WARNING: Spoilers for Hunters season 1.
The Fictional Nazi Targets In Hunters Season 1
Heinz Richter: When Jonah visits Meyer’s home, the older man tells him about an Auschwitz prisoner, Marcus Ross (“the Bobby Fischer of Germany”), who repeatedly beat prison guard Heinz Richter. The Nazi created a human chess board, and terrorized prisoners for seven days. Before getting killed, Ross slashed Richter’s throat and left him with an “X” scar. The Richter story connects to Hunters’ opening credits sequence and key art. Richter, aka Gene Martin, is located and killed by Meyer, a moment that essentially serves as the series’ inciting incident. Jonah learns about Nazis in America, and also learns about “The Hunt.” Richter is identified as the team’s seventh kill - “an eye for an eye.” The character is a fictional creation for the show, along with the human chess board story.
Karl Holstedder: Another fictional character in Hunters season 1, described by Meyer as “The Pied Piper of Buchenwald.” After Jonah finds a coded message in Richter’s belongings, Meyer recalls how the “Hauptsturmführer” organized a radio show every Saturday, on the Shabbos, and rounded up 10 Jewish prisoners. He then forced them to perform for their lives. In 1977 America, Holstedder works as a music producer and goes by the name Erik Folsom. During Jonah’s first mission with the Hunters, the team confronts and tortures Holstedder. The Nazi ultimately attacks Jonah, shortly before getting shot and killed by Lonny. The Hunters learn that Holstedder was responsible for broadcasting coded messages to fellow Nazis throughout the tri-state region. The character’s backstory is based on real concepts (prisoner torture), but Holstedder isn’t a real Nazi.
Dieter Zweigelt: A Nazi doctor who forced Jewish prisoners to ingest gallons of saltwater, and allegedly died shortly after World War II. The Hunters track down Hauptman, aka Victor Dilman, to Huntsville, Alabama. During questioning, the Nazi claims that he was brought to the United States by the CIA to help with science programs. Zwiegelt ultimately provides the Hunters with the name of several Nazis living in America, including Moritz Ehrlich. While this particular Nazi character is fictional, seaweed experiments were indeed conducted at Dachau concentration camp during World War II. In addition, various real-life German scientists lived in Huntsville, Alabama while working for the U.S. space program (via USA Today).
Tilda Sauer: A propagandist filmmaker who goes by the name Karen Bollinger. During questioning, Meyer accuses her of spreading vile stories through false news during World War II. She’s forced to eat fertilizer while viewing propaganda films that she directed for Joseph Goebbels, the Nazi’s Reich Minister of Propaganda from 1933 to 1945. Sauer is killed by Meyer after stating “great pretender, clever tongue” - a moment that connects to the Hunters season 1 finale. Sauer appears to be based on German filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl, who directed the 1935 propaganda film Triumph of the Will. Riefenstahl later denied knowing about the Holocaust, and passed away at age 101 in 2003.
Oskar Hauptman: He’s named by Frederich Hauser (a Swiss banker who built his fortune on stolen Jewish items). Hauptman, aka Timothy Randall or “The Ghost,” was a Nazi doctor who allegedly died shortly after World War II. The Hunters locate Hauptman, sick and frail, and discover that he’s received extensive plastic surgery. It’s later revealed that a pathogen test made The Ghost sick. Hauptman, a fictional Hunters character, is seemingly based on real-life Nazi doctor Josef Mengele, the “Angel of Death,” who escaped Germany and lived in South America for decades. Mengele’s remains were identified in 1985.
Moritz Ehrlich: A Nazi guard who murdered the Moskowtiz’s son on March 18, 1943, at Birkenau. He’s confronted by Murray and Mindy, and then help captive. After Murray dies and appears to Mindy in a vision, he asks her to show mercy. Ehrlich dies off-screen via a single bullet. The fictional character underlines the generational trauma that resulted from the Holocaust.
Wilhelm Zuchs: A Nazi doctor, aka “The Wolf,” and the #1 target on Meyer’s list. During World War II, Zuchs became infatuated with Ruth at a concentration camp, and was also determined to break Meyer. In the Hunters season 1 finale, The Wolf is revealed to be none other than Pacino’s character in Hunters, who stole the real Meyer’s identity, paid for a “mask,” and then lived as a Jew in New York City before forming the Hunters unit - a way to make up for past sins. The Wolf’s backstory is based on real events, but the character is indeed fictional and sets up the events that establish the premise for Hunters season 2.
The Real Nazi Targets In Hunters Season 1
Werhner Von Braun: A Nazi doctor, aka “Rocket Man” who used German slaves to build V-2 rockets. In Hunters season 1, Wernher Von Braun is questioned about the Fourth Reich and admits to creating “the solution” - a pathogen food substitute based in corn syrup. He also claims that he was recruited by a woman known as The Colonel. In real life, Wernher von Braun is the German scientist most commonly associated with Operation Paperclip. He was responsible for developing the Nazi’s space program during World War II, and later directed NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. He passed away from cancer in June 1977. In Hunters season 1, von Braun is shot and killed in 1977.
Next: What To Expect From Hunters Season 2
