Nicolas Fouquet - in Fiction

In Fiction

Fouquet's story is often entwined with that of the Man in the Iron Mask, who is often identified as the true king or even as an identical twin brother of Louis XIV. As such, he is a pivotal character in Alexandre Dumas' novel The Vicomte de Bragelonne, where he is depicted sympathetically. Aramis, an ally of Fouquet, tries to seize power by replacing Louis XIV with his identical twin brother. It is Fouquet who, out of sheer loyalty to the crown, foils Aramis' plot and saves Louis. This does not, however, prevent his downfall.

James Whale's film The Man in the Iron Mask is very loosely adapted from Dumas' novel and, by contrast, depicts Fouquet as the story's main villain, who tries to keep the existence of the King's twin brother a secret. Fouquet is portrayed by Joseph Schildkraut. In a departure from history, he dies when his coach plunges off a cliff. In the 1977 version, Fouquet is portrayed by Patrick McGoohan.

Fouquet was portrayed by Robert Lindsay in Nick Dear's play Power.

Fouquet's life (and his rivalry with Colbert) is one of the background plots/stories in the historical novel Imprimatur by Rita Monaldi and Francesco Sorti.