Gender (of character): Female (she/her/hers)

Accent: Any

Age: Mid-20s

Role in Story: Antagonist/Deuteragonist

Voice: Feminine, intellectual, slight rasp, monotonous, composed, any pitch 

Character Description: Gwen Stacy (g-WEHN STAY-see), in Aether’s world, is a young, ambitious scientist who has been friends with Aether ever since they were in the same high school. As the daughter of the police captain, she loves her city and thinks of it very highly. Today, Gwen and Aether work in the same lab. She is the golden intern of their boss, Dr. Octavius, and works diligently in the lab. She’s Aether’s close friend, and her shoulder to cry on, but sometimes Gwen’s competitive, perfectionist nature gets the best of her and she can (unintentionally) be a bit mean-spirited.

Things take a turn for the worse when Gwen’s father dies in action after vigilante Xpider failed to stop a vicious Nighthawk rampage, one of New York’s most deadly villains. Dead set on revenge, Gwen takes on one of Dr. Octavius’s old projects; the smart arms, which she refurbishes and connects to panels embedded in her back. These rapidly deteriorate her mental state and spiral her deeper into aggression—but now, she’s dedicated to ruining Xpider’s life for good. Meanwhile, she still maintains her close friendship with Aether, completely unaware that her best friend and worst enemy are one in the same.

Personality: Gwen is brilliant and she knows it. She’s had perfect grades all her life, excels in all her classes, and has always been the best of the best wherever she’s been. This is embedded deeply in her mindset—anyone who does better than her or even remotely on her level is a threat, and she has condescending, competitive tendencies. However, she isn’t quite a bad person; she’s just caught up in her own expectations. She doesn’t permit herself vulnerability like sadness—she’s always, always focused, or channels her emotions in raw anger.

VA Description/Voice Direction: 

• Monotone and droning as Gwen—she’s the focused, know-it-all coworker. 

• There isn’t a particular vision for her voice, so please feel free to be unique and creative! As long as your delivery is spot-on, any voice, accent, and pitch is welcome. (The VRs are only a jumping-off point.)

• Since she works in science, expect to navigate scientific language.

• Expect to be loud! Shouting, outbursts, and short-tempered lines are very common for Lady Octopus. Even as Gwen, she can have an attitude.

Voice References: 

• Merritt Wever - Unbelievable - Detective Karen Duvall (TW: mention of r*pe)

• Hayden Panettiere - Scream VI - Kirby Reed