 ✓
| ||
| This villain was proposed but was rejected by the community for not being heinous enough or lacks what is necessary to be a Pure Evil villain. Therefore, this villain shall be added to our "Never Again List", where proposed villains rejected by the community shall be placed to prevent future proposals of the same evil-doer. They can be proposed again (with the permission of an administrator) if new elements appear in their series that can change their status as non-PE villains. Any act of adding this villain to the Pure Evil category without a proposal or creating a proposal for this villain without the permission of an administrator will result in a ban. | ||
  |
This article's content is marked as Mature The page contains mature content that may include coarse language, sexual references, strong drug use, extremely traumatic themes, and/or graphic violent images which may be disturbing to some. Mature pages are recommended for those who are 18 years of age and older. If you are 18 years or older or are comfortable with graphic material, you are free to view this page. Otherwise, you should close this page and view another page. |
| “ | Life is a series of interactions. Action, reaction. Choices, consequences. You chose to be disrespectful, and this is your consequence. | „ |
| ~ Don Cody to Sarah. |
Don Cody is the main antagonist of the 2021 film Girl In The Basement.
In his characterisation, he is a controlling and cruel father who believes he is right all the time and throws temper tantrums whenever his ego is bruised, or when someone does something he doesn't like, having abused his wife so badly to the point where she is too weak willed to stand up to him and hating Sara because she isn't scared of him, deciding to imprison her to "teach her lesson" along with the kids that were born as a result of his repeated rapes, until he is arrested for his crimes of imprisoning his family against their will for two decades.
He was portrayed by Judd Nelson, whom also played Nathaniel Burke in Steel.
Biography[]
Don is introduced driving his daughter Sarah and her daughter Marie to the hospital after an asthma attack. Sarah rushes Don to get to the hospital faster. When they arrive at the hospital, he carries the unresponsive Marie inside the hospital but tells Sarah to keep her mouth shut. As the doctors and nurses take Marie to be prepped, Sarah and Don can only look on, hoping that they are not too late to save the girl.
The film cuts to 20 years earlier. Don is having dinner with his family, which includes his wife Irene, and his two daughters Amy and Sarah. At first, appearing as an idyllic family, tensions rise when Amy tells her mother that she is going back to her college dorm for the rest of spring break. Sarah gets up to leave, saying that she is late for a party with her friends, adding that she had asked Irene weeks prior. Don is taken aback, and glares at Irene, who says that she had meant to tell him, but had gotten around to it. Sarah says that it's just a party, but Don forces her to sit back down, saying he doesn't like her attitude. Amy offers to drive Sarah to the party, but Don coldly shuts her down before ordering Sarah to go to her room. Once she is in her room, Sarah sneaks out the window and meets up with her boyfriend Chris to go to the party, Don finds out after unlocking her bedroom door and noticing she is out of bed so he decides to wait until she gets back in the morning while looking out the window now and then to see if she came back yet.
Sarah eventually returns, and Don argues with her again about it being his house and therefore she lives under his rules which makes Sarah announce that she is moving out when she turns 18 in a few months. Don overhears this and heads down into the basement where he reveals a secret room and begins making a bomb shelter for the next three months. Don then tricks Sarah into helping him carry luggage into the basement where he reveals the secret room. Don asks Sarah what she thinks Sarah says she doesn't like due to the lack of windows Don says "That's too bad" before locking her in the room imprisoning her and blocking out any kind of way for her to get help from the outside.
On the 4th day, Don comes to visit Sarah but she hides behind a pillar and knocks him to the side but it is revealed the second door is also keypad locked. Don then corners her and drags her back into the room by her hair and Sarah tells Don he cannot do this to her due to the lack of air but Don reveals as long as there is power there is ventilation and if she tries to open the locked door three times while failing then the power will go off along with the ventilation. Sarah then asks Don why he is doing this to her and Don tells her she is facing the consequences of her being disrespectful. Don then asks Sarah if she understands him but Sarah doesn't reply, leading to Don slapping her and pinning her against a door to anally rape her causing her to throw up after he leaves the room.
Sarah's boyfriend Chris then comes to her house asking for her whereabouts, but Don fabricates a story about Sarah running off with a childhood friend named Steve to Florida and lies that they have been wanting to do it after graduation for years. Chris is annoyed at this and drives off with Don feigning sympathy for him before going back inside.
During her 18th birthday, Don gives Sarah a small cake and a red dress for her to put on and then asks her what she wants. Sarah asks to get out of the basement but Don says that it is too early for that, so Sarah asks for a television Don says she has not heard that yet, so Sarah asks for a clock which Don agrees to. After receiving some canned foods Sarah makes a weapon out of a metal tin lid and wooden handle and attempts to attack Don with it but he disarms her with ease and then throws her against a brick wall and then stomps on her arm and then proceeds to rape her again to "teach her a lesson"
Don eventually gets Sarah pregnant with his sexual assaults, so she uses a pregnancy help book to give birth to the first of her three children Marie. Don then appears later and tells her that motherhood will give her a purpose in life. A few years later, Sarah gets pregnant again due to Don and is scared of having another baby so she asks Don to let her and Marie out but Don just reacts aggressively to the comment and goes back upstairs for family dinner.
During dinner, Don's wife Irene grows increasingly worried about Sarah's disappearance and says she doesn't care how much money it costs after Don refuses to pay for a private investigator after Irene spent £5000 on a trip to Florida. After Irene refuses, Don throws a temper tantrum and tells Irene she has another daughter before going back down to Sarah to give her and Marie a TV as a Christmas present.
Sarah then gives birth to her second child 6 years later, and asks Don to get some medicine for Marie but when Sarah tells him it won't work because the medicine Don gave is meant for adults and could poison Marie. Don just coldly remarks he doesn't care since Sarah and Amy got sick all the time but Irene was able to handle it. Don also says that it's Sarah's responsibility since she is the mother but Sarah adds that Marie needs a doctor but Don just walks off ignoring her.
Don is later questioned about his lying to Chris about Sarah and Steve since Amy revealed to Chris that it was a lie, but Don believes he is in the right and it doesn't matter if he lies to a "lowlife" like Chris who sneaks around with his daughter. Don tries to make himself look better by saying that everything he has done has only been for the benefit of his family but Irene is finally fed up with him and tells him she will hire a private investigator and that is final.
Don chases after Irene in a fit, and Amy notices he dropped his keys so she heads down to the basement and finds the secret door, but Don comes down and demands his keys back before ordering her to go back upstairs. Don enters the room again and asks for Sarah's third child's name which she reveals is Thomas. Sarah asks Don to take Thomas upstairs due to there not being enough room for 4 people in the basement. Don initially refuses, but Sarah sweet talks him saying that if he takes Thomas upstairs she will have more time to spend taking care of Don which makes Don accept her request not knowing Sarah's real plan was to get a note to her mother revealing that she is stuck in the basement.
Irene then picks up Thomas outside with Don acting oblivious to it and then notices Sarah's secret note to inform her mother he goes downstairs to taunt Sarah about her failed attempt and then forces her to wear the red dress again before raping her off-screen.
8 years pass, and Sarah has become pregnant with a 4th child Marie decides to put makeup on for once which causes Don to look at Marie lustfully so Sarah reprimands him and tells him to stay away from her. Don decides to turn off the power to get back at Sarah, causing her and Marie to have to stay near the vent to get oxygen.
Sarah eventually chips a hole in the ceiling due to the rain causing water damage and sends a signal for help using a torch. However, a passer-by sees this and informs Don that someone is trying to send a signal which causes him to go into the basement and beat Sarah up in front of her two children eventually causing her to bleed and go into labor ending with the baby dying, leaving Don to bury it outside.
4 years pass, and Marie and Michael both start to get impatient and want out of the basement but Don blames it on Sarah saying "She needs to learn to behave herself" which causes Marie and Michael to blame Sarah for not getting them out of there causing Sarah to smash her room up in a rage after trying to reassure them that she is protecting them with Marie and Michael feeling guilty and deciding to clean the room up after she passes out.
When she wakes up Sarah explains to Marie and Michael that she used to live upstairs with her family but Don tricked her into going in the basement and imprisoned her. Marie and Michael then understand the monster that Don really is but Marie shortly has an asthma attack afterward. Michael then asks Sarah what is wrong with him and Marie but Sarah reassures him that nothing is wrong with them and it's always been Don's fault for their disasters.
Two years later, Don comes into the basement with supplies but Sarah complains about how they are already trying to ration their supplies Don just gets angry and insults her, causing Michael to also get angry and stand up for Sarah but Don just mocks him about there is nothing that Michael can do to stop him so Michael attacks him in a blind rage until Sarah calms Don down which makes Don leave but not without turning off the power first.
Later that year, Don gets fired from work and starts arguing with his wife Irene about money troubles but quickly shrugs it off. Later, he attaches a tube from the car's exhaust pipe to the ventilation system in the basement and starts his car which starts to release carbon monoxide into the basement which slowly chokes Sarah and her family to death but is forced to stop when Thomas comes into the garage. Don then heads down into the basement to see if they are ok and they turn out to be fine.
In the 20th year, Marie once again collapses due to a big asthma attack so Sarah begs Don to let her take Marie to the hospital and eventually persuades him but he keeps Michael locked in the basement all by himself. They then arrive at the hospital, and the doctors reveal that Marie's condition is critical and discuss her medical history which Don knows nothing about. While Don looks away, Sarah takes the opportunity to ruin the medical papers by spilling water on them which forces Don to leave and get a replacement. Sarah then takes the opportunity to get help from a doctor and a policeman finally ending with Don getting arrested for his crimes and Michael is released from the basement as he is also having an asthma attack due to him and Marie having a severe lack of Vitamin D.
After they are released, Marie and Michael reunite with Thomas, and the three play football together with Sarah, Irene, and Amy watching them. Chris then shows up and apologizes to her that he never tried to look for her in the past 20 years. However, Sarah reveals she hasn't stopped thinking about Chris for the past 20 years either. After Chris gives her a new helmet he had been meaning to give to Sarah when she turned 18. The film ends with the two finally going for a ride again after 20 lengthy years.
Personality[]
Don was extremely petty and had a very fragile ego as he would throw temper tantrums over the smallest of things constantly and he tortured Sara and her family for very minor things too such as Sara standing up for her daughter after Don lustfully admired her. He is also unrepentant to the end, constantly blaming Sara for the situation, unable to see that it is entirely his fault. He was also manipulative and controlling, trying to control what his family does constantly, even beating Irene so badly one time to the point where she was hospitalized and made himself seem like a good dad to his grandchildren and his other family members when it was all just an act to hide his petty and abusive side.
Trivia[]
- Don Cody is based off the real life case of Josef Fritzl, who imprisoned his daughter, Elizabeth, for 24 years in a cellar until he was stopped in 2008. Due to this, the film also had to be toned down due to the real case possibly being too dark for some countries.