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“Fallout” stands out as one of the best video game adaptations to date, largely because it treats its leads as fully realized characters. Lucy MacLean and Cooper Howard — played by Ella Purnell and Walton Goggins, respectively — carry much of the story’s emotional weight. Even with other key storylines moving in parallel, the series repeatedly returns to their journey across the Wasteland.
That contrast drives the partnership. Lucy grew up sheltered and naive after spending her entire life inside a Vault, while Cooper operates as a cynical bounty hunter shaped by radiation and hard-earned survival instincts. Their push-and-pull dynamic creates a compelling duo, and that chemistry fueled the rise of the “Ghoulcy” couple name, with many fans hoping the relationship eventually shifts into romance in future seasons of Fallout.
Viewers have continued to speculate about how Lucy and the Ghoul might evolve in season 2 and beyond, especially if new revelations unpack each character’s past. Recent comments from Ella Purnell, however, add a sharper perspective on what that evolution will (and will not) look like on screen.
Ella Purnell confirms a Lucy and The Ghoul romance is not happening
The chemistry between “Fallout’s” two protagonists reads as undeniable, but Ella Purnell has pushed back on the idea of a traditional romance. In an interview with Geek Culture, the actress behind Lucy MacLean addressed the fan theories around “Ghoulcy,” and jokingly said anyone rooting for that couple “need therapy.”
Purnell expanded on that stance by pointing to the nature of Walton Googins’ character as a major obstacle to any love story. She added, “You can’t fix him. You can’t save him. Let it go. Let it go, hon.” That framing positions the Ghoul as someone hardened by violence and the radiation-soaked reality of the Wasteland, and it suggests that romance would flatten the tone that the post-apocalyptic TV show inherits from the franchise.
While Purnell acknowledged that something genuinely beautiful exists between them, she emphasized a bond rooted in necessity and shared objectives, rather than attraction. Lucy’s search for her father and the Ghoul’s pursuit of his family’s whereabouts drive the narrative forward, and a romance would function as a distraction from that central momentum.
Why the Fallout star believes Ghoulcy is an unhealthy fan theory
Even with Purnell’s comments, parts of the “Fallout” community still champion the pairing. Reddit hosts a dedicated space for “Ghoulcy” discussions, where fans argue that the tension between Lucy’s purity and Cooper’s nihilism could power a dramatic love story. One user even suggested the show’s producers would be cowardly for avoiding that route.
Purnell’s argument centers on the idea that both characters already carry emotionally charged motivations strong enough to fill any space romance might occupy. A relationship also runs into biological and ethical barriers, since the Ghoul sits hundreds of years older than Lucy, and carries the physical and mental scars of someone who watched the world end. As she put it in the interview, “they’re both looking for the people that they love; let’s leave it at that.”
In the end, keeping Lucy and Cooper Howard’s relationship firmly platonic feels more aligned with the desolate, cynical, and sarcastic tone that defines the “Fallout” universe. For fans, that leaves one clear path to wait for season 2 and see how this partnership holds up against whatever new threats rise in the Wasteland and New Vegas.
