List of The Neverending Story characters


The following is a list of characters in the 1979 novel The Neverending Story by Michael Ende and its film and television adaptations.

Bastian Balthazar Bux

Bastian Balthazar Bux is described as a lonely boy, about 10 or 12 years old, who is raised by his father and still mourning the sudden death of his mother. He is considered a dreamer, who is shunned by other children due to his immense imagination. During a visit to an antique bookstore, he steals a curious-looking book titled The Neverending Story, and upon reading it finds himself drawn into the story. Halfway through the book, Bastian becomes a character in The Neverending Story, in a world called Fantastica.
As the story progresses, Bastian slowly loses his memories of the real world as his wishes carry him throughout Fantastica and change him into a different person. Deluded by the witch Xayide, Bastian moves to the Ivory Tower and tries to have himself proclaimed Emperor. The ceremony is interrupted by Atreyu, who is nearly killed by Bastian. Eventually, Bastian realizes that he is beginning to lose himself, and starts a desperate quest for his one true desire. In the end, he forgets his name. With the help of Falkor and Atreyu, he manages to return to the human world with the capability of loving, and brings the Water of Life to his father, curing him of his melancholy. Bastian and Coreander exchange tales of their adventures in Fantastica, and Coreander reveals that a person can return to Fantastica as many times as they can think of new names for the benevolent Childlike Empress.
In the Hallmark miniseries Tales from the Neverending Story, it is mentioned to Xayide, by the Great Turtle, that Bastian is not the only chosen one. The identity of the other child remains unclear throughout the remainder of the series, until Bastian is tricked upon rereading a chapter by his classmate Fallon, with whom he had started to bond. Thus, he finds out that Fallon is the other "Chosen One".
Bastian has been portrayed by five different actors:
Atreyu is the protagonist of the mysterious book that Bastian reads. He is a young green-skinned warrior from the Grassy Plain. His parents were killed by a Purple Buffalo soon after he was born, and his entire village raised him. His name means "son of all" in his native language. He is summoned by the Childlike Empress to save the land of Fantasia by finding a cure for her illness and given Auryn, an amulet that makes whoever wears it the Childlike Empress' herald. During the quest to find a cure, he meets Falkor the luckdragon, who becomes his steed after the death of his horse Artax.
Bastian, reading Atreyu's story in the real world, experiences everything Atreyu does; this proves Fantasia's solution and the Empress' cure, in bringing Bastian to Fantasia to give the Empress a new name. Atreyu plays a prominent role in the second half of the novel, as Bastian travels Fantasia far and wide as its savior. They quickly become friends, but as Bastian continues to use Auryn, he becomes arrogant and gradually loses his memories. When Bastian has lost even his name, Atreyu and Falkor offer favorable testimony to the powers in Auryn, who allow Bastian's return to the human world. With their friendship restored, Atreyu promises to finish the stories Bastian has begun in Fantasia.
In the 1984 film The Neverending Story, the character of Atreyu is played by Noah Hathaway. His skin is ultimately not olive green as described in the novel; though it was attempted to do this through makeup, it never made it to the final production. As such, his people were ultimately called the Plains People instead of Greenskins. The character returns in The NeverEnding Story II: The Next Chapter, played by Kenny Morrison. In the 1995 animated show The Neverending Story, Atreyu has a younger sister named Saiya and his outward appearance has been patterned after Noah Hathaway from the first film, although this version has green skin like his novel version. In the 2001 Hallmark Channel miniseries, Tales from the Neverending Story, he is portrayed by Tyler Hynes and the character's people are called the Woodland People. He is shown to have a romantic relationship with a young aviator called "Fly Girl", and to be something of a village innocent.

Carl Conrad Coreander

Carl Conrad Coreander is a cantankerous bookseller; Bastian finds and steals The Neverending Story from his store. The novel states that Mr. Coreander is one of the few humans who has been to Fantasia and returned. He and Bastian come to a better understanding and share stories of their adventures with each other.
Coreander is portrayed by Thomas Hill in the first film, and was the only actor who reprised his role in the second film; in the third film, he is played by Freddie Jones. In the cartoon series, Coreander is voiced by Chris Wiggins. In the 2001 television series, Tales from the Neverending Story, portrayed by John Dunn-Hill, he functions in a double role as a wizard in Fantasia wherein he is called "the Curiosity". In the third film, his wife Mrs. Coreander appears, portrayed by Shirley Broderick.

Childlike Empress

Childlike Empress is the monarch of Fantasia, who resides in the capitol called the Ivory Tower in the heart of the realm. Although she is nominally the ruler of Fantasia, she rarely interacts with the outside world. Should she die, Fantasia and all Fantasians would cease to exist. The amulet known as Auryn is her emblem, and those who wear it are her representatives. As explained by Morla the Aged One, her lifetime is not measured in years, but by names, which only the imagination of a human child can give her. When she begins to need a new name, she begins to fade away, causing the Nothing to appear in Fantasia. She sends Atreyu on the Great Quest, which brings Bastian to Fantasia, and Bastian gives her the name of Moon Child, which restores Fantasia.
The Empress' description is that of an indescribably beautiful young girl, appearing no older than ten, yet much older than the oldest Fantasians. Her hair is snow-white, as is her gown, and her eyes are the color of gold, earning her the title Golden-Eyed Commander of Wishes.
The role was portrayed by Tami Stronach in Wolfgang Petersen's 1984 adaptation, by Alexandra Johnes in The NeverEnding Story II: The Next Chapter and by Julie Cox in The NeverEnding Story III. In the films, her hair is dark, rather than white, and in the first film, she is dressed like a bride.
In the 1995 cartoon series, the Childlike Empress has golden hair, wears a green gown, and is voiced by Lisa Yamanaka. The episode "Missing Memories" reveals that the Empress is essentially the equivalent of the Fisher King to Fantasia; when Xayide finds crystals representing the Empress's memories in the Minroud Mine, shattering these crystals not only removes the Empress's memory of the subject depicted, but erases them from Fantasia itself. After Bastian drives Xayide out of the Mine before she can shatter the Empress's memory of him, he restores the Empress's memories by telling her of his own memories of Fantasia.
In the 2001 television series Tales from the Neverending Story, the Empress, again depicted with dark hair, was played by Audrey Gardiner. In the series, she is a sister to Xayide, a ruler of Dark City.

The Nothing

The Nothing is a supernatural force that appears in the novel The Neverending Story and its adaptations. The Nothing is described as a formless entity that is composed of real-world human negative emotions, such as disillusionment, disbelief, and humans' lack of imagination. As a result, the entity negates the existence of things and people in Fantasia. While the novel describes it as a formless being, the film adaptation depicts it as a raging storm, but the filmmakers explained that the Nothing is actually an invisible force, and the storm is a consequence of its presence, like the mist that surrounds the Nothing in the book. The Nothing employs its servant, Gmork, to kill the boy who searches for the cure for the Childlike Empress. The Nothing engulfs Fantasia, but after Bastian gives the Childlike Empress a new name, the Nothing is dispelled for good, and the land is recreated.
In the 1995 animated series, the Nothing is combined with Gmork and is depicted as a black hole with evil red eyes.
In the 2001 live-action TV series, Tales from the Neverending Story, the Nothing appears as a weapon in the chest that is used by the sorceress Xayide, who uses it to erase places in Fantasia, and transform its people into brainwashed Drones.

Engywook and Urgl

Engywook and his wife Urgl are a quarrelsome pair of gnomes who live close to the Southern Oracle. Engywook is a research scientist who has studied the Southern Oracle and her three gates for most of his life but has never entered any. His wife Urgl often gets in his way while brewing potions in a large cauldron for healing wounded people. Engywook can observe the Riddle Gate, also known as the Sphinxes, from his telescope on a hilltop overlooking the first gate. In the book, Urgl removes poison from Atreyu and Engywook instructs him about the three gates that lead to the Southern Oracle. This scene is portrayed in the 1984 film.
In the first film, Engywook is played by Sydney Bromley and Urgl is played by Patricia Hayes.
In the third film of the series, Engywook and Urgl have moved to a forest and still argue continuously. The house is stepped on by Bastian during his return trip to Fantasia, although it is then completely destroyed by the Nasties. The two go with Bastian, Falkor, and Bark Troll to find the Empress for help, but are stranded on Earth and arrive in Alaska, where they mail themselves to the others and return home, their house rebuilt.
In the 1995 cartoon series, Engywook and Urgl are voiced by Wayne Robson and Barbara Bryne.