Who Is Mr House in Fallout Season 2: Justin Theroux’s Character Explained

Episode one of Fallout Season 2 kicks off with a look at the one and only Robert House. Portrayed by Justin Theroux (The Leftovers, Mulholland Drive), House is a character that holds iconic status within the Fallout canon and is directly responsible for Las Vegas surviving the nuclear onslaught. He comes off as your standard capitalist sleazebag at first, but there’s a lot more depth to the character.

So, whether you’re a newcomer to the franchise or a veteran looking for a refresher, we’ve gone over all the essential details that you need to know about Mr. House in Fallout Season 2.

Spoiler Warning: This article may contain spoilers for Fallout Season 2.

Who Is Robert House in Fallout Season 2?

In Amazon Prime’s Fallout, Robert House (or Mr. House) is largely lore-accurate, depicted as an all-powerful technocratic billionaire who owns “half of Las Vegas.” He is the founder and CEO of RobCo Industries, one of the largest and most influential corporations in the pre-War United States.

The best example of the company’s influence is how every computer terminal in the games and the TV show runs on RobCo software. In fact, most of the technology seen in the show, including the Pip-Boy and robots such as Mr. Handy and Securitrons, was developed by RobCo.

During the first scene featuring Theroux’s House, we see him name-drop a product named the “H&H Nail Gun.” This is a direct reference to the H&H Tool Company, a business owned by his family. After Robert’s parents were killed in a freak accident, his half-brother, Anthony House, manipulated the law to ensure that he assumed full control of the company, denying Robert his inheritance. Of course, Robert remained undeterred by this setback and went on to have immeasurable success as a cunning businessman and a powerful technocrat.

Why Are There Two Robert Houses?

We got our first look at Mr. House in the Fallout Season 1 finale, where he was played by Rafi Silver. Following the announcement of Justin Theroux’s casting, it seemed like Silver’s stint was short-lived. But as it turns out, both actors are present in Season 2, with Rafi Silver essentially playing House’s public-facing body double while the main man himself is portrayed by Theroux.

This comes as a major lore revelation, as there has been no mention of pre-war House using a body double of any sort. With that said, this new development certainly makes sense for the character.

Robert prides himself on knowing everything, calculating all possible outcomes, and making rational adjustments. Given his status as a controversial pre-war figure, it’s easy to imagine that he’s worried about being assassinated before getting the chance to carry out his ambitious post-war plans. As such, hiring a body double to shield him from that danger is perfectly in line with the character; in fact, it’s a clever move on the show’s part.

How Did Mr. House Save Las Vegas in Fallout?

The first episode of Fallout Season 2 loosely describes what happened, stating that some of the Vegas-bound nukes were shot down by the missile system set up by Mr. House. While that is the gist of things, House hatched up plans to ensure his survival as well, and even restored the Strip to a functioning commercial hub.

The exact details behind this restoration are yet to be discussed in the show, so consider this a spoiler warning if you’d rather wait to see it happen on-screen.

Using his supreme intellect, House devised mathematical algorithms that allowed him to predict events in advance. This included the world-ending war of 2077, which the technocrat was able to determine down to the date. He used this foresight to conceive ambitious plans for Las Vegas, aiming to transform it into a shining center of entertainment and commerce in the desolate wasteland of the future.

As part of his vision, the Lucky 38 Casino and the surrounding Strip were outfitted with state-of-the-art defensive systems, including orbital and ground-based missile batteries capable of intercepting aerial threats. When the bombs began to fall in 2077, these systems were activated automatically. House’s missiles successfully intercepted and destroyed several incoming nuclear warheads aimed at the city, preventing Las Vegas from being directly obliterated in the initial strikes.

With the Lucky 38 serving as his post-war HQ, House outfitted its penthouse with a highly advanced life-support system, capable of sustaining him without external assistance for decades. He placed his mortal flesh into a chamber and wired his brain into a supercomputer. In theory, these systems were designed to keep him alive forever. But in practice, he was working with an inferior OS, which meant that both the defensive measures and the support systems malfunctioned.

In the end, the missiles shot down 68 of the 77 bombs aimed at Vegas, meaning the city largely survived. However, the impact of the bombs that made it through saw his support systems go awry, forcing him into a 50-year-long coma.

After waking up in 2138, Robert took stock of the chaotic wasteland outside of his fortress. He made note of the raider factions that were seeking refuge within the Strip, and also detected the NCR presence looming nearby. It took decades before House finally made his move, but he started by activating his army of combat-ready Securitons to serve as tools for both surveillance and control.

Eventually, he forged alliances with the three raider factions within the Strip – by twisting their arms, of course. The factions were turned into casino families and given charge of the Tops, the Ultra Deluxe, and Gomorrah. His robot army ruled the streets and deterred NCR influence, but House always knew that this would be short-lived.

He always recognized the NCR as a potentially existential threat, being an organized, well-equipped military power capable of overtaking Vegas if left unchecked. As such, House agreed on a deal with the Republic to ensure New Vegas’ sovereignty. In return, the NCR got to set up shop at the McCarran Air Force Base and have an embassy on the Strip. This deal allowed the two parties to co-exist in peace, but the billionaire is always wary of a takeover from the NCR, or worse yet, the Legion.

The Fallout TV show picks up 15 years after the events of Fallout: New Vegas. We know that the Strip is in ruin, yet Mr. House has survived. Why is that the case? Well, we’ll find out together over the course of Season 2’s eight episodes.

And that is everything you need to know about Mr. House in Fallout Season 2. What are your first impression of the new season? Let us know in the comments.