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Red Dead Redemption 2

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Hayden Russell, Voiced by Paul O'Brien
Character

Hayden Russell

Voiced by Paul O'Brien

Hayden Russell is one of the named cast of Red Dead Redemption 2, working as character. The facts below are the ones the wiki records.

Turns up in the story without fitting any of the other labels.

Role
Other characters
Voice actor
Paul O'Brien
Status
Not stated
Occupation
Captain (formerly)
Affiliations
29th Ambarino Volunteer Infantry Regiment, United States Volunteers, United States Army, General Scollick
Also known as
Captain Russell

Player notes

Hayden Russell is a former captain of the 29th Ambarino Volunteer Infantry Regiment, part of the United States Volunteers. Long after the Civil War, he remains in uniform at a small camp in Roanoke Ridge, near the border with The Heartlands. He believes it is April 14, 1862, and still considers himself under the command of General Scollick. Armed with a Carbine Repeater, he waits at Clingman for orders that never arrive.

Arthur Morgan can find Russell at Clingman in 1899. Russell levels his rifle at Arthur and demands to know whether he supports the North or the South. If Arthur calms him, Russell accepts that he is not a Confederate and asks for news of General Scollick. He says his regiment is waiting to march into Lemoyne and seize Saint Denis from rebel forces, unaware that the war ended decades earlier. Arthur can encounter him there three times.

In 1907, John Marston encounters Russell twice at the same camp. Russell again treats the visitor as a soldier caught up in the war, this time asking whether John is with the Union Army. His duty has not changed with the years. Still wearing his old blue uniform and waiting beside his camp in Clingman, Captain Russell remains convinced that General Scollick will order the advance into Lemoyne.

Trivia

  • โ—†If the player does not answer Russell's initial question, he will open fire on them. If the player points a weapon at him, then he will also begin shooting at the player. Unlike most NPCs, he may drop his weapon during an altercation, after which he'll rely on his fists.
  • โ—†Russell's belief that the current date is 14 th April, 1862 and that he will soon march into Saint Denis to capture it from the rebels may be a reference to the real Battle of Forts Jackson and St. Philip, in which Union forces captured New Orleans from the Confederates, having took place only four days later.
  • โ—†Russell seems to have memory problems, and does not remember meeting the player from previous encounters. This may be a form of anterograde amnesia, where he cannot form new memories, leading his mind to be "stuck" in the past.
  • โ—†In the credits at the end of the game, one of the testers shares the same name as Hayden Russell, this might have been a tribute such as John O'Creagh, the first voice actor for Uncle in the game and O'Creagh's Run.
  • โ—†He appears to be a Corporal or Private despite claiming to be a Captain. (However, he either pretends to be "the captain", or he really is, but mistaken his uniform and probably put on his older one - in which his rank insignia of a "junior sergeant").
  • โ—†The Carbine Repeater he carries is based off the 1860 Spencer Carbine Repeating Rifle which was actually used by the cavalry and not infantry, though it was used by infantry in its longer form, or dismounted cavalry in the carbine, or skirmishers who used both. (Nevertheless, he can be as skirmisher, or cavalry - the last one is more obvious, as his uniform has yellow insignia and its instrument metal - so it can be said that his gun is quite authentic to his rank).
  • โ—†Not far from his post, one can find an abandoned military hospital with the remains of the perished soldiers inside. Due to the context of the events, it is a possiblity that this was a Civil War-era camp there where the Union soldiers were treated, and because of its abandonment, it is likely that the camp was partially evacuated due to the shelling or it was bombed itself and destroyed, which could explain Captain Russell's possible concussion if he was there.
  • โ—†If the player uses binoculars or mods to observe Captain Russell before the encounter is triggered, he can be seen polishing his boots.
View on Red Dead Wiki โ†’

Character data from Red Dead Wiki, CC BY-SA. Not affiliated with Rockstar Games.

Last verified September 14, 2026