"You chose us. Now we get to choose you."
—Eric, Divergent.
Eric was an Erudite born civilian who later chose to join Dauntless. He is eighteen in the books but twenty-four in the films. He is known for his ruthlessness and is allies with Jeanine Matthews up until his death in the second film: Insurgent.
Divergent
He is shown to choose ruthlessness instead of always thinking through situations during the game of Capture the Flag, choosing a team built for power, but losing when Four's faster team wins. While not training the initiates he has ordered one person to keep an eye on the control room which Four controls when he is joy training new people to Dauntless.
Eric attempted to kill Tobias by holding a gun to his head when he was assumed to be under the simulation, but Tris quickly pulled her gun out and threatened to shoot him before he could shoot Tobias. Tris ended up shooting him in the foot instead, as she knew she didn't have it in her to kill him.
Insurgent
Eric commands a group of Dauntless under the influence of the simulation serum to attack Candor headquarters, where the loyal Dauntless are congregated, and gas others so that they can be controlled by a simulation. They shoot tack-like bullets that inject a serum-like fluid into the loyal Dauntless and Candor members so they may be controlled later in simulations. They also gas everyone, putting them under the effect of a sleep simulation, so they can find and capture Divergents, one of whom will be taken back to Erudite headquarters, while the rest will be killed.
Eric shoots a young Divergent boy named Bobby in the head (he is saved by Tris in the film) but is then stabbed by Tris and captured. When the loyal Dauntless learn that one of Erudite's 'peace' conditions for Candor staying safe is to hand over Eric safely to Erudite, the Dauntless rush to the room where he is being held and Four tries to scare Eric into telling them why he was looking for Tris, but to no avail. In the end, Eric is shot in the head by Four. His deaths in the books and movie are the same, though in the book he wanted Tobias to kill him so that he would be filled with guilt.
Personality
Eric is very smart, but he's so malicious that everyone tends to forget about it. But he has a certain beauty in his darkness. He is described by Tris as an Erudite in Dauntless clothing. He tends to be the best in rankings and shows aggression when losing. He is also described as a babysitter who sharpens knives.
Eric describes his method of overcoming the fear simulations as using reason and rationality, hinting that he is levelheaded under stress. Another hint is that he does not seem to show fear before his execution, and is seemingly much more concerned with trying to convince his executioners that they are just as bad as him. He was the true meaning of Dauntless: Brave and Fearless.
Physical Appearance
In the books, Eric is eighteen years old and described as having long dark hair and countless piercings. He is also described as having cold eyes that made him all the more menacing, scabbed-over knuckles, and a wicked smile.
Eric is portrayed by Jai Courtney. In the films adaptations, he has short brown hair, a couple of piercings, as well as bold tattoos on his neck and arms