Rick O'Connell

Richard "Rick" O'Connell is a fictional character and the primary protagonist from the 1999 film The Mummy, as well as the sequels The Mummy Returns, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor.

Early life
Raised in St. Mary Mead's orphanage along with Babe Ruth and Ethel Merman in Baltimore, Maryland after his mother died and his father abandoned him, O'Connell adopted himself at the age of 14 and ran away to Spain.(The Mummy: The Animated Series).

The Mummy
set in 1923, 1926 In The Mummy, O'Connell has served as the highest ranking American officer ever in the French Foreign Legion, but lost his post after his company was wiped out by a Beduin force after having found Hamunaptra. Three years later, having become a vagrant in Cairo, his only memento of Hamunaptra is stolen by Jonathan Carnahan, and he is about to be sent to the gallows for sexual harrassment. In his desperation, Rick promises to take Jonathan and his sister Evelyn to Hamunaptra, the city of the dead, and back again in return for his freedom.

However, once at Hamunaptra, Evelyn reads from the book of the dead and unleashes the immortal spirit of Imhotep - once a High Priest to the god-kings of Egypt, now resurrected in his mummified form. O'Connell realizes things got real and decides to help them (mostly for the sake of Evelyn, whom Rick is attracted to.) However, Evy is eventually captured. O'Connell then goes to rescue her and gets in a fight. He kills many minion mummies, then finally fights Imhotep. After Evy makes Imhotep mortal with an ancient curse from the Book of Ra, O'Connell impales Imhotep, killing him, and Imhotep steps back into the River of the Ancestors. rick and the Carnahans have to escape as the tomb collapses. The movie closes with them riding off on camels with gold unknowingly hanging in the saddle bag, unwittingly provided by the treacherous Beni.

The Mummy Returns
set in 1933 In The Mummy Returns, Rick is now married to Evy and has a son, named Alex. Alex is kidnapped and they must go on a quest to get him back and defeat Imhotep. However, in a dig in Thebes, Rick and Evelyn discover the Bracelet of Anubis, meaning that they have the key to resurrecting the fabled Scorpion King. When they return to London their son, Alex, puts on the Bracelet and forces a countdown until the awakening of the Scorpion King. O'Connell now has to journey to Ahm-Shere to stop the Scorpion King, and, simultaneously, re-stop Imhotep, who desires the Army of Anubis to conquer the world. While on his way to rescue his son with the help of his old friend Izzy, O'Connell finds out that he is a holy Medjai destined to protect Evy (who is the reincarnated version of Nefertiri, protector of the Bracelet of Anubis) and of Alex (The key to the Scorpion King). After Imhotep makes his face and chases everyone with a waterfall through a valley, they all head to the Forest of the Gold Pyramid where pygmy mummies murder most of Imhotep's elite science team. O'Connell is eventually forced to fight a mutated version of the Scorpion King who has been sneakily told by Imhotep that O'Connell is the one sent to slay the him. Since O'Connell doesn't know Egyptian, the Scorpion King gets angry and O'Connell's forced to remedy the situation physically. Meanwhile, the resurrected Army of Anubis battles Ardeth Bay and the remaining Medjai in a desert. Back inside the pyramid, O'Connell manages to turn the tables and thrusts the Scepter of Osiris into the stunned Scorpion King's heart, whereupon he explodes into darkness. The collapsing of the pyramid interior leaves O'Connell and Imhotep hanging off a ledge which leads to the Lake of Fire. Rick orders Evy to flee, but she refuses and rushes to his rescue, saving him. Imhotep cries out and begs his lover Anck-su-namun to rescue him; she flees instead and is consumed in a pit of scarab beetles. Broken hearted by her betrayal, Imhotep chooses eternal death and releases himself into endless hellfire. Rick, Evy, Alex and Jonathan are rescued in Deus ex machina fashion by Izzy in a homemade hot-air balloon. In a conversation with Ardeth Bay, he mentions that he was "in a Cairo orphanage" where he acquires a pyramid shaped tattoo, as he was a cook there. How long he was there is undetermined as he speaks with a distinctly American accent.

The Mummy: The Animated Series
set in 1936-1938

It is not stated whether or not the animated series is canon with the films, but in the animated series, Rick continues on his quest for gold with Evy and Alex while operating a charter tugboat in the Atlantic Ocean.

The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
set in 1946-1947 It is learned in this film that since the events of The Mummy Returns, O'Connell's relationship with his son, Alex (who is now twenty) has become strained due to Alex wanting to be an archeologist. Rick is also revealed to have done some espionage work for the Allies during World War II that won the war and is shown to dislike retirement. He misses his fighting days and attempts to adopt some normal hobbies such as fly fishing and motorcar driving, although it ends with him humorously shooting the fish out of anger when they refuse to submit and torching the vehicle. When the Dragon's Emperor is brought back to life by his son, O'Connell is forced to head to Shanghai with Evy to send him back to Hell. By sheer coincidence Jonathan is also in Shanghai and tags along grudgingly for the adventure. The family hikes through the Himalayas, befriends abominable snowmen, and discovers the enchanted city of Shangri-La in a touching scene where O'Connell is healed from wounds that otherwise would have killed him. Along the way most of the damage Alex's life has wrought on O'Connell is repaired and with the help of Alex's secret 2,000 year old girlfriend Isabella Leong, they are able to destroy the Dragon's Tomb and kill the Emperor in an epic showdown. Evelyn then writes a new book about the preceding events and Jonathan heads to South America.