The Mariner

Lore & Background

Human civilization survives on scattered atolls built from scavenged materials, having forgotten that land ever existed. The Mariner arrives at one such community to trade dirt, a rare commodity, but is accosted by locals who discover his mutant traits: gills and webbed feet. After killing an aggressor in self-defense, he is sentenced to drown in organic sludge. His fate changes when the Smokers, a formidable pirate gang led by the one-eyed Deacon, attack the atoll. The Mariner frees himself during the chaos, fighting his way out and causing an explosion. He subsequently agrees to transport Helen and her ward Enola, who possess a tattoo on her back rumored to be directions to the mythical Dryland.

In Their Own Story

The journey begins with the trio escaping the Smokers' scout seaplane after killing a cabin-fever-stricken drifter and a mutated shark for food. The Mariner initially remains gruff but bonds with Enola, teaching her to swim. When Helen demands to know where he found his dirt, he takes her in a jury-rigged diving bell to show her the underwater ruins of Denver, Colorado, crushing her belief that Dryland is a place of soil and trees. The Smokers capture Enola, burning the Mariner's trimaran to the waterline. Sorting through the wreckage, the Mariner finds National Geographic magazines and realizes Enola's doodles match images of Dryland objects. Infiltrating the Smokers' base on the remains of the Exxon Valdez, he threatens to ignite their oil reserves with a flare. As the ship sinks, Deacon shoots Enola from Gregor's balloon into the ocean. The Mariner performs an impromptu bungee jump to save her, causing Deacon and his men to collide on jet-skis in a fatal explosion.

Reader's Guide

The Mariner is defined by his survival skills and mutation, allowing him to breathe underwater via gills. He pilots a custom 60-foot (18 m) transforming trimaran designed by Marc Van Peteghem and Vincent Lauriot-Prevost, which surpassed 30 knots (56 km/h). His journey involves navigating from the atolls to the Exxon Valdez base, using a captured Smoker's jet ski for infiltration. In the Ulysses Cut extension, his final destination is identified as Mount Everest, now covered in vegetation. The story concludes with him departing Dryland on an old wooden catamaran after Helen bestows upon him the name Ulysses.

Did You Know?

• The Mariner's physical mutations include gills and webbed feet, which lead the atoll residents to attempt his execution by drowning.
• Kevin Costner spent 157 days on set, working six days a week, and nearly died when caught in a squall while tied to his trimaran's mast.
• The custom trimaran used for the film was built in France by Lagoon and could reach speeds over 30 knots (56 km/h).
• The character's journey reveals that the mythical Dryland exists, confirmed when Gregor identifies Enola's tattoo as coordinates with reversed directions.