Gabriel (The Prophecy)

Gabriel in his human form.

“	I'm an angel. I kill firstborns while their mamas watch. I turn cities into salt. I even, when I feel like it, rip the souls from little girls. From now 'til Kingdom Come, the only thing you can count on in your entire existence...is never understanding why.	„
	~ Gabriel, to Catherine Henley, in the first film

Gabriel is the main antagonist of the first two films of The Prophecy series. He is the angel of death, vengeance, and revelation, as well as one of Heaven's elite Archangels.

He is portrayed by Christopher Walken, who also played Max Zorin in A View to a Kill, Frank White in King of New York, Max Shreck in Batman Returns, Cornelius Hatcher in The Rundown, and Sal Maggio in Kangaroo Jack.

History

The Prophecy

Gabriel seeks the soul of Colonel Hawthorne, a recently-deceased Korean War veteran, in the hopes of using it to break the stalemate in Heaven. With the help of his human minion Jerry (whom he revived after he committed suicide), Gabriel travels to Arizona, where he finds Hawthorne's corpse, only to discover that the soul is gone. He then tracks down the angel Simon and interrogates him as to the soul's whereabouts; when Simon refuses to divulge the soul's whereabouts, Gabriel sets him aflame and later tears out his heart, killing him.

Gabriel eventually learns Simon hid Hawthorne's soul inside Mary, a young Native American girl, and tracks her down. He prepares to take Hawthorne's soul, only to be confronted by Thomas Daggett and Catherine Henley. After a brief confrontation, Gabriel is apprehended by the police, only to later escape.

Since Jerry was shot and killed by Thomas during their last fight, Gabriel goes to a hospital and resurrects Rachael, a critically-ill woman, to be his new lackey. He then tracks Thomas, Catherine, and Mary to an Indian reservation where Mary's native tribe is preparing to exorcise Hawthorne's soul from the girl. Upon arriving, Gabriel is confronted by Thomas, who forces the angel to reveal he's upset that God doesn't speak to him anymore.

Gabriel then makes his way into the reservation, only to be shot by Catherine. He grabs Catherine and starts to crack her skull, only to be interrupted by Thomas driving a pickup truck into the structure (killing Rachael, who attempts to stop Thomas, in the process). Thomas grabs a tire iron and starts beating Gabriel with it until he's stopped by Lucifer, who confronts Gabriel.

Gabriel tells Lucifer "This war is mine," to Lucifer replies his war is arrogance, which makes it evil and therefore should be his (Lucifer's). Gabriel then mocks Lucifer for "sitting in your basement, sulking over your breakup with the boss" and calls him "nothing." Lucifer then tells him it's time to come home, and attacks Gabriel, tearing out his heart and eating it. Gabriel's body is then dragged away by a demonic creature who accompanies Lucifer.

The Prophecy II

Lucifer returns Gabriel to Earth, stating not even Hell is big enough for the both of them. Gabriel then confronts Thomas at a monastery, demanding information about a woman predicted to give birth to a Nephilim who will be able to end the War in Heaven. When Thomas refuses to tell him anything and mocks him, Gabriel throws him across the room before setting him aflame.

Gabriel later learns that Danyael, a fellow angel, is the father of the coming Nephilim. Danyael flees, leaving Gabriel to confront and then kill another angel, Raphael. Using a claim check from a dry cleaning store, he next attempts to find out the mother's identity, only to be stymied by the store owner (whom he kills) and the fact he doesn't understand how to use a computer. The next night, he observes a teenage girl, Izzy, and her boyfriend Julian commit suicide by driving a car into a wall. Julian dies, but Izzy is left barely alive, so Gabriel resurrects her and promises to let her die if she helps him.

The following night, Izzy uses her skill with computers to help Gabriel find out that the Nephilim's mother is Valerie Rosales. Gabriel then goes to Valerie's house and waits for her to come home (killing her grandmother in the process). When Valerie arrives, Gabriel corners her and prepares to kill both her and her unborn child, only to be confronted by Danyael. The two angels fight, and Gabriel manages to wound Danyael long enough to get away. Gabriel and Izzy (who's behind the wheel) pursue Valerie in a car, eventually cornering her in an alley. Gabriel urges Izzy to run Valerie down, but Valerie jumps out the way, the car hits a wall, and Gabriel is left unconscious.

Sometime later, Gabriel, having regained consciousness, kills a police officer who was asking him about the crashed car in the alley, takes his police scanner and gun, and finds Izzy at a small restaurant. He questions her about the police scanner and the gun, the latter of which Izzy picks up and uses to shoot herself in an unsuccessful suicide attempt. Gabriel then forces Izzy to go along with his plans, taking her hand and causing it to burn while stating he doesn't have to explain himself to her.

The police scanner picks up an unauthorized entry at a nearby church, so Gabriel drags Izzy along with him there. Izzy waits outside the church, while Gabriel enters the church. In the nave, he taunts Valerie (who hides from him) about her unborn baby, telling her how humans and angels mixing don't work. When Valerie attempts to attack him with a candlestick, Gabriel gets the jump on her, subdues her, and drags her out of the church, only to be meet with police officers. Izzy hands him the gun, causing Gabriel to be shot multiple times by the police while Danyael rescues Valerie.

Gabriel's body is taken to a morgue, where a coroner takes his coat and begins examining his body, only to find Gabriel has regained consciousness. Next, Gabriel, having taken back his coat and presumably killed the coroner, enters an interrogation room to retrieve Izzy, killing a detective as he goes and then retrieving an ancient book that he looks through as he and Izzy are leaving the police station. Gabriel then announces he and Izzy are going to Eden.

Later, Gabriel and Izzy arrive at the gates of Eden, and Gabriel asks to speak with the Archangel Michael. Michael comes down and contemptuously compares Gabriel to Lucifer. Gabriel then angrily asserts everything he's done has been for his fellow angels and says he wants everything to go back to the way things were, when God loved the angels best. Michael urges Gabriel to submit or he'll face a harsher punishment any of them has ever known. Gabriel, however, is unmoved, and Michael grants him access into Eden.

As he makes his way into Eden, Gabriel is confronted by Danyael, and the two angels battle each other. Gabriel taunts Danyael for being in love with Valerie before killing Danyael, tearing out his heart. He then resumes his search for Valerie and accidentally kills Izzy. Gabriel and Valerie finally cross paths, and after a brief chase, Valerie asks Gabriel if God still speaks to him, to which he answers, "Not lately." Valerie then suggests the reason Gabriel hasn't heard from God is because he doesn't listen, and then tells the angel she can hear God speaking to her. Gabriel asks what God is telling her, and Valerie replies, "Jump," leaving Gabriel stunned enough for Valerie to take hold of him and jump off. Gabriel ends up impaled while Valerie is unharmed. Moments later, Michael turns Gabriel into a human, stating he has become what he hates most.

Five years later, Gabriel is seen living on the street as a hobo, saying "The phone's gonna ring, and he's gonna pick up."

The Prophecy III: The Ascent

Twenty years after the events of the second film, Gabriel is still living as a homeless person. In the end, he is forgiven and allowed to return to Heaven.

Personality

Gabriel strongly resented humanity for being the object of God's love; his hatred of human beings was so extreme that he often referred to them as "monkeys."

Powers and Abilities

• Nigh-Omnipotence: Gabriel is an archangel of immense power. He has, as he boasted, turned cities to salt and ripped the souls of humans from their bodies.
• Immortality: Gabriel was present at the creation of the universe.
• Superhuman Strength: Gabriel is noticeably physically stronger than most humans; he casually overpowers any mortal adversary that opposes him.
• Superhuman Agility: Gabriel has unnatural balance.
• Healing Factor: Gabriel, like all angels, has the power to spontaneously regenerate his body from any injury. Wounds from most objects, even bullets, heal in seconds without causing him any lasting discomfort. He can only be killed by having his heart ripped out.
• Cosmic Awareness: While not omniscient, Gabriel has immediate knowledge of certain things.
• Supernatural Perception: By licking the remains of his blood, Gabriel was able to identity and find Simon.
• Perception Alteration: Gabriel can make people see and hear things that are not really there.
• Resurrection: As the angel of death, Gabriel can call back the souls of the recently deceased to their bodies and return them to life. He can grant them a form of immortality by refusing to let them die until they fulfill their obligations to him.
• Healing: Gabriel can heal a person's wounds, even fatal ones.
• Pyrokinesis: Gabriel can set fire to objects and people with only a thought.
• Flight: Gabriel can fly with his wings.
• Shapeshifting: Gabriel can transform into a flock of luminous white doves. Like all angels, he hides his wings with this ability.
• Sedation: He can put humans to sleep just by touching their foreheads.