List of Kill Bill characters
Encyclopedia
The following is a list of characters from the film Kill Bill
. Written and directed by Quentin Tarantino
, the film was released in two separate parts, Kill Bill Vol. 1 in 2003 and Kill Bill Vol. 2 in 2004. The film takes place after a massacre that killed the fiancé and friends of the main character, The Bride
, at the chapel in which she was to be married; though also thought to have been killed, The Bride survived, but was put into a coma for four years as a result of the attack. Upon finally awaking, she plots her vengeance against the killers.
), abandons her life as a hired assassin
for the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad
(De.V.A.S.
) upon realizing she is pregnant with Bill's child, denying him the right of fatherhood. This action provokes the attacks on her and her loved ones and its ensuing revenge, which is the entire basis of the film. Her code-name while working for De.V.A.S. was Black Mamba.
) is the main antagonist of the film. He is the founder and leader of The Deadly Viper Assassination Squad, to which The Bride formerly belonged, and also her former lover. Because the code names of the members are all referring to snakes, Bill's code name is Snake Charmer. He and the four remaining Deadly Vipers attempt to kill her after she learns she is carrying Bill's child and leaves him without warning. Some time after the massacre the group has disbanded. When Bill finds out The Bride isn't dead, but in coma he sends Squad member and mistress, Elle Driver to the hospital to kill her. But Bill changes his mind and tells Elle to abort the mission, saying that killing a helpless person would lower the name of the Assassination Squad.
, O-Ren Ishii (portrayed by Lucy Liu
) is a half-Japanese, half-Chinese American woman who saw her parents brutally murdered at the age of nine years under the orders of a Yakuza
boss, whom she kills two years later in an act of vengeance. She later becomes an expert assassin
proficient in marksmanship
and sword fighting
. Though once a member of the Deadly Vipers, she eventually became the head of the Tokyo
Yakuza
, with Bill's help, and possessed her own body-guard army, the Crazy 88. O-Ren is fiercely proud of her heritage, going so far as to kill her own subordinate when he vented his frustration over being led by "a Chinese Jap-American half breed bitch".
The Showdown at House of Blue Leaves is the chapter in which O-Ren Ishii visits a Japanese club together with various Crazy 88 members, her lawyer and friend Sofie Fatale, and personal teenage bodyguard, Gogo Yubari. While sitting in a room apart from the other guests, O-Ren hears a sound outside the room and throws a knife in that direction. She orders Gogo to take a look, however Gogo finds nothing. Later, Sofie Fatale is captured by The Bride and taken to the main hall of the restaurant, where The Bride calls O-Ren. O-Ren appears with her bodyguards, and The Bride reveals herself to O-Ren, cutting off Sofie's arm. The other guests run out of the restaurant. The Bride defeats countless Crazy 88 and Gogo, finally meeting O-Ren in a garden scene atop the club. During the battle, O-Ren mocks The Bride as a "silly Caucasian girl who plays with samurai sword." After resuming their fight O-Ren receives a wound and apologizes for her earlier remark. The Bride accepts and eventually kills O-Ren by lopping off the top of her head. "That really was a Hattori Hanzo sword," O-Ren utters with her dying breath, having been close enough to both see the symbol of Hattori Hanzo and feel the blade.
), A.K.A. Copperhead
, is a member of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad. She took part in the massacre at the Two Pines Wedding Chapel. She is second on the Bride's "Death List Five." Four years after the massacre she is living a normal life under the alias of Jeanie Bell. She is trained in hand-to-hand combat and knife fighting, and it is hinted that she and The Bride share a mutual, professional respect for each other. At the start of the first movie, they engage in a vicious fight, destroying Vernita's living room in the process. However, Green's four-year-old daughter, Nikki, arrives home in the middle of the fight, and they stop fighting because the Bride does not want to kill Vernita in front of her child. Green sends Nikki to her room and she talks with the Bride over coffee, apologizing for betraying her and asking for mercy on behalf of her family. The Bride coldly refuses and they agree to meet in the middle of the night to have a knife fight. However, Vernita betrays her promise, and shoots at the Bride with a handgun concealed, appropriately enough, within a box of Kaboom cereal. She misses and the Bride throws a knife into her heart, killing her. Nikki unintentionally witnesses her mother's death, for which the Bride apologizes. The Bride then adds that, when Nikki grows up, she is free to avenge her mother's death.
), A.K.A. California Mountain Snake
, is another swordswoman loyal to Bill. Elle and the Bride despise each other immensely, and it is implied that their mutual hatred came to be before the events of the film. Elle is jealous of the Bride's status as Bill's lover, implying that Elle herself also had some kind of sexual relationship with him. Despite this, Elle does grudgingly respect the Bride, describing her as "the greatest warrior [she] had ever met" and also believing that she deserved better than to have supposedly met her end at the hands of someone like Budd. Like Bill and The Bride, she was trained by Pai Mei. When Elle showed disrespect to Pai Mei, he responded by plucking out her right eye, which is why she is shown to wear an eyepatch. In retaliation, Elle murdered Pai Mei by poisoning his meal. When Bill learns that the Bride survived the attempt on her life, he orders Elle to go kill her at the hospital where she was then lying comatose. Disguised as a nurse, Elle is about to inject the Bride with a deadly poison when Bill calls her to abort the mission. Though Elle wanted to kill the Bride while she was incapacitated, she abides by Bill's wishes.
When Budd (Sidewinder) captures the Bride, he calls Elle to offer her the Bride's Hanzo sword. Elle agrees to pay one million dollars for the sword, on the condition that Budd makes The Bride suffer until her last breath. Budd buries the Bride alive, but she eventually escapes and goes to Budd's trailer. Elle pays Budd for the sword with a suitcase full of money. When Budd opens the case, he finds out too late that Elle had hidden a black mamba inside. The snake bites Budd and he succumbs to its poison. Elle calls Bill and blames the Bride for Budd's death, then takes credit for Budd's live burial of the Bride and tells Bill the grave's location. When Elle is about to leave the trailer, the Bride ambushes her. The two women engage in a sword fight, with the Bride having to use Budd's Hanzo sword. During the fight, Elle reveals that she killed Pai Mei. Enraged, the Bride snatches out Elle's remaining eye. The Bride leaves Elle, now completely sightless, thrashing wildly (in a manner reminiscent of Daryl Hannah's performance in Blade Runner
) on the floor of the trailer with the black mamba still loose inside. Though it can be inferred that Elle was also killed by the black mamba, her fate is unknown.
), codename Sidewinder
, is recognized by Bill as 'the only man I ever loved'. He was the only other male Deadly Viper and, since the assassination squad's disbandment, took to living in a mobile home, where he steadily became an alcoholic, making ends meet by working as a bouncer at a strip club. Bill warned Budd of his impending danger, and when the Bride does find him, he sees through her sneak attack, shoots her with rock salt (making him the only Deadly Viper to single handedly defeat The Bride), buries her alive
(later described as a 'Texas funeral
') and steals her priceless sword. She escapes her casket, but not before Elle has planted a live black mamba (the Bride's codename) that kills Budd. Budd once owned a Hattori Hanzo katana
, and told Bill and Elle that he had sold it for $250 in El Paso (Budd lied; The Bride later found the sword in a golf bag in Budd's trailer). When told by Bill that Beatrix was coming to kill him, Budd philosophically said "that woman deserves her revenge. And we deserve to die. But then again, so does she." When Budd makes this statement in Volume 1, the last sentence is not included; the full statement is spoken in Volume 2.
He told The Bride that her live burial was retribution for breaking Bill's heart. During Bill and Budd's confrontation Bill mentions an unpleasant event between the two of them that Budd was apparently angry at Bill for, but the details of this event are never mentioned.
) is O-Ren Ishii's lawyer, second-in-command, and best friend. Sofie Fatale is of mixed Japan
ese/French
descent and serves as an interpreter and is seen speaking English
, Japanese
and French
fluently. Although she is referred to as a protege of Bill's, she does not display any martial arts skills during her appearances.
Sofie Fatale is present at the "House of Blue Leaves" when The Bride
arrives to kill O-Ren Ishii. The Bride
is riding her motorbike through Tokyo, stalking Sofie's Nissan Fairlady Z when she is seen at a stop light using her phone; her left-handedness, and later, the phone's "Auld Lang Syne
" ringtone is recognized by The Bride
. She remembers that Sofie was present during the El Paso
massacre, and while she did not assist in beating The Bride
, she did callously and calmly answer her ringing phone. The Bride captures Sofie at the House of Blue Leaves and brings her to O-Ren Ishii. The Bride then cuts off Sofie's left arm (the arm she holds her phone with) as a means of both exacting revenge on her and showing Ishii her intentions for a duel.
Later, The Bride interrogates Sofie to learn the location of the rest of the members of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad
, threatening to further dismember her when she refuses to speak. She then sends her rolling down a hill to a hospital for medical attention so she can live on and tell Bill
what has happened and that the Bride is still alive. Although her fate is left ambiguous, Tarantino has commented that a potential third Kill Bill movie would focus on the revenge of Vernita's daughter Nikki against the Bride, and that Nikki would be trained by Elle and Sofie. Apparently, Sofie would inherit all of O-Ren and Bill's money.
s except for three members. One is shown with a pair of throwing axes and another is seen briefly wielding a meteor hammer
. Johnny Mo (Played by Gordon Liu
), the clan's leader (under O-Ren), uses dual shortsword
s which, when each is sheathed in the other's handle, can be used as a fighting staff. The Bride manages to fend off the entire gang, killing, mortally wounding, and dismembering many. Those who survived were taken into custody
. One of the last of the Crazy 88 the Bride faces before O-Ren is a very timid teenaged boy whose katana she cuts into several pieces with her own, after which he surrenders immediately. She spanks him with the flat of her blade and orders him to go home to his mother instead of fighting with yakuza
.
Aside from Johnny Mo, only one member of the Crazy 88 is identified and named. Miki (Tetsuro Shimaguchi) is apparently O-Ren Ishii's bodyguard, aside from Gogo. He is the first member to attack the Bride although he's quickly killed when the Bride impales his chest with her sword.
The Crazy 88 allegedly does not actually have eighty-eight members. Bill speculates that they adopted the name because it "sounded cool." There are only 40 actors credited to the Crazy 88,.
is considered a lucky number
in Japanese culture - it suggests growing prosperous, because the letter (八) broadens gradually. was also seen as holy in ancient times. (see 8 (number))
) is the leader of O-Ren's personal army, the Crazy 88. Johnny Mo is most prominently featured in the "House of Blue Leaves" scene. After The Bride
kills Gogo Yubari and O-Ren Ishii's six bodyguards, Johnny Mo, armed with a pair of shōtō, arrives with an army of Crazy 88s. He is a more proficient fighter than the rest of the gang, nearly tipping the scales in their favor and holding his own against The Bride for several minutes alone while fighting her on top of a balcony railing. She eventually chops off his leg and he falls into a bloodied fountain pool from the second floor balcony and is presumed dead thereafter.
), a young associate of O-Ren Ishii, is a bloodthirsty severely disturbed 17-year-old schoolgirl who takes a sadistic
delight in killing. She is O-Ren's top assassin and personal bodyguard. Gogo's disturbed mind and vicious penchant for killing is displayed when she offers herself to a drunken man in a bar and then disembowels him, asking him, "Do you still wish to penetrate me?... Or is it I who has penetrated you?"
Later on, she takes on Beatrix Kiddo
when the latter has already slaughtered several of O-Ren Ishii's immediate guards at the House of Blue Leaves. Although the Bride gives her the opportunity to walk away, Gogo takes her on with a large meteor hammer
, almost overcoming the Bride by strangling her savagely with the chain. Eventually Kiddo distracts Gogo by driving a broken chair leg studded with nails into her foot, then kills her by driving the chair leg into the side of her head.
Gogo Yubari's name is based on two influences. Her personal name is based on Mach Go Go Go, the manga and anime that the English-dubbed cartoon Speed Racer
was based on. Her family name of Yubari is based on the International Film Festival
hosted by the former mining town of Yūbari, Hokkaidō
, where Tarantino had been a guest many times. Her school girl uniform references Chiaki's earlier role in the film Battle Royale
. Her weapon references both the "combat yoyo" carried by the schoolgirl character in the Delinquent Girl Detective
manga / anime / live-action TV / movie series and the eponymous chain-weapon weapon from Master of the Flying Guillotine
. Her fighting style is a combination of wushu
techniques using chain whip
and rope dart
.
) was in utero
during the massacre at the Two Pines chapel. Upon first coming out of her coma, The Bride believes her unborn child was killed in the attack and promises to avenge her death. The audience does not learn that she is alive until the last line of Vol. 1, and The Bride does not find out until the final act of Vol. 2. B.B. was named and raised by Bill, who in Vol. 2 openly admitted to her the terrible crime he had committed against The Bride.
. During this period, Buck regularly took sexual advantage of The Bride, raping her unconscious body and later also prostituting
her to other male clients. After she first awakens, The Bride attacks Buck and interrogates him on the whereabouts of Bill. Suddenly, she begins recalling Buck's prior assaults on her (including his infamous line, "My name's Buck and I'm here to fuck!") and, in a fit of rage, slams his head with a door, killing him with an intracranial hemorrhage
. The Bride then steals Buck's clothes and escapes from the hospital in his truck, the "Pussy Wagon."
, Earl McGraw is a Texas Ranger
who investigates the murders at the wedding chapel, and the first person to realize that The Bride has managed to survive the attack. This is the second appearance of McGraw in a Tarantino film, as he had previously been a character in From Dusk till Dawn
(in which he was killed by Tarantino himself starring as Richie Gecko); he would later appear in both features that make up Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez
's Grindhouse.
, Esteban Vihaio is an eighty-year-old Mexican
pimp
based in the border city of Ciudad Acuña
who, as a friend of Bill and Budd's mother, was seen by Bill as a father figure. His prostitutes' illegitimate children are apparently recruited into an organized crime gang called the Acuña Boys, of which Esteban is the de facto leader. When The Bride visits him, he tells her of Bill's whereabouts, noting that it is what Bill would have wanted Esteban to do ("How else is he ever going to see you again?"). He also notes that if he were in Bill's situation when Bill had tracked the Bride down he says he would have only mutilated her face instead of trying to kill her—revealed as his apparent discipline of choice for his prostitutes.
shop in Okinawa. He initially met the Bride when she was under the guise of an American tourist visiting Okinawa. Hanzō initially refused to make a sword for her, or even give her one he had previously made, but was convinced to make one for her after The Bride alluded that she wanted to kill his former student Bill.
Quentin Tarantino
stated in the supplementary material on the Kill Bill DVD that the character was named in tribute to Sonny Chiba
's former role as Hattori Hanzō
(the real-life historical 16th-century samurai) in Shadow Warriors (Kage no Gundan0).
fire. Before the shootout can worsen, Karen is convinced to leave in peace when The Bride proves that she is pregnant, and Karen says 'Congratulations' as she leaves.
, My Oh My Club, where Budd works as a bouncer. He is seen doing cocaine with one of the dancers before Budd strolls into work 20 minutes late. An argument ensues over the fact that "there is nobody there to bounce". He almost fires Budd but tells him to come back when he calls him.
.
Pai Mei (Chinese: 白眉; pinyin
: Bái Méi; literally White Eyebrow) was performed by veteran Chinese actor Gordon Liu
. As depicted in the film, Pai Mei was a powerful, very old, practitioner of the Bak Mei
style of kung fu
. Pai Mei was the former teacher and master
of The Bride, Bill, and Elle, although it is unclear if he instructed the other members of the DVAS. Despite being a wise and knowledgeable White Lotus
priest, he also was bigoted
(specifically towards Caucasians
), xenophobic
(towards the Japanese
and Americans
), and a misogynist
. He only agreed to take on The Bride as a student after having a very violent (offscreen) martials arts duel with Bill, who then adds that Pai Mei was a very, very old man whose advancing years had taught him the value of company, while not brightening up his angry disposition. In spite of being both a Caucasian American and a woman, Beatrix ultimately wins his approval for her perseverance under his torturous training regimen.
Pai Mei was alleged to be able to perform the lethal Five Point Palm Exploding Heart Technique
. Bill describes the technique as "Quite simply, the deadliest blow in all of martial arts. He hits you with his finger tips at five different pressure point
s on your body and then lets you walk away. But once you've taken five steps, your heart explodes inside your body and you fall to the floor... dead."
Pai Mei claims that he teaches no one this maneuver, but ultimately makes an exception: the Bride uses it as the fatal blow to kill Bill (she apparently learned it off-screen after having earned Pai Mei's respect).
Elle, another of Pai Mei's students, is responsible for his death. During a training session, Elle insults Pai Mei by calling him a "miserable old fool". As punishment for her insolence, Pai Mei plucks out Elle's right eye. In retribution, Elle puts a deadly poison in fish heads that he subsequently eats, killing him.
In one version of the script, Pai Mei's lips would be speaking Cantonese while his voice (dubbed by Quentin Tarantino) would be heard in English, imitating a bad dub job. This was ultimately decided against, and Mei's dialogue was not dubbed.
musician who died in the massacre. Rufus states that he has played with Rufus Thomas
and numerous other well-known R&B acts: "I was a Drell
. I was a Drifter
. I was a Coaster
. I was part of The Gang
. I was a Bar-Kay... If they come through Texas, I done played with them." The character was played by Samuel L. Jackson
, who had starred in two previous Tarantino films, Pulp Fiction
and Jackie Brown
.
and employed The Bride, who used the assumed name Arlene Machiavelli when she met him.
Kill Bill
Kill Bill Volume 1 is a 2003 action thriller film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. It is the first of two volumes that were theatrically released several months apart, the second volume being Kill Bill Volume 2....
. Written and directed by Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Jerome Tarantino is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, cinematographer and actor. In the early 1990s, he began his career as an independent filmmaker with films employing nonlinear storylines and the aestheticization of violence...
, the film was released in two separate parts, Kill Bill Vol. 1 in 2003 and Kill Bill Vol. 2 in 2004. The film takes place after a massacre that killed the fiancé and friends of the main character, The Bride
Beatrix Kiddo
Beatrix Kiddo, primarily known as "The Bride", is a fictional character and the protagonist in the movie Kill Bill by American director Quentin Tarantino...
, at the chapel in which she was to be married; though also thought to have been killed, The Bride survived, but was put into a coma for four years as a result of the attack. Upon finally awaking, she plots her vengeance against the killers.
Beatrix Kiddo ("Black Mamba", also The Bride)
The film's main protagonist, The Bride, A.K.A. Beatrix Kiddo (portrayed by Uma ThurmanUma Thurman
Uma Karuna Thurman is an American actress and model. She has performed in leading roles in a variety of films, ranging from romantic comedies and dramas to science fiction and action movies. Among her best-known roles are those in the Quentin Tarantino films Pulp Fiction and Kill Bill...
), abandons her life as a hired assassin
Contract killing
Contract killing is a form of murder, in which one party hires another party to kill a target individual or group of people. It involves an illegal agreement between two parties in which one party agrees to kill the target in exchange for consideration, monetary, or otherwise. The hiring party may...
for the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad
Deadly Viper Assassination Squad
The Deadly Viper Assassination Squad is a group of fictional characters in Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill.It is a reference to Buddhism's "Five Poisons": see .-History:...
(De.V.A.S.
Deva (Hinduism)
' is the Sanskrit word for god or deity, its related feminine term is devi. In modern Hinduism, it can be loosely interpreted as any benevolent supernatural beings. The devs in Hinduism, also called Suras, are often juxtaposed to the Asuras, their half brothers. Devs are also the maintainers of...
) upon realizing she is pregnant with Bill's child, denying him the right of fatherhood. This action provokes the attacks on her and her loved ones and its ensuing revenge, which is the entire basis of the film. Her code-name while working for De.V.A.S. was Black Mamba.
Bill ("Snake Charmer")
Bill (portrayed by David CarradineDavid Carradine
David Carradine was an American actor and martial artist, best known for his role as a warrior monk, Kwai Chang Caine, in the 1970s television series, Kung Fu, which later had a 1990s sequel series, Kung Fu: The Legend Continues...
) is the main antagonist of the film. He is the founder and leader of The Deadly Viper Assassination Squad, to which The Bride formerly belonged, and also her former lover. Because the code names of the members are all referring to snakes, Bill's code name is Snake Charmer. He and the four remaining Deadly Vipers attempt to kill her after she learns she is carrying Bill's child and leaves him without warning. Some time after the massacre the group has disbanded. When Bill finds out The Bride isn't dead, but in coma he sends Squad member and mistress, Elle Driver to the hospital to kill her. But Bill changes his mind and tells Elle to abort the mission, saying that killing a helpless person would lower the name of the Assassination Squad.
O-Ren Ishii ("Cottonmouth")
Code-named CottonmouthAgkistrodon piscivorus
Agkistrodon piscivorus is a venomous snake, a species of pit viper, found in the southeastern United States. Adults are large and capable of delivering a painful and potentially fatal bite. When antagonized they will stand their ground by coiling their bodies and displaying their fangs...
, O-Ren Ishii (portrayed by Lucy Liu
Lucy Liu
Lucy Alexis Liu is an American actress and film producer. She became known for playing the role of the vicious and ill-mannered Ling Woo in the television series Ally McBeal , and has also appeared in several Hollywood films including Charlie's Angels, Chicago, Kill Bill, and Kung Fu Panda.-Early...
) is a half-Japanese, half-Chinese American woman who saw her parents brutally murdered at the age of nine years under the orders of a Yakuza
Yakuza
, also known as , are members of traditional organized crime syndicates in Japan. The Japanese police, and media by request of the police, call them bōryokudan , literally "violence group", while the yakuza call themselves "ninkyō dantai" , "chivalrous organizations". The yakuza are notoriously...
boss, whom she kills two years later in an act of vengeance. She later becomes an expert assassin
Assassination
To carry out an assassination is "to murder by a sudden and/or secret attack, often for political reasons." Alternatively, assassination may be defined as "the act of deliberately killing someone, especially a public figure, usually for hire or for political reasons."An assassination may be...
proficient in marksmanship
Sniper
A sniper is a marksman who shoots targets from concealed positions or distances exceeding the capabilities of regular personnel. Snipers typically have specialized training and distinct high-precision rifles....
and sword fighting
Kenjutsu
, meaning "the method, or technique, of the sword." This is opposed to kendo, which means the way of the sword. Kenjutsu is the umbrella term for all traditional schools of Japanese swordsmanship, in particular those that predate the Meiji Restoration...
. Though once a member of the Deadly Vipers, she eventually became the head of the Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
Yakuza
Yakuza
, also known as , are members of traditional organized crime syndicates in Japan. The Japanese police, and media by request of the police, call them bōryokudan , literally "violence group", while the yakuza call themselves "ninkyō dantai" , "chivalrous organizations". The yakuza are notoriously...
, with Bill's help, and possessed her own body-guard army, the Crazy 88. O-Ren is fiercely proud of her heritage, going so far as to kill her own subordinate when he vented his frustration over being led by "a Chinese Jap-American half breed bitch".
The Showdown at House of Blue Leaves is the chapter in which O-Ren Ishii visits a Japanese club together with various Crazy 88 members, her lawyer and friend Sofie Fatale, and personal teenage bodyguard, Gogo Yubari. While sitting in a room apart from the other guests, O-Ren hears a sound outside the room and throws a knife in that direction. She orders Gogo to take a look, however Gogo finds nothing. Later, Sofie Fatale is captured by The Bride and taken to the main hall of the restaurant, where The Bride calls O-Ren. O-Ren appears with her bodyguards, and The Bride reveals herself to O-Ren, cutting off Sofie's arm. The other guests run out of the restaurant. The Bride defeats countless Crazy 88 and Gogo, finally meeting O-Ren in a garden scene atop the club. During the battle, O-Ren mocks The Bride as a "silly Caucasian girl who plays with samurai sword." After resuming their fight O-Ren receives a wound and apologizes for her earlier remark. The Bride accepts and eventually kills O-Ren by lopping off the top of her head. "That really was a Hattori Hanzo sword," O-Ren utters with her dying breath, having been close enough to both see the symbol of Hattori Hanzo and feel the blade.
Vernita Green ("Copperhead")
Vernita Green (portrayed by Vivica A. FoxVivica A. Fox
Vivica Anjanetta Fox is an American actress and television producer. She is best known for her roles in the films Independence Day, Set It Off, Soul Food, Why Do Fools Fall In Love,Kill Bill and Juwanna Mann....
), A.K.A. Copperhead
Agkistrodon contortrix
Agkistrodon contortrix is a species of venomous snake found in North America, a member of the Crotalinae subfamily. The more common name for the species is "copperhead". The behavior of Agkistrodon contortrix may lead to accidental encounters with humans...
, is a member of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad. She took part in the massacre at the Two Pines Wedding Chapel. She is second on the Bride's "Death List Five." Four years after the massacre she is living a normal life under the alias of Jeanie Bell. She is trained in hand-to-hand combat and knife fighting, and it is hinted that she and The Bride share a mutual, professional respect for each other. At the start of the first movie, they engage in a vicious fight, destroying Vernita's living room in the process. However, Green's four-year-old daughter, Nikki, arrives home in the middle of the fight, and they stop fighting because the Bride does not want to kill Vernita in front of her child. Green sends Nikki to her room and she talks with the Bride over coffee, apologizing for betraying her and asking for mercy on behalf of her family. The Bride coldly refuses and they agree to meet in the middle of the night to have a knife fight. However, Vernita betrays her promise, and shoots at the Bride with a handgun concealed, appropriately enough, within a box of Kaboom cereal. She misses and the Bride throws a knife into her heart, killing her. Nikki unintentionally witnesses her mother's death, for which the Bride apologizes. The Bride then adds that, when Nikki grows up, she is free to avenge her mother's death.
Elle Driver ("California Mountain Snake")
Elle Driver (portrayed by Daryl HannahDaryl Hannah
Daryl Christine Hannah is an American film actress. After making her screen debut in 1978, Hannah starred in a number of Hollywood films throughout the 1980s, notably Blade Runner, Splash, Wall Street and Roxanne and Kill Bill.-Early life:Hannah was born in Chicago, Illinois, the daughter of Susan...
), A.K.A. California Mountain Snake
California Kingsnake
The California Kingsnake is a non-venomous colubrid snake found in the western United States and northern Mexico. It is a relatively small subspecies of the Common Kingsnake and is naturally found in a wide variety of habitats...
, is another swordswoman loyal to Bill. Elle and the Bride despise each other immensely, and it is implied that their mutual hatred came to be before the events of the film. Elle is jealous of the Bride's status as Bill's lover, implying that Elle herself also had some kind of sexual relationship with him. Despite this, Elle does grudgingly respect the Bride, describing her as "the greatest warrior [she] had ever met" and also believing that she deserved better than to have supposedly met her end at the hands of someone like Budd. Like Bill and The Bride, she was trained by Pai Mei. When Elle showed disrespect to Pai Mei, he responded by plucking out her right eye, which is why she is shown to wear an eyepatch. In retaliation, Elle murdered Pai Mei by poisoning his meal. When Bill learns that the Bride survived the attempt on her life, he orders Elle to go kill her at the hospital where she was then lying comatose. Disguised as a nurse, Elle is about to inject the Bride with a deadly poison when Bill calls her to abort the mission. Though Elle wanted to kill the Bride while she was incapacitated, she abides by Bill's wishes.
When Budd (Sidewinder) captures the Bride, he calls Elle to offer her the Bride's Hanzo sword. Elle agrees to pay one million dollars for the sword, on the condition that Budd makes The Bride suffer until her last breath. Budd buries the Bride alive, but she eventually escapes and goes to Budd's trailer. Elle pays Budd for the sword with a suitcase full of money. When Budd opens the case, he finds out too late that Elle had hidden a black mamba inside. The snake bites Budd and he succumbs to its poison. Elle calls Bill and blames the Bride for Budd's death, then takes credit for Budd's live burial of the Bride and tells Bill the grave's location. When Elle is about to leave the trailer, the Bride ambushes her. The two women engage in a sword fight, with the Bride having to use Budd's Hanzo sword. During the fight, Elle reveals that she killed Pai Mei. Enraged, the Bride snatches out Elle's remaining eye. The Bride leaves Elle, now completely sightless, thrashing wildly (in a manner reminiscent of Daryl Hannah's performance in Blade Runner
Blade Runner
Blade Runner is a 1982 American science fiction film directed by Ridley Scott and starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, and Sean Young. The screenplay, written by Hampton Fancher and David Peoples, is loosely based on the novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K...
) on the floor of the trailer with the black mamba still loose inside. Though it can be inferred that Elle was also killed by the black mamba, her fate is unknown.
Budd ("Sidewinder")
Bill's degenerate younger brother, Budd (portrayed by Michael MadsenMichael Madsen
Michael Søren Madsen is an American actor, poet, and photographer. He has appeared in more than 150 films, most of them small independent films, though he has starred in central roles in such films as Reservoir Dogs, Free Willy, Donnie Brasco, and Kill Bill, in addition to a supporting role in Sin...
), codename Sidewinder
Crotalus cerastes
Crotalus cerastes is a venomous pitviper species found in the desert regions of the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico. Three subspecies are currently recognized, including the nominate subspecies described here.-Description:...
, is recognized by Bill as 'the only man I ever loved'. He was the only other male Deadly Viper and, since the assassination squad's disbandment, took to living in a mobile home, where he steadily became an alcoholic, making ends meet by working as a bouncer at a strip club. Bill warned Budd of his impending danger, and when the Bride does find him, he sees through her sneak attack, shoots her with rock salt (making him the only Deadly Viper to single handedly defeat The Bride), buries her alive
Premature burial
Premature burial, also known as live burial, burial alive, or vivisepulture, means to be buried while still alive. Animals or humans may be buried alive accidentally or intentionally...
(later described as a 'Texas funeral
Texas Funeral
Texas Funeral is the first album by Jon Wayne. The LP was released by Hybrid Records in 1985. Cargo Records/Fist Puppet released the album on CD in 1992 featuring extra tracks...
') and steals her priceless sword. She escapes her casket, but not before Elle has planted a live black mamba (the Bride's codename) that kills Budd. Budd once owned a Hattori Hanzo katana
Katana
A Japanese sword, or , is one of the traditional bladed weapons of Japan. There are several types of Japanese swords, according to size, field of application and method of manufacture.-Description:...
, and told Bill and Elle that he had sold it for $250 in El Paso (Budd lied; The Bride later found the sword in a golf bag in Budd's trailer). When told by Bill that Beatrix was coming to kill him, Budd philosophically said "that woman deserves her revenge. And we deserve to die. But then again, so does she." When Budd makes this statement in Volume 1, the last sentence is not included; the full statement is spoken in Volume 2.
He told The Bride that her live burial was retribution for breaking Bill's heart. During Bill and Budd's confrontation Bill mentions an unpleasant event between the two of them that Budd was apparently angry at Bill for, but the details of this event are never mentioned.
Associates of O-Ren Ishii
In the revenge quest, The Bride's first target is O-Ren Ishii, who during the intervening four years has risen to become a major leader of the Tokyo organized crime world. But before The Bride battles and defeats her, she must must first confront and bring down her associates one by one.Sofie Fatale
Sofie Fatale (played by Julie DreyfusJulie Dreyfus
Julie Dreyfus is a French actress.Dreyfus, who speaks fluent Japanese, French, and English, is well known in Japan, where she made her TV debut on a French-language lesson program on NHK's educational channel in the late 1980s, and has appeared on the TV show Ryōri no Tetsujin as a guest and...
) is O-Ren Ishii's lawyer, second-in-command, and best friend. Sofie Fatale is of mixed Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese/French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
descent and serves as an interpreter and is seen speaking English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, Japanese
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
and French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
fluently. Although she is referred to as a protege of Bill's, she does not display any martial arts skills during her appearances.
Sofie Fatale is present at the "House of Blue Leaves" when The Bride
Beatrix Kiddo
Beatrix Kiddo, primarily known as "The Bride", is a fictional character and the protagonist in the movie Kill Bill by American director Quentin Tarantino...
arrives to kill O-Ren Ishii. The Bride
Beatrix Kiddo
Beatrix Kiddo, primarily known as "The Bride", is a fictional character and the protagonist in the movie Kill Bill by American director Quentin Tarantino...
is riding her motorbike through Tokyo, stalking Sofie's Nissan Fairlady Z when she is seen at a stop light using her phone; her left-handedness, and later, the phone's "Auld Lang Syne
Auld Lang Syne
"Auld Lang Syne" is a Scots poem written by Robert Burns in 1788 and set to the tune of a traditional folk song . It is well known in many countries, especially in the English-speaking world; its traditional use being to celebrate the start of the New Year at the stroke of midnight...
" ringtone is recognized by The Bride
Beatrix Kiddo
Beatrix Kiddo, primarily known as "The Bride", is a fictional character and the protagonist in the movie Kill Bill by American director Quentin Tarantino...
. She remembers that Sofie was present during the El Paso
El Paso
El Paso, a city in the U.S. state of Texas, on the border with Mexico.El Paso may also refer to:-Geography:Colombia:* El Paso, CesarSpain:*El Paso, Santa Cruz de TenerifeUnited States:...
massacre, and while she did not assist in beating The Bride
Beatrix Kiddo
Beatrix Kiddo, primarily known as "The Bride", is a fictional character and the protagonist in the movie Kill Bill by American director Quentin Tarantino...
, she did callously and calmly answer her ringing phone. The Bride captures Sofie at the House of Blue Leaves and brings her to O-Ren Ishii. The Bride then cuts off Sofie's left arm (the arm she holds her phone with) as a means of both exacting revenge on her and showing Ishii her intentions for a duel.
Later, The Bride interrogates Sofie to learn the location of the rest of the members of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad
Deadly Viper Assassination Squad
The Deadly Viper Assassination Squad is a group of fictional characters in Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill.It is a reference to Buddhism's "Five Poisons": see .-History:...
, threatening to further dismember her when she refuses to speak. She then sends her rolling down a hill to a hospital for medical attention so she can live on and tell Bill
Bill (Kill Bill)
Bill is the fictional titular character for whom the movie Kill Bill is named. In the film, he is the leader of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad, which included his brother, Budd . Bill's codename is Snake Charmer...
what has happened and that the Bride is still alive. Although her fate is left ambiguous, Tarantino has commented that a potential third Kill Bill movie would focus on the revenge of Vernita's daughter Nikki against the Bride, and that Nikki would be trained by Elle and Sofie. Apparently, Sofie would inherit all of O-Ren and Bill's money.
Crazy 88
Originally employed to help O-Ren take control of the Tokyo underworld, the Crazy 88 are a masked gang under her control. It includes members of both sexes and a wide age range. Most members fight using katanaKatana
A Japanese sword, or , is one of the traditional bladed weapons of Japan. There are several types of Japanese swords, according to size, field of application and method of manufacture.-Description:...
s except for three members. One is shown with a pair of throwing axes and another is seen briefly wielding a meteor hammer
Meteor hammer
The meteor hammer , often referred to simply as meteor, is an ancient Chinese weapon, consisting at its most basic level of two weights connected by a rope or chain. One of the flexible or 'soft' weapons, it is referred to by many different names worldwide, dependent upon region, construction and...
. Johnny Mo (Played by Gordon Liu
Gordon Liu
Gordon Liu is a Chinese martial arts film actor. He became famous for playing the lead in The 36th Chamber of Shaolin and its sequels...
), the clan's leader (under O-Ren), uses dual shortsword
Shortsword
Shortsword may refer to a number of weapons intermediate between the sword and the dagger*short Iron Age swords**Gladius, an early ancient Roman sword **Xiphos, a double-edged, single-hand sword used by the ancient Greeks...
s which, when each is sheathed in the other's handle, can be used as a fighting staff. The Bride manages to fend off the entire gang, killing, mortally wounding, and dismembering many. Those who survived were taken into custody
Arrest
An arrest is the act of depriving a person of his or her liberty usually in relation to the purported investigation and prevention of crime and presenting into the criminal justice system or harm to oneself or others...
. One of the last of the Crazy 88 the Bride faces before O-Ren is a very timid teenaged boy whose katana she cuts into several pieces with her own, after which he surrenders immediately. She spanks him with the flat of her blade and orders him to go home to his mother instead of fighting with yakuza
Yakuza
, also known as , are members of traditional organized crime syndicates in Japan. The Japanese police, and media by request of the police, call them bōryokudan , literally "violence group", while the yakuza call themselves "ninkyō dantai" , "chivalrous organizations". The yakuza are notoriously...
.
Aside from Johnny Mo, only one member of the Crazy 88 is identified and named. Miki (Tetsuro Shimaguchi) is apparently O-Ren Ishii's bodyguard, aside from Gogo. He is the first member to attack the Bride although he's quickly killed when the Bride impales his chest with her sword.
The Crazy 88 allegedly does not actually have eighty-eight members. Bill speculates that they adopted the name because it "sounded cool." There are only 40 actors credited to the Crazy 88,.
is considered a lucky number
Lucky number
In number theory, a lucky number is a natural number in a set which is generated by a "sieve" similar to the Sieve of Eratosthenes that generates the primes.Begin with a list of integers starting with 1:...
in Japanese culture - it suggests growing prosperous, because the letter (八) broadens gradually. was also seen as holy in ancient times. (see 8 (number))
Johnny Mo
He (played by Gordon LiuGordon Liu
Gordon Liu is a Chinese martial arts film actor. He became famous for playing the lead in The 36th Chamber of Shaolin and its sequels...
) is the leader of O-Ren's personal army, the Crazy 88. Johnny Mo is most prominently featured in the "House of Blue Leaves" scene. After The Bride
Beatrix Kiddo
Beatrix Kiddo, primarily known as "The Bride", is a fictional character and the protagonist in the movie Kill Bill by American director Quentin Tarantino...
kills Gogo Yubari and O-Ren Ishii's six bodyguards, Johnny Mo, armed with a pair of shōtō, arrives with an army of Crazy 88s. He is a more proficient fighter than the rest of the gang, nearly tipping the scales in their favor and holding his own against The Bride for several minutes alone while fighting her on top of a balcony railing. She eventually chops off his leg and he falls into a bloodied fountain pool from the second floor balcony and is presumed dead thereafter.
Gogo Yubari
Gogo Yubari (played by Chiaki KuriyamaChiaki Kuriyama
is a Japanese actress, singer and model. She is best known in the West for her roles in Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill, Volume 1 and the Japanese film Battle Royale .- Biography :...
), a young associate of O-Ren Ishii, is a bloodthirsty severely disturbed 17-year-old schoolgirl who takes a sadistic
Sadistic personality disorder
Sadistic personality disorder is a diagnosis which appeared only in an appendix of the revised third edition of the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders . The current version of the DSM does not include it, so it is no longer considered a valid...
delight in killing. She is O-Ren's top assassin and personal bodyguard. Gogo's disturbed mind and vicious penchant for killing is displayed when she offers herself to a drunken man in a bar and then disembowels him, asking him, "Do you still wish to penetrate me?... Or is it I who has penetrated you?"
Later on, she takes on Beatrix Kiddo
Beatrix Kiddo
Beatrix Kiddo, primarily known as "The Bride", is a fictional character and the protagonist in the movie Kill Bill by American director Quentin Tarantino...
when the latter has already slaughtered several of O-Ren Ishii's immediate guards at the House of Blue Leaves. Although the Bride gives her the opportunity to walk away, Gogo takes her on with a large meteor hammer
Meteor hammer
The meteor hammer , often referred to simply as meteor, is an ancient Chinese weapon, consisting at its most basic level of two weights connected by a rope or chain. One of the flexible or 'soft' weapons, it is referred to by many different names worldwide, dependent upon region, construction and...
, almost overcoming the Bride by strangling her savagely with the chain. Eventually Kiddo distracts Gogo by driving a broken chair leg studded with nails into her foot, then kills her by driving the chair leg into the side of her head.
Gogo Yubari's name is based on two influences. Her personal name is based on Mach Go Go Go, the manga and anime that the English-dubbed cartoon Speed Racer
Speed Racer
Speed Racer is an English adaptation name of the Japanese manga and anime, which centered on automobile racing. Mach GoGoGo was originally serialized in print form in Shueisha's 1958 Shōnen Book, and was released in tankōbon book form by Sun Wide Comics, re-released in Japan by Fusosha...
was based on. Her family name of Yubari is based on the International Film Festival
Yubari International Fantastic Film Festival
The , also sometimes called YIFFF, is held in a resort-like environment in the small town of Yūbari on the northernmost Japanese island of Hokkaidō. From 1990 to 1999, the festival was known as the Yubari International Fantastic Adventure Film Festival.-History:...
hosted by the former mining town of Yūbari, Hokkaidō
Yubari, Hokkaido
is a city in Sorachi Subprefecture, Hokkaidō, Japan.As of 2008, the city has an estimated population of 12,068. The total area is 763.20 km². Hemmed in by mountains Yūbari stretches for 25 kilometers along a mountain valley....
, where Tarantino had been a guest many times. Her school girl uniform references Chiaki's earlier role in the film Battle Royale
Battle Royale (film)
is a 2000 Japanese film directed by Kinji Fukasaku based on the novel of the same name. It was written by Kenta Fukasaku and stars Takeshi Kitano. The film aroused international controversy.A sequel, Battle Royale II: Requiem, followed...
. Her weapon references both the "combat yoyo" carried by the schoolgirl character in the Delinquent Girl Detective
Sukeban Deka
is a Japanese detective action shōjo manga series written and illustrated by Shinji Wada and serialized on Hana to Yume. Sukeban Deka has been adapted into three live-action television series, an original video animation series and three feature films, the latest of which was released in 2006 as...
manga / anime / live-action TV / movie series and the eponymous chain-weapon weapon from Master of the Flying Guillotine
Master of the Flying Guillotine
Master of the Flying Guillotine is a 1976 Hong Kong wuxia film starring Jimmy Wang, who also wrote and directed the film. It is a sequel to Wang's 1971 film One Armed Boxer, and thus the film is also known as One-Armed Boxer 2 and The One Armed Boxer vs...
. Her fighting style is a combination of wushu
Chinese martial arts
Chinese martial arts, also referred to by the Mandarin Chinese term wushu and popularly as kung fu , are a number of fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in China. These fighting styles are often classified according to common traits, identified as "families" , "sects" or...
techniques using chain whip
Chain whip
The chain whip is a weapon used in some Asian martial arts, including Chinese martial arts, in addition to modern and traditional wushu. It consists of several metal rods, which are joined end-to-end by rings to form a flexible chain. Generally, the whip has a handle at one end and a metal dart,...
and rope dart
Rope dart
The rope dart or rope javelin , also known as Jōhyō in Japanese,is one of the flexible weapons in Chinese martial arts. Other weapons in this family include the meteor hammer, flying claws, and chain whip...
.
B.B.
The four-year-old daughter of The Bride and Bill, B.B. (played by Perla Haney-JardinePerla Haney-Jardine
Perla Haney-Jardine is an Brazilian-born American actress. She is best known for her role in Kill Bill Vol. 2 as B.B., the four-year-old daughter of Beatrix "The Bride" Kiddo and Bill.-Personal life:...
) was in utero
In utero
In utero is a Latin term literally meaning "in the womb". In biology, the phrase describes the state of an embryo or fetus. In legal contexts, the phrase is used to refer to unborn children. Under common law, unborn children are still considered to exist for property transfer purposes.-See also:*...
during the massacre at the Two Pines chapel. Upon first coming out of her coma, The Bride believes her unborn child was killed in the attack and promises to avenge her death. The audience does not learn that she is alive until the last line of Vol. 1, and The Bride does not find out until the final act of Vol. 2. B.B. was named and raised by Bill, who in Vol. 2 openly admitted to her the terrible crime he had committed against The Bride.
Buck
A male nurse at the hospital where The Bride laid comatose for four years, played by Michael BowenMichael Bowen (actor)
Michael Bowen is an American actor. Films he has appeared in include Jackie Brown, Magnolia, and Less Than Zero. Bowen also had a recurring role as Danny Pickett on the ABC television series, Lost....
. During this period, Buck regularly took sexual advantage of The Bride, raping her unconscious body and later also prostituting
Prostitution
Prostitution is the act or practice of providing sexual services to another person in return for payment. The person who receives payment for sexual services is called a prostitute and the person who receives such services is known by a multitude of terms, including a "john". Prostitution is one of...
her to other male clients. After she first awakens, The Bride attacks Buck and interrogates him on the whereabouts of Bill. Suddenly, she begins recalling Buck's prior assaults on her (including his infamous line, "My name's Buck and I'm here to fuck!") and, in a fit of rage, slams his head with a door, killing him with an intracranial hemorrhage
Intracranial hemorrhage
An intracranial hemorrhage is a hemorrhage, or bleeding, within the skull.-Causes:Intracranial bleeding occurs when a blood vessel within the skull is ruptured or leaks. It can result from physical trauma or nontraumatic causes such as a ruptured aneurysm...
. The Bride then steals Buck's clothes and escapes from the hospital in his truck, the "Pussy Wagon."
Earl McGraw
Played by Michael ParksMichael Parks
Michael Parks is an American actor and singer. He has appeared in almost fifty films and has made frequent TV appearances, but is probably best known for his work in recent years with Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez, and Kevin Smith as well as the 1969 television series Then Came...
, Earl McGraw is a Texas Ranger
Texas Ranger Division
The Texas Ranger Division, commonly called the Texas Rangers, is a law enforcement agency with statewide jurisdiction in Texas, and is based in Austin, Texas...
who investigates the murders at the wedding chapel, and the first person to realize that The Bride has managed to survive the attack. This is the second appearance of McGraw in a Tarantino film, as he had previously been a character in From Dusk till Dawn
From Dusk Till Dawn
From Dusk till Dawn is a 1996 horror film directed by Robert Rodriguez and written by Quentin Tarantino. The movie stars Harvey Keitel, George Clooney, Quentin Tarantino and Juliette Lewis.-Plot:...
(in which he was killed by Tarantino himself starring as Richie Gecko); he would later appear in both features that make up Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez
Robert Rodriguez
Robert Anthony Rodríguez is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, cinematographer, editor and musician. He shoots and produces many of his films in his native Texas and Mexico. He has directed such films as Desperado, From Dusk till Dawn, The Faculty, Spy Kids, Sin City, Planet...
's Grindhouse.
Esteban Vihaio
Played by Michael ParksMichael Parks
Michael Parks is an American actor and singer. He has appeared in almost fifty films and has made frequent TV appearances, but is probably best known for his work in recent years with Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez, and Kevin Smith as well as the 1969 television series Then Came...
, Esteban Vihaio is an eighty-year-old Mexican
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
pimp
Pimp
A pimp is an agent for prostitutes who collects part of their earnings. The pimp may receive this money in return for advertising services, physical protection, or for providing a location where she may engage clients...
based in the border city of Ciudad Acuña
Ciudad Acuña
Ciudad Acuña, also known simply as Acuña, is a city located in the Mexican state of Coahuila, at and a mean height above sea level of 271 meters...
who, as a friend of Bill and Budd's mother, was seen by Bill as a father figure. His prostitutes' illegitimate children are apparently recruited into an organized crime gang called the Acuña Boys, of which Esteban is the de facto leader. When The Bride visits him, he tells her of Bill's whereabouts, noting that it is what Bill would have wanted Esteban to do ("How else is he ever going to see you again?"). He also notes that if he were in Bill's situation when Bill had tracked the Bride down he says he would have only mutilated her face instead of trying to kill her—revealed as his apparent discipline of choice for his prostitutes.
Hattori Hanzō
Hattori Hanzō is still the finest swordsmith in the world; however, he has not created a new sword in the more than 25 years since vowing never again to make instruments of death. He became the owner of a sushiSushi
is a Japanese food consisting of cooked vinegared rice combined with other ingredients . Neta and forms of sushi presentation vary, but the ingredient which all sushi have in common is shari...
shop in Okinawa. He initially met the Bride when she was under the guise of an American tourist visiting Okinawa. Hanzō initially refused to make a sword for her, or even give her one he had previously made, but was convinced to make one for her after The Bride alluded that she wanted to kill his former student Bill.
Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Jerome Tarantino is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, cinematographer and actor. In the early 1990s, he began his career as an independent filmmaker with films employing nonlinear storylines and the aestheticization of violence...
stated in the supplementary material on the Kill Bill DVD that the character was named in tribute to Sonny Chiba
Sonny Chiba
, also known as Sonny Chiba, is a Japanese actor, singer, film producer, film director and martial artist.Chiba was one of the first actors to achieve stardom through his skills in martial arts, initially in Japan and later before an international audience.- Early life :Born in Fukuoka, Fukuoka,...
's former role as Hattori Hanzō
Hattori Hanzo
, also known as , was a famous samurai and ninja master of the Sengoku era, credited with saving the life of Tokugawa Ieyasu and then helping him to become the ruler of united Japan. Today, he is often a subject of modern popular culture.-Biography:...
(the real-life historical 16th-century samurai) in Shadow Warriors (Kage no Gundan0).
Karen Kim
As an assassin sent to kill The Bride while she was still a Deadly Viper, Karen Kim (played by Helen Kim) narrowly misses hitting The Bride with shotgunShotgun
A shotgun is a firearm that is usually designed to be fired from the shoulder, which uses the energy of a fixed shell to fire a number of small spherical pellets called shot, or a solid projectile called a slug...
fire. Before the shootout can worsen, Karen is convinced to leave in peace when The Bride proves that she is pregnant, and Karen says 'Congratulations' as she leaves.
Larry
The owner of the strip clubStrip club
A strip club is an adult entertainment venue in which striptease or other erotic or exotic dance is regularly performed. Strip clubs typically adopt a nightclub or bar style, but can also adopt a theatre or cabaret-style....
, My Oh My Club, where Budd works as a bouncer. He is seen doing cocaine with one of the dancers before Budd strolls into work 20 minutes late. An argument ensues over the fact that "there is nobody there to bounce". He almost fires Budd but tells him to come back when he calls him.
Nikia "Nikki" Bell
Four year old daughter to Vernita Green and Dr. Lawrence Bell, Nikki makes an appearance in Vol. 1 when she unknowingly interrupts a battle between her mother and The Bride in the living room. Vernita explains that the family dog made the mess, to conceal her past from Nikki. Nikki accidentally witnesses her mother's death at the hands of The Bride, who was unaware that Nikki was present until she turned around and saw her. The Bride tells her that her mother had it coming. However, with sympathy, the Bride tells Nikki if she still feels "raw" about it, she will be waiting for her in the future.Pai Mei
"Pai Mei" redirects here. For the historical figure, see Bak MeiBak Mei
Bak Mei is said to have been one of the legendary Five Elders — survivors of the destruction of the Shaolin Temple by the Qing Dynasty imperial regime — who, according to some accounts, betrayed Shaolin to the imperial government...
.
Pai Mei (Chinese: 白眉; pinyin
Pinyin
Pinyin is the official system to transcribe Chinese characters into the Roman alphabet in China, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan. It is also often used to teach Mandarin Chinese and spell Chinese names in foreign publications and used as an input method to enter Chinese characters into...
: Bái Méi; literally White Eyebrow) was performed by veteran Chinese actor Gordon Liu
Gordon Liu
Gordon Liu is a Chinese martial arts film actor. He became famous for playing the lead in The 36th Chamber of Shaolin and its sequels...
. As depicted in the film, Pai Mei was a powerful, very old, practitioner of the Bak Mei
Bak Mei
Bak Mei is said to have been one of the legendary Five Elders — survivors of the destruction of the Shaolin Temple by the Qing Dynasty imperial regime — who, according to some accounts, betrayed Shaolin to the imperial government...
style of kung fu
Chinese martial arts
Chinese martial arts, also referred to by the Mandarin Chinese term wushu and popularly as kung fu , are a number of fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in China. These fighting styles are often classified according to common traits, identified as "families" , "sects" or...
. Pai Mei was the former teacher and master
Sifu
Shifu is the identical pronunciation of two Chinese terms for a master. The character 師 means “teacher”. The meaning of 傅 is “tutor”, and of 父, “father”. Both characters are read fu with the same tones in Cantonese and Mandarin, creating some ambiguity...
of The Bride, Bill, and Elle, although it is unclear if he instructed the other members of the DVAS. Despite being a wise and knowledgeable White Lotus
White Lotus
White Lotus was a type of Buddhist sectarianism that appealed to many Han Chinese, who found solace in worship of the "Unborn or Eternal Venerable Mother" , who was to gather all her children at the millennium into one family....
priest, he also was bigoted
Bigotry
A bigot is a person obstinately or intolerantly devoted to his or her own opinions and prejudices, especially one exhibiting intolerance, and animosity toward those of differing beliefs...
(specifically towards Caucasians
Caucasian race
The term Caucasian race has been used to denote the general physical type of some or all of the populations of Europe, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, Western Asia , Central Asia and South Asia...
), xenophobic
Xenophobia
Xenophobia is defined as "an unreasonable fear of foreigners or strangers or of that which is foreign or strange". It comes from the Greek words ξένος , meaning "stranger," "foreigner" and φόβος , meaning "fear."...
(towards the Japanese
Japanese people
The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...
and Americans
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
), and a misogynist
Misogyny
Misogyny is the hatred or dislike of women or girls. Philogyny, meaning fondness, love or admiration towards women, is the antonym of misogyny. The term misandry is the term for men that is parallel to misogyny...
. He only agreed to take on The Bride as a student after having a very violent (offscreen) martials arts duel with Bill, who then adds that Pai Mei was a very, very old man whose advancing years had taught him the value of company, while not brightening up his angry disposition. In spite of being both a Caucasian American and a woman, Beatrix ultimately wins his approval for her perseverance under his torturous training regimen.
Pai Mei was alleged to be able to perform the lethal Five Point Palm Exploding Heart Technique
Touch of Death
The Death Touch refers to any martial arts technique that can kill using seemingly less than lethal force targeted at specific areas of the body....
. Bill describes the technique as "Quite simply, the deadliest blow in all of martial arts. He hits you with his finger tips at five different pressure point
Pressure point
A pressure point in the field of martial arts refers to an area on the human body that may produce significant pain or other effects when manipulated in a specific manner...
s on your body and then lets you walk away. But once you've taken five steps, your heart explodes inside your body and you fall to the floor... dead."
Pai Mei claims that he teaches no one this maneuver, but ultimately makes an exception: the Bride uses it as the fatal blow to kill Bill (she apparently learned it off-screen after having earned Pai Mei's respect).
Elle, another of Pai Mei's students, is responsible for his death. During a training session, Elle insults Pai Mei by calling him a "miserable old fool". As punishment for her insolence, Pai Mei plucks out Elle's right eye. In retribution, Elle puts a deadly poison in fish heads that he subsequently eats, killing him.
In one version of the script, Pai Mei's lips would be speaking Cantonese while his voice (dubbed by Quentin Tarantino) would be heard in English, imitating a bad dub job. This was ultimately decided against, and Mei's dialogue was not dubbed.
Rufus
The piano player at the Two Pines chapel, Rufus is a former professional bluesBlues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
musician who died in the massacre. Rufus states that he has played with Rufus Thomas
Rufus Thomas
Rufus Thomas, Jr. was an American rhythm and blues, funk and soul singer and comedian fromMemphis, Tennessee, who recorded on Sun Records in the...
and numerous other well-known R&B acts: "I was a Drell
Archie Bell & the Drells
Archie Bell & the Drells was a R&B vocal group from Houston, Texas, and one of the main acts on Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff's Philadelphia International Records...
. I was a Drifter
The Drifters
The Drifters are a long-lived American doo-wop and R&B/soul vocal group with a peak in popularity from 1953 to 1963, though several splinter Drifters continue to perform today. They were originally formed to serve as Clyde McPhatter's backing group in 1953...
. I was a Coaster
The Coasters
The Coasters are an American rhythm and blues/rock and roll vocal group that had a string of hits in the late 1950s. Beginning with "Searchin'" and "Young Blood", their most memorable songs were written by the songwriting and producing team of Leiber and Stoller...
. I was part of The Gang
Kool & the Gang
Kool & the Gang are an American jazz, R&B, soul, and funk group, originally formed as the Jazziacs in Jersey City, New Jersey in 1964.They went through several musical phases during the course of their recording career, starting out with a purist jazz sound, then becoming practitioners of R&B and...
. I was a Bar-Kay... If they come through Texas, I done played with them." The character was played by Samuel L. Jackson
Samuel L. Jackson
Samuel Leroy Jackson is an American film and television actor and film producer. After becoming involved with the Civil Rights Movement, he moved on to acting in theater at Morehouse College, and then films. He had several small roles such as in the film Goodfellas before meeting his mentor,...
, who had starred in two previous Tarantino films, Pulp Fiction
Pulp Fiction (film)
Pulp Fiction is a 1994 American crime film directed by Quentin Tarantino, who co-wrote its screenplay with Roger Avary. The film is known for its rich, eclectic dialogue, ironic mix of humor and violence, nonlinear storyline, and host of cinematic allusions and pop culture references...
and Jackie Brown
Jackie Brown (film)
Jackie Brown is a 1997 American crime drama film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. It is an adaptation of the novel Rum Punch by American novelist Elmore Leonard and pays homage to 1970s blaxploitation films....
.
Tommy Plympton
Tommy Plympton (played by Christopher Allen Nelson) is The Bride's fiancé who is murdered at Two Pines. He is the proprietor of a record shopRecord shop
A record shop or record store is an outlet that sells recorded music. Although vinyl records and audio cassettes are no longer sold in the majority of music stores, in favour of compact discs and home video recordings products, people in some countries, like the UK, still use the term "record...
and employed The Bride, who used the assumed name Arlene Machiavelli when she met him.