Hornet (Hollow Knight)

Hornet is a fictional character created by Australian independent developer Team Cherry, who first appears as a boss in the video game Hollow Knight (2017), and later as the playable protagonist of its sequel, Hollow Knight: Silksong (2025). She is a warrior arachnid and princess of Hallownest, who acts as its protector.

Hornet was created and is written by Team Cherry's co-founders and co-directors, Ari Gibson and William Pellen. She is drawn by Gibson, and voiced by Makoto Koji. Team Cherry have stated her role as the Silksong protagonist drove many aspects of the game, such as its enemy design and characters.

Since her introduction in Hollow Knight, Hornet has been given praise, especially for her role as the protagonist of Silksong. Critics laud elements such as her character development, her having more personality than Hollow Knight's protagonist, and her showcase of both ruthless and compassionate aspects.

Appearances

In the lore of Hollow Knight, prior to the events of the first game, Hornet was born from a cross between the wyrm king of Hallownest, the Pale King, and the weaver Herrah the Beast, as a result of a deal made between them, where Herrah would be able to have a child, but in turn become a "Dreamer", one of three beings who entered an eternal sleep to seal the Hollow Knight and contain the Infection. This led her to spend little time with her mother. Unlike the Pale King's other children, who are genderless, empty "vessels" born to contain the mind-controlling Infection, Hallownest's plague, she is referred to as "the Gendered Child", and cannot contain the infection.