Characters appearing in Pearl:
Characters appearing in related films:
Ruth
Ruth
Portrayed By: Tandi Wright
Pearl's domineering mother, who runs the farm in place of her ill husband.
- Abusive Parents: Is strict, domineering, and emotionally abusive towards Pearl.
- Asshole Victim: It's really hard to feel bad about what Pearl does to her.
- Berserk Button: The physical part of her fight with Pearl begins when Pearl states that she doesn't "want to end up like you."
- The thing that sets the argument off in the first place is that Pearl put all of them at risk by being careless about disease safety.
- Bullying a Dragon: Ruth knows how dangerous Pearl really is, but still thinks she holds enough authority to keep her in line and that it's a good idea to frequently and repeatedly press every Berserk Button of her budding serial killer of a daughter. It does not end well for her in the slightest.
- Cruel and Unusual Death: Gets probably the worst death of either film when Pearl accidentally sets her on fire, burning most of her body. To top it all off, Pearl drags her into the basement, where she remains alive and conscious well into the next day before finally dying.
- Domestic Abuse: She ends up reaching her breaking point and openly rants about how much of a burden her paralyzed husband is before outright threatening to kill him with a knife.
- Germanic Depressives: Ruth is a German immigrant, still speaks the language around the house and speaks with a strong accent in English.
- Hypocrite: She talks at length about sacrificing for the greater good of the family but refuses any assistance from Howards's family out of pride and tries to shame Pearl for being cavalier about her father when Ruth herself sees him as a burden and even threatens to kill him at one point.
- Jerkass Has a Point: There is no doubt about it, Ruth is a terrible mother. She is strict at best and abusive at worst, but she correctly points out to Pearl that maintaining the farm with one less pair of hands, very little money, caring for a paralyzed husband, and a national environment prejudiced against German immigrants is very hard work, and that Pearl's flights of fancy aren't helpful.
- Also, the world is in the depths of the 1918 Flu Epidemic and Pearl's cavalier attitude toward disease safety puts them all in very real danger.
- Man on Fire: Is pushed (inadvertently or not) into the fireplace by Pearl, and ultimately dies of her burns.
- "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Her dialogue with her daughter consists almost entirely of these, with the final one ending in her ultimate death.
- Self-Fulfilling Prophecy: It's heavily implied that she's aware that her daughter is mentally disturbed and a danger to everyone. She ends up ensuring that the downward spiral happens through her constant abuse.
- Terrified of Germs: Not without justification, seeing as how the 1918 Flu Epidemic is going on and her husband was paralyzed by some unnamed sickness.
- Too Clever by Half: Of a sort. She knows full well how unstable and dangerous Pearl is but Ruth believes she can keep her in line with shame, intimidation and emotional abuse. It ends about as well as you'd expect for all involved.
- Virtuous Character Copy: Downplayed, given she's still an abusive mother, but she's one for Margaret White from Carrie. While both abuse their respective daughters, unlike Margaret, Ruth isn't dealing with a sweet innocent girl like Carrie and is fully aware of Pearl's psychological issues.
Pearl's Father
Pearl's Father
Portrayed By: Matthew Sunderland
Pearl's father, who has been left paralyzed and wheelchair-bound by an unspecified illness.
- Bury Your Disabled: Pearl kills him by suffocation after an unspecified illness (or possibly a stroke) has left him severely disabled, wheelchair-bound, and unable to speak.
- Flat Character: Partially justified since he is unable to speak for himself, but the audience does not learn anything about what he was like before his illness.
- Forced to Watch: His entire existence at the farm is this. Being completely physically dependent on his wife and daughter, Pearl is unafraid to do odd and terrifying things to him while he is fully aware of them happening but completely helpless to stop her, such as watching her bathe, nearly tossing him to Theda the alligator, watching her drag her injured and dying mother down to the cellar. Even worse, in a moment of hysteria, Ruth openly calls him a burden and threatens to slit his throat, all in front of him.
- No Name Given: His name is never mentioned.
- Single Tear: He is incapable of moving his body or speaking, but he lets out a single tear right before Pearl kills him, perfectly aware of her intentions.
- Vorpal Pillow: More like Vorpal Pillowcase, but it counts.
The Projectionist
The Projectionist
Portrayed By: David Corenswet
An employee of the movie theater Pearl frequents.
- Covert Pervert: While he publicly keeps the propriety expected of a man of the time, in private he has at least one hardcore pornographic film he obviously enjoys.
- Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep": He is only known by his job title.
- Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: Pearl stabs him through with her pitchfork, and then finishes him off with a stab to the head after he fails to escape.
- Mr. Fanservice: An In-Universe example. Pearl finds the Projectionist very handsome, and his good looks combined with a general air of worldliness makes him a tempting prospect for her, and she ends up cheating on Howard with him.
- Spotting the Thread: He quickly twigs to the fact Pearl is not all she seems to be, realizing something is truly wrong when she can't keep her story straight about the "dog".
Mitzy
Mitzy
Portrayed By: Emma Jenkins-Purro
Pearl's affluent, good-natured sister-in-law.
- Broken Heel: She's ahead of Pearl when she trips, allowing Pearl to catch up with her and brutally murder her.
- Innocently Insensitive: Genuinely doesn't seem to realize that her sister-in-law, who has fallen on seriously hard times, might not want to see her pretty new dress.
- Kill the Cutie: In-universe she’s described as younger and blonder than Pearl, which was the beauty standard at the time, she's also ruthlessly killed by Pearl, out of anger over her sister-in-law having a more comfortable life and getting her way more by her wealth and looks.
- Spoiled Sweet: Mitzy comes from a privileged background and is Innocently Insensitive enough to not realize that her impoverished sister-in-law might not want to see her pretty new dress, but she is nothing but nice to Pearl in their interactions, supporting Pearl in trying out for the dance troupe even though they're competing for the one spot, and trying to comfort her when she loses.
- Too Good for This Sinful Earth: Mitzy is a kind young lady from a privileged background who has an amicable enough relationship with Pearl that she supports her dream to become a star, even as they're competing for the only available spot in the troupe. After Pearl is rejected, Mitzy comforts her and accompanies her back home where she lets Pearl vent her frustrations... which leads to her confessing to having already murdered three people, and brutally murdering Mitzy to keep her quiet.
- Unwitting Instigator of Doom: By telling her about the upcoming church audition, Mitzy unwittingly causes Pearl to further succumb to her insanity. Doubled down after Pearl suspects Mitzy won.
