 2 and 3 Over time, Ezio succeeds in eradicating the Templars' influence and resubjugating the city to the rule of the family of Prince Suleiman.