Baldur’s Gate 3 actor says Karlach’s story is really “a redemption arc”, and everyone’s favourite Tiefling was awful prior to the game

Larian Studios’ cast of tortured soul companions in Baldur’s Gate 3 are almost instantly lovable, despite the violent, horrible world of D&D’s Sword Coast. While the game’s cast may be fantastic in the game we play, Karlach actor Samantha Béart explains that her character is actually awful prior to the events we experience.

Baldur’s Gate 3’s Karlach isn’t all ‘strawberry-sweet’

In an interview with PC Gamer, after discussing how she’s aware of the sheer amount of Karlach fan-fiction there is, Béart explained that the Tiefling wasn’t the sweet, comfortable character we know during her life in Avernus.

“I think she was a very different person in hell,” the voice actor explained. “Sure, Karlach might be strawberry-sweet up in the Prime Material plane, but survival in hell requires a different vibe entirely.”

The actor revealed that part of her preparation for playing the character in Larian’s RPG was to imagine “being locked in a supermax prison, with no hope of getting out and doing all sorts of horrible gang stuff to survive”.

Béart explained that the “really sweet, nice, happy-go-lucky person” we get to see, play as and even romance in Baldur’s Gate 3 isn’t all of Karlach. In fact, the actor explained that she was “a piece of work in Hell”, simply due to the horrible acts she had to commit.

“You just think about how people behave in those very small communities,” the actor explained. “Essentially, I think you can completely change to survive.”

The actor revealed that she believes Karlach’s story is really “a redemption arc”, even when it comes to the Mind Flayer ending that leaves “very little” of the character left at the end.

“Finally actually getting out and going. ‘Do you know what? I get to decide who I am now. And I’m not going to be that person anymore’” the actor said.