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| “ | And I knew all the while that I'd have to lie... Lie to the very people I'm here to save. To the dear souls of this island, so that we may bring them Your love and Your mercy and your miracles. So... Forgive me, Lord, for the small lies I must tell in Your service. | „ |
| ~ Pruitt's confession to God. |
| “ | NO! I promised you complete honesty, and I'm giving that to you, and I'm tired of you lying to me, Riley Flynn! I've forgiven it time and again, but today is critical for us, and I'm finished! COMPLETE HONESTY! HOW DOES IT MAKE YOU FEEL!? | „ |
| ~ Pruitt's breakdown after Riley refuses to acknowledge his jealousy. |
| “ | Pruitt: No. Bev: I'm sorry? Pruitt: No, we got this wrong. Beverly: Oh, don't be ridiculous. Pruitt: No, Beverly, please look at them. We are the wolves. Bev: No. No, please, not you too. Not you, Monsignor. Pruitt: I was wrong. We were wrong-we are wrong. And this needs to stop. Bev: They need leadership. Look at them, they're lost without a leader, a shepherd. That must be you, Monsignor. It has to be you. It has always been you. Pruitt: Nope, it was never me. That's the thing about priesthood, it's never supposed to be about me, it's supposed to be about GOD! |
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| ~ Pruitt during the burning of Crockett Island as he realizes he was wrong. |
Monsignor John Pruitt, also known by the false name Father Paul Hill, is the main antagonist of the horror-drama miniseries Midnight Mass.
He is the priest of St. Patrick's church on the small, isolated island of Crockett. After growing old and starting to lose his mind, he took a pilgrimage to the holy land. While there he wound up getting lost in the dessert, where he would stumble upon a cave housing a vampiric monster he viewed as a angel. After the creature fed upon him, it de-aged him, and turned him into a vampire. Viewing this is a miracle, he took the "angel" back to Crockett to spread this "miracle".
He was portrayed by Hamish Linklater, who also played John Tyler in Tell Me Your Secrets and Cipher in The Boys.
Personality[]
John is a kind, affable man who tries his best to serve the people of Crockett. Unfortunately, this makes him extra dangerous, as his intentions all come from a good place, allowing him to easily manipulate others into going along with his scheme to transform everyone in his church into vampires.
John's secret affair with Mildred Gunning influences many of his choices, as one of the primary motivations for unleashing the vampire plague was to de-age her so they could rekindle their romance and start over anew. This is played for sympathy, as while it was a selfish choice on his part, he genuinely loved Mildred.
Despite his kind and warm nature, John has also always had a deceitful nature as well, even prior to his encounter with the angel. When Riley Flynn was a boy, he brought an injured mouse to John for him to heal it. Believing a miracle would strengthen Riley's faith, John mercy-killed the mouse, then found a lookalike, and claimed it was healed next time the boy visited him. This mindset led to him lying to the entire island of Crockett after returning from the Middle East, both about Paul Hill being a separate man from John Pruitt, and hiding the angel from them, as well as the blood from the creature he spiked the communion wine with.
Shortly before transforming his congregation, he became more radical, as the power and influence he had acquired, alongside his circle of followers who did his bidding unquestioningly, drove him to excuse even his worse actions (such as murdering Joe Collie). Mildred noticed this change in behavior when listening to one of his sermons, and proceeded to condemn him as an entirely different man from the one she once knew. Even at his worst though, he was still less extreme than his right hand woman Bev Keane, as he allowed Riley to roam free after being transformed into a vampire by the angel, and learning his secret, as he believed everyone deserved the right to make their own choices. This extended to only wanting the vampire plague to be spread to his followers, as he refused to send them out into the village to feast, unlike Bev who did exactly that once he was incapacitated.
After healing from a gunshot wound inflicted upon him by his former lover Mildred, and witnessing the carnage Bev caused by unleashing his congregation, John felt deep remorse, and openly supported destroying the horde of vampires he had cultivated.
Biography[]
John Pruitt took an interest in religion after his sister died of polio, as he desperately wanted to understand the nature of death.
Sometime after becoming the priest on Crockett he began an affair with a devout follower of his named Mildred Gunning while her husband was at war. This affair led to her pregnancy with her daughter Sarah, but when her husband returned from the Navy Mildred broke off the affair for her family's sake. John would keep the secret to himself, while admiring his daughter from afar for her entire life.
John would eventually grow old and his mental health would take a drastic turn for the worse. During this period he took a trip to the holy land, where he'd wander off during a mental haze, and get lost in a massive sand storm. In the midst of the storm he came across a cave, and took shelter inside. Among the darkness he encountered a winged humanoid monster that would feed upon his blood. When the process ended he had been transformed into a young man again. Viewing this as a miracle, and the monster as an angel, he formed a parasitic bond with the beast, led it out of the holy land, and smuggled it back home.
Back on Crockett he would hide the miracle from his congregation under the guise of being his own replacement: a man named Paul Hill (named after the apostle from the Bible who also underwent a more metaphorical transformation). As Paul he would mix the angel's blood with the communion wine to slowly transform his congregation into younger, healthier versions of themselves. This culminated in a miracle that brought a religious revival to his community: healing an injured girl named Leeza, and allowing her to walk again.
Midst this time of spiritual awakening he would begin to grow fatigued, until he collapsed in front of a small circle of trusted allies. After being pronounced dead, he reawakened a few minutes later, alive and well. However, this resurrection was the awakening of his vampiric nature. He noticed he could no longer walk out into the sun without being burned, and had acquired superhuman strength. John began to hold mass after sunset, but this did not help with his worst change of all: his sudden lust for blood. Overcome by this craving, he eventually murdered a local islander named Joe Collie, right as the man had begun confiding in him.
John's right hand woman Bev Keane would make excuses for his behavior, which John himself ultimately began to believe as his influence across Crockett grew greater and greater. Radicalized beyond the point of return, during his Easter Mass he would try to persuade his congregation to drink poison and die so they could rise again and be like him. While most complied with his demands, many resisted, leading to a struggle where he was shot by his former lover Mildred.
After fully healing from the gunshot wound, he realized that Bev Keane had released his congregation upon the entire island while he was unconscious, leading to mass carnage. Overwhelmed by remorse, he talked with Mildred, and asked for her forgiveness. Shortly after his own daughter Sarah would arrive at his church to cover it in gasoline and burn it down to prevent the vampires from using it as refuge during sunrise. John approved of her actions and revealed his identity as her father, only to then witness her get gunned down before his eyes by one of his own followers. Lifting his daughter's limp body, he abandoned his congregation with Mildred by his side, pushing over a candle and burning his own church to the ground on the way out. After tearing the collar from his neck, rejecting his identity as a priest, John spent his final moments with Mildred before the sun incinerated them both.
Trivia[]
- While The Angel was the source of John's powers, it was never shown to be anything more than a beast acting upon instinct, while John masterminded the entire plan to convert his congregation into vampires, making him the true main antagonist.