Film:

Characters from the 2013 film Snowpiercer.

open/close all folders

Tail Section Passengers

Curtis

Curtis Everett

"We go forward."

Played By: Chris Evans

Curtis is the designated leader of the tail end's revolution, although he struggles to accept the role that has been forced upon him.

An Arm and a Leg: A key theme of his character development: he still has both his arms, but feels guilty about it because it means he wasn't strong enough to cut one off himself to feed the other starving tail section passengers. He eventually sacrifices his left arm at the end of the film to stop the engine and allow Timmy to escape through the machinery.
The Atoner: For the atrocities he committed as a teenager in the first months on the train. Ultimately, he helps end the corrupt system and break the circle, he fulfills his promise towards Tanya, finally sacrifices his arm for someone else, and in the end gives his life for Yona and Timmy, along with Namgoong.
Celibate Hero: He has no love interest. It's even commented on by Gilliam and Wilford.
Friend-or-Idol Decision: In the battle with the Axe Gang, he must choose between saving Edgar (his best friend) or catching Mason (whom he can use as a hostage to make the enemy surrender). He chooses to capture Mason... and Edgar is killed.
Friend to All Children: Curtis is quite good with kids, getting along well with Timmy and Chan, and ultimately sacrificing his left arm, and shortly after, his life, to protect Timmy and Yona. Given the horrors that lie in Curtis' past, it's not a great leap to imagine that this is part of his atonement for what he'd done to survive his first months on the train.
The Hero: The leader of the revolution, and the film's protagonist.
The Hero Dies: He dies at the end of the film in a Heroic Sacrifice.
Heroic BSoD: He has one when Gilliam is executed, and another when he realizes that his revolution was all for naught.
Heroic Sacrifice: He and Namgoong serve as human shields for Yona and Timmy in the Kronole explosion.
I'm a Humanitarian: In the first few months of the Snowpiercer, the tail section were starving and had to eat each other to survive. They soon learned that babies tasted the best. Curtis was about to eat baby Edgar and his mother before Gilliam stopped him by cutting off his own arm to feed the tail-enders.
The Promise: He promises Tanya that he'll get her son back after she's been mortally wounded. Later, seeing Tanya's son being used as slave labor in Wilford's engine is what snaps him out of his Heroic BSoD. He and Namgoong end up sacrificing their lives to shield Timmy and Yona from an explosion.
Shoo the Dog: Attempts to keep Edgar at arm's length, despite the fact that Edgar utterly idolizes him. It's later revealed that Curtis killed his mother and attempted to eat Edgar when he was a baby.
Teens Are Monsters: As a teenager, in the early days of the train, he cannibalized people, murdered Edgar's mother, and nearly ate Edgar as an infant. However, his actions were driven by desperation, as everyone in the tail end had literally nothing to eat, rather than sadism.
We Can Rule Together: Wilford tries Passing the Torch to him to take his place as ruler of the train at the end of the film, but it could be just Wilford's way of manipulating him. Curtis, broken by his experiences fighting to the head of the train and the revelations about Gilliam's collaboration with Wilford, almost accepts the offer. It takes Yona revealing that Wilford uses child slaves as substitute engine parts to snap Curtis out of it.
Would Hurt a Child: As a teenager, he ate babies in order to stave off starvation, and was ready to do the same to baby Edgar before Gilliam intervened. This is no longer the case in the present day, and it's Curtis' greatest shame that there was ever a time when he resorted to such depravity.

Namgoong

Namgoong Minsoo

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nam_4143_1_2226.jpg

Previously an engineer who personally designed all of the locks and gates on the Snowpiercer, now a Kronole-addicted convict, Namgoong Minsoo sells his technical knowledge for drugs, allowing Curtis' group to move forward in the train.

Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: First appearing to be a spaced-out stoner who can barely function without his fix, he turns out to be a worthy combatant, and successfully kills Franco the Elder, who has about six inches and a hundred pounds of weight on him. After being shot, no less.
Erudite Stoner: He's addicted to Kronole and owns the world's last pack of cigarettes, yet he's one of the most intelligent and informed good guys. Unlike the others, he actually has a plan that goes beyond "reaching the front section".
Functional Addict: The only reason he got addicted to Kronole in the first place was because he wanted to collect it to make a bomb to break out of the train.
Heroic Sacrifice: He and Curtis serve as human shields for Yona and Timmy in the trainwreck.
The Idealist: Surprisingly, his ultimate agenda was escaping from the train altogether.
Knight in Sour Armor: He presents a gloomy and selfish facade, but he is a very devoted father and ultimately the only person with a real plan for the future. Even getting Yona addicted to Kronole was in order to prevent her integration into the corrupt system he intended to destroy, and protect her from its harsh realities.
The Lost Lenore: In a subtle way. The Inuit woman who led the Frozen Seven is implied to be Yona's mother in the film (confirmed by Word of God), and she appears to be a large part of what inspired his quest to leave the train.
Only a Flesh Wound: He shrugs off being shot by Claude without much difficulty.
Precision F-Strike: In Korean, at least. The translation machine doesn't bother to translate it, though.
Thou Shalt Not Kill: He refuses to let Yona kill, even in moments where her intervention might save him.
The Unpronounceable: Enforced by director Bong Joon-ho, who wanted a hard-to-pronounce name for the character.

Yona

Played By: Go Ah-sung

Yona is Namgoong's Kronole-addicted daughter. Her apparent precognition serves to alert the revolutionaries to danger. While always caught in the eye of the storm, Namgoong keeps her out of the action and strives to ensure that she will emerge from the ordeal still a good person.

Blood-Splattered Innocents: Franco the Younger smears his blood on her face after she accidentally delivers the killing blow to him.
Can't Hold Her Liquor: After getting hold of a wine bottle in the night club, she indulges herself heavily and passes out drunk in front of the last door.
Junkie Prophet: Her powers of clairvoyance, which may or may not be related to her Kronole addiction, allow her to know what's behind the train's doors before her father opens them. They also allow her to discover Timmy hidden below the floor, working on Wilford's engine.
Maybe Magic, Maybe Mundane: Curtis wonders if she is psychic. Bong Joon-ho's explanation is that all train babies develop an animalistic sense of hearing.
Missing Mom: According to Bong Joon-ho, her mother was the Inuit leader of the Frozen Seven.
The Ophelia: She has the messy hair, the powers that tie her closer to earth, and the mental illness, given her addiction.
Poor Communication Kills: Her limited English does limit her ability to communicate with the other passengers, but Yona also seems to take rather perverse joy from informing the tail-enders the long tunnel is coming up, way after it would have been helpful.
Sole Survivor: She and Timmy are the only characters left alive after the train crash.

Gilliam

"I am a shadow of my former shadow. My day was decades ago."

Played By: John Hurt

The elderly leader of the tail end of the Snowpiercer.

Ambiguous Situation:
- He was no doubt conspiring with Wilford to keep the train's population in check. However, after the rebellion manages to move past where Wilford expected them to be cut down, Gilliam tells Curtis not to listen to whatever Wilford has to say whenever they meet, and to cut his tongue out as soon as they meet. Was he saying that to stop Curtis from learning the truth about him, or to make sure he is able to kill Wilford before he breaks Curtis with the truth, so that the rebellion can succeed? We'll never know, since Gilliam gets executed halfway through the story.
- Actually, for a second ambiguous situation, there is some doubt as to whether he really was a traitor. It's confirmed that Wilford has ways of monitoring the entire train, so he could have been lying to break Curtis's spirit after having found out everything through listening devices, rather than Gilliam being a collaborator.
Ambiguously Bi: Per Word of God, Gilliam is romantically involved with Grey, but while talking to Curtis, mentions that it's better to have two arms "when you're holding a woman".
Ambiguously Evil: The degree and even existence of Gilliam's villainy is debatable, particularly since all of the details come from Wilford himself, only after Gilliam was dead and in no position to confirm or deny a word Wilford was saying, and the claim is made by Wilford in a moment where he is overtly trying to manipulate Curtis, leaving the extent of his collaboration with Wilford, as well as whether said collaboration was even real, ambiguous.
An Arm and a Leg: The reason for this is that he cut off one of his arms to save Edgar as a baby and feed the starving tail-enders.
Big Good: He's the leader of the tail section, with Curtis being his Number Two. Then Wilford reveals he was never "good" at all.
Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: He's seemingly the wise and benevolent leader of the tail end, but we learn after his death that he apparently orchestrated the entire rebellion with Wilford in order to keep the population in check.
Boom, Headshot!: He's executed by Franco the Elder while Curtis and company are forced to watch through a security feed.
Broken Pedestal: Curtis practically worships him after seeing Gilliam cut off his own arm to feed to the starving tail-enders rather than let the teenage Curtis eat the infant Edgar. This only makes it more devastating for Curtis when he's told that Gilliam was in league with Wilford the entire time, and stirred up rebellions with the intention of them failing as a form of population control.
Cool Old Guy: He presents this facade to the tail end, as a friendly approachable man who literally gave an arm and a leg for his community. He becomes a bit less cool when, after his death, we learn that he was probably working with Wilford.
Deadpan Snarker: He mocks Curtis's desire to amputate himself, and openly talks back to Mason.
Dystopia Justifies the Means: If Wilford is to be believed, Gilliam collaborated with Wilford to stir up rebellions that were planned to fail the whole time for the specific purpose of culling the tail-end population to prevent them draining precious resources that could be spent on luxury for the rich, and scare the front-enders into compliance with Wilford's regime.
The Mentor: He mentors Curtis to groom him for leadership when he's no longer around. Then it turns out Gilliam and Wilford were conspiring to turn Curtis into a successor for Wilford.
The Mole: For Wilford, who describes him as a friend.
Mole in Charge: The leader of the tail section and the brains behind a few failed rebellions turns out to be an ally of Wilford who intended all the past rebellions to fail as a form of population control.
Parental Substitute: He serves as a father figure to Edgar.
Passing the Torch: He plans to do this with Curtis, who he believes should be the next leader.
Supporting Leader: He's the actual leader of the tail-enders and their rebellion, though he stays behind to let Curtis and his group assassinate Wilford.
Surprisingly Sudden Death: Wilford's forces manage to regain control of the tail end, and Gilliam is executed by Franco the Elder without much fanfare.
Team Dad: Word of God describes him as a father for the tail section passengers.
The Unreveal: If Wilford's being honest, we have zero indication of Gilliam's motive for living in squalor and maiming himself to set up Wilford's miniature society, actions with no apparent personal benefit.
Villainous Friendship: Wilford describes him as a friend, and mentions that he'll miss his long talks with Gilliam at night. Not that this stops Wilford from executing Gilliam for failing him, of course.
Walking Spoiler: Knowing too much about him not only spoils his death, but it ruins the last act twist that Gilliam had been working for Wilford the whole time, and the rebellions he inspired were always designed to fail.
Wasteland Elder: He's very old (John Hurt was 73 at the time of the film's release), and is living in a post-apocalyptic society.
Well-Intentioned Extremist: His exact motives for collaborating with Wilford are unclear, since he's dead by the time they come to light, but Wilford seems to think Gilliam agreed with his ideology that sacrificing tail-sectioners was necessary to ensure humanity's ultimate survival via population control.
You Have Failed Me: Wilford explains to Curtis that the true reason why he had Gilliam ("a friend" according to himself) killed is because he failed to keep the rebellion under control.

Edgar

Played By: Jamie Bell

A young man raised on the train, Edgar is Curtis's most loyal ally.

Big Brother Worship: Though not related by blood, Edgar is nearly two decades Curtis's junior and looks up to him, acting as his most loyal ally and supporter. This becomes much more disturbing in light of Curtis admitting that, as a teenager, he murdered Edgar's mother and was going to cannibalize Edgar as an infant, until Gilliam stopped him by cutting off his own arm to feed him that instead.
Defiant to the End: Once he realizes that Curtis can't save him, he calmly accepts his fate and attacks his killer out of spite before being killed.
Hero-Worshipper: He greatly admires Curtis, to the latter's dismay, and wonders why he refuses leadership.
Hot-Blooded: As shown with his surfing stunts and enthusiasm in battle.
Human Resources: Narrowly avoided, as Gilliam saved him as a baby from a hungry teenage Curtis.
In the Back: Franco the Younger stabs him in the back, killing him.
Kid Sidekick: A rather dark example, given Curtis's past with him.
The Lancer: Edgar is Curtis's best friend and most loyal supporter.
Missing Mom: Unbeknownst to him, Curtis stabbed his mother and intended to eat Edgar as a baby, until Gilliam stopped him.
Number Two: He is explicitly called Curtis' second-in-command by Mason.
Sacrificial Lamb: The first of the main cast to die, at the Yekaterina Bridge.
The Snark Knight: He gets rather snippy towards Namgoong regarding his drug addiction.
Unexplained Accent: Since he's lived on the train his whole life, you wouldn't really expect him to have a specific regional accent, but he does anyway.
Weapon Twirling: He twirls his axe once after Mason calls for a brief pause during the axe battle on the Yekaterina Bridge.

Tanya

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tany5650_3958.jpg

Played By: Octavia Spencer

Tanya is a revolutionary allied to Curtis. When her train baby son Timmy is taken to the front end, her main goal becomes to find him at all costs.

Action Mom: She can throw down as well as anyone else, holding her own against waves upon waves of armed forces.
Dies Wide Open: She dies in the sauna battle, after she hears Curtis promise to find Timmy.
Face Death with Dignity: She calmly accepts her death after being mortally wounded, having faith that Curtis will uphold his promise to save her son.
Last Request: Hers is that Curtis find Timmy.
Mama Bear: Tanya will cut through anyone who gets in the way of finding her son.
Pietà Plagiarism: One shot has her holding Andrew in such a fashion.
Tragic Keepsake: She keeps a charcoal drawing of Timmy, gifted to her by the Painter.

Andrew

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ssadrew_2861_5370.jpg

Played By: Ewen Bremner

A tail end father whose son was taken to the front end, similar to Tanya's situation.

Afro Ass Kicker: He has thick curly hair, and he still kicks ass even after losing an arm.
An Arm and a Leg: He loses his arm as punishment for throwing a shoe at the woman in yellow.
Boom, Headshot!: How the teacher kills him.
The Chew Toy: Things rarely go right for Andrew. His son is abducted by Wilford's men, his arm is frozen solid then shattered as retribution for throwing a shoe at a front end passenger, and then he ends up shot in the head by the teacher. His son, Andy, ends up so broken by Wilford that Curtis can't save him like he does Timmy.
Disproportionate Retribution: His arm is frozen and shattered by Wilford's men as payback for him throwing a shoe at Claude. Also, the only reason why he threw the shoe in the first place was because she was kidnapping his son.
Handicapped Badass: Even losing an arm isn't enough to stop him from fighting in Curtis's rebellion in the hopes of getting his son back.
Papa Wolf: His entire motivation to push ahead is to get his son back.
Surprisingly Sudden Death: He's shot in the head out of nowhere by the teacher.
Tragic Keepsake: The Painter gives him a picture of Andrew.

Grey

Played By: Luke Pasqualino

Gilliam's greatest devotee, sent along with Curtis to the front of the train.

Cruel and Unusual Death: Franco stabs a knife through his hand, snaps his arm, and then slowly drives the knife into his chest.
Facial Dialogue: As he never speaks, all of his communication is through his facial expressions, along with his tattoos.
Heroic Sacrifice: He attacks Franco the Elder as he is about to kill Curtis. Franco ends up killing him instead.
Improbable Aiming Skills: He shows himself to be freakishly accurate with his signature throwing knives.
May–December Romance: If you consider his relationship with Gilliam to be canonical.
No Shirt, Long Jacket: This no doubt makes it easier to show a tattoo when needed.
Tender Tears: He's quite openly emotional, possibly to compensate for being non-verbal. He cries when Gilliam is killed, and when realizing his own impending death.
The Voiceless: He communicates through his tattoos.

The Painter

Played By: Clark Middleton

A passenger of the tail section who is often seen drawing other passengers/events.

Character Death: He's gunned down by Egghead in the massacre of the members of the tail section.
Mauve Shirt: He gets a decent amount of screentime in the first half of the movie, and dies as easy as the rest of them when the slaughter of the tail section starts.
Nice Guy: He's unfailingly kind to everybody; he even has the decency to draw Andrew and Tanya pictures of their children after they get taken to the front.
No Name Given: We never learn his name.
Non-Action Guy: He never joins the fighting.

Paul

Played By: Paul Lazar

A tail-section passenger locked alone in a room that processes protein blocks, processing them and repairing the parts while being forced to get a good look at what goes into them.

Courier: He receives and passes on the mysterious messages guiding the rebels.
Go Mad from the Isolation: He's been working machinery in a room all by himself for months or even years, with no companion besides perhaps the occasional front section soldier passing through on the way to one side or the other. Once the rebels reach his car, he still spends a little while talking to himself and continuing to work on the machines before being snapped out of it.
Talkative Loon: He's fairly chatty, likely due to having spent weeks to years locked up completely alone with no one to talk to.
What Happened to the Mouse?: His fate after Wilford's men retake the tail section and the train crashes is unclear. Given that he's a worker, though, it's likely he's spared since they probably still need someone producing protein bars.

Gerald

Gerald McInster

Played By: Robert Russell

A tail-section passenger and former concert violinist.

Brainwashed and Crazy: He's encountered in an oblivious, apparently drugged, state playing for the front end later in the movie.
Gilded Cage: He's dragged away from his wife Doris and forced to entertain the front-section passengers. He's living in the luxurious front, but as a prisoner, kept away from his family.
What Happened to the Mouse?: He can be seen on the ground crawling away, after the pregnant teacher starts shooting at his fellow tail-section passengers, and then disappears afterwards.

Timmy

Timothy "Timmy/Timbo"

Played By: Marcanthonee Reis

Tanya's five-year-old son.

Street Urchin: In a sense, as he's seen playfully stealing protein bars, running around, and being reluctant to trade them back.

Chan

Played By: Sung-taek Park

A tail-end child who plays with matches.

Badass Adorable: A little kid who makes a very important charge during the tunnel battle.
Big Damn Heroes: He's the first to run with a torch to bring light to the tunnel fighters during the battle at the Yekaterina Bridge.
What Happened to the Mouse?: He disappears after the middle of the film.

Andy

Played By: Karel Vesley

Andrew's six-year-old son.

Brainwashed and Crazy: Possibly, as he's seen mechanically working on the engine, and going outside the train to his apparent death.

Front Section Passengers

Wilford

"Have you ever been alone on this train?"

Played By: Ed Harris

The creator of the Snowpiercer and the caretaker of its engine. He's worshipped as the savior of humanity by the front passengers, but the tail-enders view him as a tyrant that needs to be overthrown at any cost.

Bald of Evil: He's bald and very, very evil.
Big Bad: He created the Snowpiercer train, and is responsible for the caste system that keeps the tail-enders in such nightmarish exploitative conditions. He also uses Gilliam to causes rebellions that are intended to fail as a means of population control, with Curtis's being only the most recent.
Character Tics: He frequently makes an odd gesture with his hand that looks as if he's pulling, turning, and re-inserting something. It's the same gestures that Timmy has to make in his position in the engine.
The Chessmaster: He manipulates almost everyone around him, even arranging Curtis's rebellion through Gilliam.
The Corrupter: He even manages to corrupt Curtis, and would have succeeded in turning him over to his side if Yona hadn't revealed Timmy being used as a child slave to keep the "eternal" engine running.
Cult of Personality: For saving a tiny fraction of humanity from extinction, Wilford is worshipped as a god by people at the front end of the train, with their children indoctrinated into this belief in school.
Evil Genius: Wilford is by all metrics a talented engineer, having designed a very impressive train that is supporting all (that remains of) humanity, has withstood extreme temperatures, and has been running non-stop for 18 years! His confrontation with Curtis also proves that Wilford is well-spoken and highly charismatic, nearly succeeding in convincing Curtis to take his place at the head of the train.
Face Death with Dignity: When the bomb is about to explode, Wilford sits drinking his wine, sees Minsoo and Curtis's prepared sacrifice, and simply says, "Nice."
Faux Affably Evil: Seems affable enough at first, despite his role in oppressing the tail-enders, until he casually turns the phone to Curtis so he can hear the remaining tail-enders being executed, and later brushes off using children to keep the train running.
Foil: Everything about Wilford contrasts with Curtis, from their circumstances (Curtis spent half his life in the tail section and lives off protein blocks, while Wilford owns the train and is introduced cooking a steak) to their appearances (Curtis is young, bearded, and dresses in heavy dark wool, while Wilford is old, bald, and wears a silk bathrobe). However, they're both leaders (Curtis of the rebellion, Wilford of the entire train), occupy similarly important albeit contrasting roles in the story (Curtis is The Hero and Wilford is the Big Bad), and even have similarly colored eyes. When the two men finally meet, Wilford comments that his life is a lonely one, while Curtis hasn't experienced a moment alone in years, and while Wilford gave up his morals long ago (if he had any to begin with) and has no qualms about exploiting children, Curtis, despite his own troubled past and being tempted by Wilford's offer to become his successor, ultimately refuses to become like Wilford and dies saving two young people.
A God Am I: He has a whole cult of personality devoted to him among the front-section passengers who worship him like a messiah for saving what remains of humanity.
Hobbes Was Right: A firm believer in this. When speaking with Curtis, he defends the authoritarian dystopian society and strict hierarchy he has imposed upon the people of the train as necessary for the smooth operation of the train, believing that humanity will descend into violence and chaos without it. All the while, he ignores the fact that he regularly allows violence and chaos to descend upon the train in "controlled" bursts.
Human Sacrifice: His use of children as replacement parts for the engine has strong connotations of this. It reads very much like a mad priest performing child sacrifices in attempt to appease his bloodthirsty deity.
Icy Blue Eyes: A specialty of Ed Harris. His eyes fit his personality as a evil, cold-hearted man. Curtis's eyes are a similar color, which is highlighted when Wilford tries to tempt him into becoming his successor.
Lack of Empathy: Wilford just flat-out doesn't care about the suffering he causes. He views everyone as either a contributor to the Snowpiercer's ecosystem or a burden, regularly orchestrating "cullings" of people in the tail and front end both as a means of population control. He's also perfectly willing to use brainwashed children as replacements for worn-out parts of the engine.
Lonely at the Top: He tells Curtis that being the engine's caretaker is a lonely life, equating it to the tail-sectioners' suffering. Curtis is naturally unsympathetic.
Machine Worship: While the front-end passengers worship Wilford, Wilford himself worships the engine, regarding it as the all-important lynchpin of the train's existence. The only time Wilford loses his cool is when Claude nearly hits the engine while shooting at Curtis. Most tellingly, he offers Curtis to let bygone be bygones, so long as he agrees to take his place and keep the engine running. In the end, the continued operation of his precious engine means more to Wilford than any human life, even his own, and even if it means performing outright child sacrifice.
A Man of Wealth and Taste: Wilford was already an extremely rich man before the disaster, having made a fortune through a career in engineering, hence how he was able to build his spectacular train.
No, Mr. Bond, I Expect You to Dine: When Curtis finally reaches him, Wilford just keeps preparing his dinner and sits down with him to share it.
No One Sees the Boss: He never leaves his engine, and passes up most to all opportunities to speak to the rest of the train over the intercom. Until the last twenty minutes of the movie, the audience could be forgiven for wondering whether or not he's an Invented Individual.
Non-Action Big Bad: He never actually gets his hands dirty, although his utter ruthlessness still makes him a very big threat.
Not-So-Well-Intentioned Extremist: He presents himself initially as a well-intentioned one on the grounds that the train's population has to be kept at a certain level in order to maintain what is left of humanity, but later discoveries and his own actions suggest that he's more interested in maintaining power for himself and his own vision than actually helping the human race as a whole.
Running Both Sides: He reveals to Curtis that he has orchestrated every rebellion on the train, including Curtis' own, in cooperation with Gilliam, both to prevent any potential uprising against his oppressive regime from growing beyond his control and as a method of "population control".
The Sociopath: Oh, yeah. He's more than willing to subject the majority of the last remaining humans to endless drudgery, indignity, and oppression, and thinks nothing of having people killed, whether they are his men or innocent bystanders, or using children as part of his locomotive's engine in order to carry on his train's operations.
The Stoic: The only time he raises his voice is when Claude nearly shoots the engine by accident. Otherwise, he remains completely relaxed and calm about everything, even when the train is about to explode.
Totalitarian Utilitarian: He's perfectly happy with killing hundreds of people if it means stability for the rest of the train. He sees people only in terms of how valuable they can be to the system of the Snowpiercer, even to the point where he'll enslave children to use as substitute engine parts.
Villain Respect: Wilford seems genuinely impressed by how far Curtis managed to take his rebellion, noting that Curtis is the first and only person to have walked the entire length of the train, a feat not even Wilford himself can boast of. He's so impressed by Curtis, in fact, that Wilford makes him a very tempting offer to take his place as the caretaker of the engine and head of the train.
Villainous Friendship: He claims to have viewed Gilliam as a friend, and says he'll miss their long talks at night — not that this stops Wilford from ordering Gilliam's death once Curtis's rebellion is more successful than intended.
We Can Rule Together: He tries to do this with Curtis by Passing the Torch to him. Wilford comes close to succeeding before Yona shows Curtis what Wilford's been using as replacement parts for the engine.
Would Hurt a Child: He would even use them as manual labor for his train!

Mason

Minister Mason

"Know your place. Keep your place. Be a shoe."

Played By: Tilda Swinton

Wilford's right hand, the second in command on the train and the official spokesperson for Wilford to the tail end.

Asshole Victim: It's really satisfying to see Curtis kill her.
The Baroness: Of the Rosa Klebb variety.
Boomerang Bigot: According to Word of God, Mason used to be a tail-ender who was called to the front as a cleaner, then got noticed by Wilford and rose to the position of minister. In spite of that, she holds nothing but contempt for her former travelling companions, who she haughtily admonishes to keep to their places.
Boom, Headshot!: How an enraged Curtis kills her.
Catchphrase: "So it is."
Dirty Coward: When confronted one-on-one, she's a pleading, pathetic mess.
Disc-One Final Boss: Although Wilford is the Big Bad, Mason is the Mouth of Sauron and antagonist with the single most screentime, ordering his troops to stop the heroes' advance upon the engine, so it comes as a surprise when she's unceremoniously killed off halfway through.
The Dragon: She's Wilford's right-hand woman.
Faux Affably Evil: Her polite rambling attempts at breaking villain speeches are meant to mock and demoralize. Speaks to the tail-enders like a disappointed schoolmarm while dispassionately having their limbs frozen and shattered for disobedient behavior and reveling in them being slaughtered by the dozens.
Gender-Blender Name: Mason is a unisex name (the script even described Mason as a "middle-aged man" before Tilda Swinton took the role).
Gender Is No Object: Mason was scripted as a man, but cast as a female actor without any change, even being referred to with male pronouns. Tilda Swinton claims she did not play Mason as a woman and tends to hesitate on the pronouns to use.
Jerkass: Mason is utterly vile, viewing everyone with contempt (except for Wilford).
Karmic Death: After acting condescending and smug to the tail-enders, she ends up being killed by one.
Klingon Promotion: When she finds out the rioters intend to assassinate Wilford, she cheerfully offers to help. It's not clear whether this is out of genuine ambition or an insincere attempt to barter her loyalty for her life. She dies before it becomes an issue.
Large Ham: She's tremendously over the top, shouting every other word.
Mouth of Sauron: Mason is Wilford's spokeswoman and representative to the tail-end passengers.
Older Than They Look: She has false teeth.
Oop North: Her accent, a heavy Yorkshire one.
Pet the Dog: She asks Curtis' group to cover her handcuffs with a towel so it wouldn't disturb the children in the school train car. That's about the only selfless thing she does in the entire movie.
Psychopathic Man Child: To a T. She reacts to the violent fight with the ax-soldiers with the giddiness of a child watching a play, taking out her opera glasses/night vision goggles to watch it all unfold. Her speeches about knowing one's place lose themselves in strange metaphors which circle back to the cruel oppressive narrative of the train. Then, when she's escorted into the classroom, she starts singing the propaganda songs along with all the children.
Sinister Minister: As Minister Mason, she coldly oversees Andrew's punishment while giving the tail-enders a sermon about keeping to their predetermined place on Wilford's "train of life". Later, during the Yekaterina Bridge battle, after lecturing them once again on their ungratefulness toward Wilford, she watches the massacre unfold with glee. Her devotion to the "sacred engine" doesn't stop after her capture, and she never wastes an opportunity to praise the way the train is organized.
Smug Snake: When she has the upper hand, she snobbily looks down her nose at others, and is incredibly arrogant. She becomes a pathetic, quivering mess when she loses the advantage.
Villains Want Mercy: Naturally, as a Dirty Coward, she fits into this trope. Her begging manages to save her life by working out a deal with Curtis's group after they capture her, the first time, at least. The second time, Curtis just shoots her in the head.

Franco the Elder

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/snowpiercer_franco_5716.gif

Played By: Vlad Ivanov

One of Mason's henchmen who works alongside his younger brother.

Asshole Victim: His is by far the most satisfying death, especially considering how many times he refused to bite it.
Bad Boss: He has no problems killing his subordinates for minor reasons.
Big Brother Instinct: He's the elder Franco, and loves his little brother. His brother's death sends him on a Roaring Rampage of Revenge.
The Brute: Neither Wilford nor Mason are fighters, so Franco serves as the main physical threat of the movie.
The Determinator: He has an impressive tolerance for pain. Also, getting simultaneously stabbed by Curtis and choked by Minsoo doesn't stop him from getting back up later and going for seconds against Minsoo.
The Dragon: Wilford's most physically imposing servant, who gives the heroes constant trouble as they try to reach the engine, and is the final obstacle to Namgoong destroying the door to the outside world.
Even Evil Has Loved Ones: He genuinely cares for his younger brother and is devastated when he dies. Presumably, this motivates his Roaring Rampage of Revenge.
Hair-Trigger Temper: His short temper causes him to shoot his soldiers for daring to defy his orders, which might be justified by his younger brother's death earlier.
Hero Killer: Franco the Elder is the deadliest opponent that Curtis's group faces. He defeats Curtis and Minsoo in straight-up fights, comes close to killing several major characters, and successfully kills Gilliam, Grey, and Tanya.
Implacable Man: Nothing can stop this guy, and mortal wounds only seem to slow him down.
Mook Lieutenant: He has less authority than Mason, but he does have authority over common soldiers. Surprisingly, he manages to be the biggest Hero Killer in the movie.
Neck Snap: How he finally dies for real at the hands of Minsoo.
Not Quite Dead: After being stabbed and strangled at the same time, he comes back for more in the climax of the movie.
The Quiet One: Bordering on Silent Antagonist; he has one line of dialogue in the entire movie.
Roaring Rampage of Revenge: After his younger brother is killed, he acts as the deadliest and most persistent antagonist Curtis's group faces, all in an attempt to kill Yona in revenge for his brother. He even guns down front-end passengers and his own men if they get in the way, and successfully kills Gilliam, Grey, and Tanya.
Siblings in Crime: He works with his younger brother as Wilford's enforcers.
Team Killer: He shoots one of his escort soldiers for calling him out on shooting a front-section passenger in the sauna car by mistake, and would have shot the other who didn't say anything if not for his gun running out of ammo.
Worf Had the Flu: During his final fight, he's been beaten and stabbed twice, and has evidently lost quite a lot of blood as a result. While he's still tough, he's moving considerably slower than when he confronted the heroes at the sauna.

Franco the Younger

Played By: Adnan Haskovic

One of Mason's henchmen, who works with his older brother.

Asshole Victim: Just like his brother.
Beard of Evil: He sports a goatee, the traditional beard of evil.
Even Evil Has Loved Ones: His bond with his older brother is genuine. After he dies, his brother goes on a Roaring Rampage of Revenge.
Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: How he dies.
The Quiet One: Even more so than his brother; his one line of dialogue is muted.
Siblings in Crime: He works with his older brother as Wilford's enforcers.

Claude

Claude/The Woman in Yellow

Played By: Emma Levie

An employee of Wilford.

Bright Is Not Good: Contrasting the dark outfits worn by most other characters and Mason's white clothes, Claude dresses in a bright yellow coat, and she's a cold and evil person serving Wilford's agenda.
Character Death: She's killed when a bomb goes off right next to her on the train.
Color Character: Her name is Claude, but she's also known as the Woman in Yellow.
Dissonant Serenity: Her expression doesn't change when she takes Timmy and Andy away to serve as living engine parts, even taking it in stride when their parents threaten her and Andrew throws a shoe at her head hard enough to draw blood.
Fat Bitch: Downplayed. She's only a little overweight, if at all, but is definitely a bitch.
Jerkass: She's a cold-blooded enforcer of Wilford's rule, and has no qualms about committing any atrocities to do so.
Number Two: For Wilford.

The Teacher

Played By: Alison Pill

A pregnant schoolteacher on the train.

Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: She seems bubbly and cheerful... until she pulls out a gun.
Character Death: Grey throws a knife into her neck.
Large Ham: She really chews the scenery in her short screentime. Justified, as she's teaching kindergarten students.
No Name Given: Her name is never given, not even in the ending credits.
Pregnant Badass: She's heavily pregnant, yet still manages to engage in a shootout with Curtis's group, successfully killing Andrew.

Egghead

Played By: Tómas Lemarquis

An unusual employee of Wilford who hands out eggs for the New Year celebration.

Bait the Dog: He's introduced as a strange man giving out eggs to everyone, and appears to be much like the man who produces the protein bars, as an eccentric doing their job in the face of all the craziness. He gives out eggs to children, the rebels, and even the workers doing their part in gardening. When he gets to the tail-end passengers he starts handing out eggs just like always, before revealing that bullets aren't extinct by gunning down several rebels, including the Painter, and then freeing and arming the captured soldiers.
Bald of Evil: He's completely bald (hell, it's even there in his credited name), and has no problem with gunning down countless civilians on Wilford's orders.
Character Death: He presumably dies along with most of the rest of the train's inhabitants when it explodes and flies off the tracks.
Dissonant Serenity: While killing the tail section passengers.
Faux Affably Evil: Maintains a chipper and almost polite demeanor while massacring the tail section.
No Name Given: Even his credited name isn't actually said in the movie.
One-Man Army: He uses an assault rifle to take out a huge chunk of the rebel force by himself and frees several guards to help him continue the massacre. Even though he has a gun and the rebels don't, they vastly outnumber him and can fight back by throwing their melee weapons at him, which one does and he just casually dodges. Notably, his colleague the pregnant teacher fares much worse, failing to kill a much smaller group of rebels and dying via a knife thrown to the throat.
The Snack Is More Interesting: He pauses in the midst of the massacre of defeated tail-ender civilians to eat one of the boiled eggs himself.
Spanner in the Works: His appearance is what ends up crushing the rebellion when the soldiers regain weapons.

Fuyu

Officer Fuyu

Played By: Steve Park

An officer who serves under Mason.

Friend-or-Idol Decision: He's the friend in this scenario for Mason when he's taken hostage. She doesn't budge, and he gets a slit throat.
Know When to Fold 'Em: He surrenders when captured by Gray.
Mook Lieutenant: He doesn't have much authority in the running of the train, but leads a bunch of soldiers with the Francos.
Porn Stache: He's a villain with a thin mustache.

Ylfa

Played By: Ana Braun

A blonde schoolgirl on the train.

Bratty Half-Pint: She's obnoxious, and her two lines of dialogue demonstrate that she's disrespectful to anyone who's not a front section passenger, making her a Royal Brat as well.
From the Mouths of Babes: She calls the tail-section passengers "lazy dogs who slept all day in their own shit" and Old World people "frigging morons who got turned into Popsicles."
No Name Given: Her name is never given in the film itself, but it can be found in the ending credits.
What Happened to the Mouse?: She and the rest of her classmates disappear after their teacher starts shooting at the heroes.

The Inuit Maid

Played By: N/A

A front section cleaning lady who was involved in "The Revolt of the Seven", the earliest recorded campaign against Wilford. She serves as a Doomed Predecessor to the main cast.

Almighty Janitor: She was only a cleaning lady, but she figured out that the world was warming up and led six people (implied to be of higher stations than her) in an an attempt to overthrow Wilford and stop the train.
Fling a Light into the Future: She discovered that the world was heating up and that mankind will eventually be able to live outside of the train. Sadly, she was wrong about the time table and acted far too soon when it really was too cold to leave The Snowpiercer. Her idea sticks with Namgoong and inspired him to wait and see.
Long-Dead Badass: She led an intricate plot against Wilford many years ago which Minsoo had some involvement in, but the plan failed and ended in her death.
Missing Mom: Word of God is that she's Yona's mother, but Yona clearly has no memories or knowledge of her after she abandoned the train during a past revolt and froze to death.
Posthumous Character: She froze to death outside of the train over a decade ago, and her frozen body and those of her companions are briefly seen from a distance.

Characters / Snowpiercer (2013)

Edit Locked