Raleigh Becket
The pilot who lost his brother but found the strength to save the world.
Raleigh Becket is a former Jaeger pilot who is called back into action after his brother is killed in battle. Becket is haunted by his past experiences fighting the Kaiju, but he ultimately decides to join forces with Marshall Stacker Pentecost, to pilot a new Jaeger and take down the monstrous creatures once and for all. On casting Hunnam, del Toro stated, "I saw him and I thought he had an earnest, really honest nature. And he was the kind of guy that I can relate to, as a male audience member I go, 'I like that guy.
I would like to have a few beers with that guy' ... he has an earthy quality." Describing the character, Hunnam stated, "When you meet me, in the beginning of the story, I've suffered a giant loss. Not only has it killed my sense of self-worth, but also my will to fight and keep on going. And then, Rinko and Idris, and a couple other people, bring me out of retirement to try to help with this grand push.
I think that journey is a very relatable one. Everybody, at some point in their life, has fallen down and not felt like getting back up, but you have to, no matter how difficult it is."
Quick Facts
- Role
- Former Jaeger Pilot
- Status
- Alive
- Notable jaegers
- Gipsy Danger
Lore & Background
In 2020, brothers Yancy and Raleigh Becket pilot the Jaeger Gipsy Danger to defend Anchorage. A Kaiju severely damages Gipsy and kills Yancy. Raleigh manages to kill the Kaiju, but traumatized by his brother's death and the stress of solo-piloting the Jaeger, he quits the program. Five years later, Raleigh, now working on constructing the wall, is convinced by Pentecost to rejoin the Jaeger program and is brought to Hong Kong, where he meets Mako Mori, director of the Jaeger restoration program.
Pentecost informs Raleigh of his plan to destroy the Breach by detonating a tactical nuclear weapon inside it. Raleigh searches for a new co-pilot and finds Mako is compatible. During their first test in Gipsy Danger, Mako loses alignment while recalling a Kaiju attack in Tokyo that almost killed her, nearly discharging Gipsy's plasma cannon inside the Shatterdome. Consequently, Pentecost suspends Mako.
Raleigh protests, having seen through Mako's memories that Pentecost had adopted and raised Mako after her parents died in a Kaiju attack, and suggests that the real reason for Pentecost suspending Mako was to protect her. Pentecost remains unswayed.
Reader's Guide
Raleigh Becket is not technology himself, but the human operator who masters the most advanced tech in the franchise: the Jaeger. As a pilot, his primary 'specification' is his ability to withstand and utilize the Drift, a neural interface that merges two consciousnesses into one unified mind to control a massive mecha. This allows for split-second decision-making that no single human could achieve alone.
Did You Know?
- Raleigh Becket was played by Charlie Hunnam, who was also considered for the role of Prince Nuada in del Toro's previous film, Hellboy II: The Golden Army.
- Raleigh was working on constructing the coastal defense wall when Marshal Stacker Pentecost convinced him to rejoin the Jaeger program.
- In the final battle, Raleigh ejected Mako from Gipsy Danger, triggered a meltdown in the Jaeger's nuclear reactor, and ejected before its detonation sealed the Breach.
More in Pilots & Kaiju
Elsewhere in Pacific Rim
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced