Xehanort (Japanese: ゼアノート, Hepburn: Zeanōto; English: ZAY-ə-nort) is a fictional character from the Kingdom Hearts series by Square Enix, in which he serves as the main antagonist of the "Dark Seeker Saga" story arc. He was introduced as the original form of the Heartless "Ansem, Seeker of Darkness" in the first game and the Nobody Xemnas in Kingdom Hearts II. Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep reveals the human elder Xehanort who, like his alter-egos, wishes to harness the power of the mythical Kingdom Hearts to recreate the universe in his image. While Kingdom Hearts III is the last major installment focusing on Xehanort, the 2020 mobile game Kingdom Hearts Dark Road explores his childhood and descent into villainy. Xehanort was created by Kingdom Hearts director Tetsuya Nomura, who decided to revise elements of the character when Square Enix greenlit Kingdom Hearts II. Critical response to Xehanort was originally mixed, with his multiple alter egos being confusing to the audience. His further exploration in Birth by Sleep and his boss battles were the subject of praise.
Creation and development Xehanort was originally conceptualized by Tetsuya Nomura as a villain who would only appear in the video game Kingdom Hearts. However, when Square Enix was given the approval to make the sequel Kingdom Hearts II, Nomura put together an outline for the character. He was often told by the manga artist that they felt "the characters come alive however they want", and some parts changed from their original conceptualization. Nomura conceived Xehanort as a character whom the players study throughout each installment of the series. Ansem symbolizes Xehanort's heart while Xemnas symbolizes his body, leading to the focus on the original Xehanort in the future titles. In retrospect, Nomura believes this was properly explored, as each game builds up Xehanort's character until his full introduction. The biggest change to Xehanort's character in Kingdom Hearts II is how his Heartless incarnation, Ansem, was revised as an imposter of the real Ansem the Wise, with more villainous traits. Kingdom Hearts II features another incarnation of Xehanort, the Nobody Xemnas, who is the leader of Organization XIII. The concept of Organization XIII began with Xemnas as the first member and Roxas, Sora's Nobody, as the last. Xemnas's name is an anagram of the name "Ansem" with the addition of the letter "X", which is revealed in Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep to be derived from the χ-blade. The Organization's members wear black, hooded coats that shield them from the corrosive effect of prolonged use of the Corridors of Darkness, portals they use to traverse between worlds. Following the release of Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix, Nomura revealed a connection between the cameo characters and Xemnas, but wanted to leave it up to people's imagination, as he still could not reveal their identities. This was done through the fight sequence between Sora's predecessors and the unnamed elder, who is later revealed to be Master Xehanort, and his apprentice Vanitas. Nomura explained that Master Xehanort wishes to bring back the Keyblade War and see what happens afterward with his own eyes. However, by the time he finds a way to accomplish this, he only has a few years left to live. Since he wants to become young again, he finds Terra and defeats him with darkness so he can take his body. The resulting incarnation, known as "Terra-Xehanort", is the man that Ansem the Wise takes in and makes his apprentice. In response to rumors saying that Sora's story would end in Kingdom Hearts III, Nomura answered that Sora is the protagonist of the series and that Xehanort's arc would end in such a title. In retrospect, Nomura said it was difficult to enjoy Sora's side of the story, instead enjoying Xehanort's character when making the narrative.
Casting
Billy Zane voiced Ansem in the first game, and was replaced by Richard Epcar for later titles. Reflecting on his work, Epcar enjoyed his works in the Kingdom Hearts franchise due to all the people he met. Xemnas was voiced by Norio Wakamoto in Japanese and Paul St. Peter in English. Peter felt that the quick audition led to a positive response from the staff. He came to enjoy voicing Xemnas alongside Wormmon from Digimon Adventure 02. He found the role challenging, as he had to work as carefully as Wakamoto. For the eventual release of Birth by Sleep, Ryōtarō Okiayu was chosen as Terra's Japanese voice, as the staff wanted an actor who sounded similar to Chikao Ōtsuka, Xehanort's original voice actor, and Akio Ōtsuka, Xehanort's later voice actor, who portrayed him while using Terra's body. The staff found Chikao's voice to be dry and Akio's voice to be deep and resonating, and liked how Okiayu bore elements from both actors. This eventually led to Xehanort's possession of Terra's body in Birth by Sleep and becoming the villains from the main games. Nomura claims a hidden message in Xehanort's last lines, when he hints that somebody else is in Terra's heart. After Chikao died during the development of Kingdom Hearts III, Akio was approached by the staff to take over as the voice of the elder Xehanort. Xehanort was voiced in English by Leonard Nimoy in Birth by Sleep and Dream Drop Distance. This was an intentional casting call from Nomura, a fan of Star Trek and Star Wars, as Xehanort's rival, Eraqus, is voiced by Mark Hamill. Following Nimoy's death in 2015, Rutger Hauer assumed the role in Kingdom Hearts III. Hauer died in July 2019, leading Christopher Lloyd to replace him in the Re Mind DLC and Melody of Memory. Xehanort's teenage incarnation, known as "Young Xehanort", is voiced by Takanori Okuda and Benjamin Diskin. Diskin commented he had to manage his pitch to sound as young as Okuda. As a result, Diskin was afraid about his performance due to how the early trailers of Kingdom Hearts III could be received. Diskin had played the numbered titles of the franchise and thus had little knowledge about his character, since Xehanort's identity was primarily explored in the non-numbered games. Throughout the recording of Dream Drop Distance, no one told him what his character was going through, or what his motivations were. As a result, Diskin had little understanding of the narrative.
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