Sephiroth

is a character in the Final Fantasy series and the main antagonist of Final Fantasy VII developed by Square (now Square Enix). A former soldier of the megacorporation Shinra, his superhuman physiology is revealed to be the result of an experiment in which Shinra injected him with cells from the extraterrestrial lifeform Jenova when he was still a fetus. Upon discovering this, Sephiroth becomes consumed by rage and decides to take control of the Planet, while Cloud and the game's other protagonists attempt to stop him. Sephiroth's background and role in the story are expanded upon in the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII. Additionally, he appears as a guest character in other video games and media, such as a recurring boss in the Kingdom Hearts series and as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Character designer Tetsuya Nomura conceived and designed Sephiroth as an antagonist and foil to the game's main character, Cloud Strife. The character was voiced by voice actor Toshiyuki Morikawa in Japanese in all of his appearances except for Shin-ichiro Miki in Ehrgeiz and Yūichirō Umehara in Ever Crisis. In English, Sephiroth has been voiced by Lance Bass in Kingdom Hearts (2002), and by George Newbern in Kingdom Hearts II (2005) and the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII metaseries (2004–present). For the Final Fantasy VII Remake, Newbern was succeeded by Tyler Hoechlin. Hoechlin also reprises the role in the remastered Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion (2022), replacing Newbern's English performance in the original game. Sephiroth has been well-received within the video game community and is highly ranked on many lists of the best video game villains and Final Fantasy characters based on his role in the narrative and his high challenge level. He was also the subject of analysis as a Final Fantasy villain who lost his humanity upon learning of his alien heritage, and how he attempts to corrupt Cloud through the chaos he causes and by exploiting his mental weakness. Concept and creation