Sue Snell
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Susan “Sue” Snell is a fictional character created by Stephen King. She was one of the main characters in his first published novel entitled "Carrie". She was a teenage girl who attempted to help Carrie White be happy and fit in.
In every adaptation and portrayal of Sue, she is shown as a popular teenage girl dating Tommy Ross. After taking part in the tormenting of Carrie in the locker room (following Carrie’s hysteria over her first period), Sue begins to feel bad about her actions. She asks her boyfriend, Tommy, to take Carrie to the prom, in an attempt to make Carrie feel accepted and happy, and to ease her own conscience. The disaster that takes place at the high school prom is set in place when Tommy accepts.
Contents |
[edit] The Novel
Susan Snell |
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| Gender: | Female |
|---|---|
| Status: | Alive |
| Town/City based in: | Chamberlain, Maine |
In the novel, Sue was a popular student who began doubting herself and even loathing herself following a prank involving Carrie. She had been dating Tommy Ross for six months, and had become his lover for two weeks. She had participated in the humiliation of Carrie White in the locker room of Thomas Ewen High School, and began to feel guilty over it, and even began hating being popular, and as a result of feeling ashamed for her participation in the shower prank.
While preparing for the prom, buying a gown and accepting Tommy’s invite, Sue began to plan for Carrie to go to the prom in her place. Sue wanted Carrie to fit in, and wanted her to be happy.
Staying home on prom night, she began to doubt her own motives, and worry about her late period and the possibility of Tommy falling for Carrie. When the town whistle begins blowing, Sue looked out her window and notices the fire at the school and rushed to her mother’s car. Speeding towards the school, Sue was horrified when the school exploded. She slammed on the brakes, and the car was screeched to a stop, throwing her against the steering wheel. She managed to get out of the car, and witnessed the explosion of a gas station nearby. She later flagged down a police sheriff, and was interrogated by him.
Three hours later, Sue found Carrie lying by the wrecked car of Billy Nolan and Christine Hargensen. She wanted to help her, but realized that she was dying. Carrie, wanting Sue to leave her alone, was then invited into Sue’s mind to see for herself that Sue didn’t want to hurt her, and that she wasn’t involved in the prom prank. When Carrie finally died, Sue was greeted with her own menstrual period, which may have been a miscarriage.
She later goes on to write a book called “My Name Is Susan Snell”, which records the events of the Carrie White incident from Sue’s point of view.
[edit] 1976 film
 Sue Snell |
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| Gender: | Female |
|---|---|
| Status: | Alive |
| Town/City based in: | Chamberlain, Maine |
| Portrayed by: | Amy Irving |
In the original movie adaptation by Brian De Palma, Sue was shown to be a strong willed, beautiful young woman. She had curly brown hair, and a small, slim body.
Like the novel, Sue participates in the locker room humiliation of Carrie, and begins feeling guilty because of it, eventually asking her boyfriend, Tommy Ross, to take Carrie to the prom. Unlike the novel, Sue doesn’t seem to feel worried over the possibilities of Tommy falling in love with Carrie. She instead heads over to the school and sneaks into the prom to check on them, and is happy to see Carrie smiling and being elected prom queen. Sue then notices the cord running along the stage, leading up to the bucket of pig blood above Carrie. Sue rushes up to Miss Collins and tries to get her to stop the inevitable prank, only to be slapped and forced out of the doors, seconds before Carrie is splattered with the blood. Before Sue can get back in, Carrie mentally closes all of the doors, locking Sue out while the chaos begins inside.
Following the death of all of her classmates, Sue is sent to Arkham Asylum after seemingly going insane, having a dream in which she lays flowers on the burnt down lot of Carrie’s house, only to have Carrie reach her bloody arm through the rubble to grab Sue.
[edit] The Sequel
 Sue Snell |
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| Gender: | Female |
|---|---|
| Status: | Dead |
| Town/City based in: | Chamberlain, Maine |
| Portrayed by: | Amy Irving |
Sue later recovered from her temporary insanity and went on to become the high school counselor for the new school, twenty years later. There, she began to notice a telekinetic spark in an awkward student named Rachel Lang, following the suicide of Rachel’s best friend Lisa. While asking Rachel about her powers in her office, Sue stressed her out, causing Rachel to shatter Sue's globe, scaring the both of them before Sue realized that she was right; Rachel had the same powers as Carrie White did.
Sue tried to first get Rachel to admit to her abilities before trying to help her in an attempt to prevent another meltdown, even bringing Rachel to the old, burnt down school that was destroyed by Carrie White in the first film. However, this only stressed out Rachel further, not knowing that her own humiliation was being plotted. Rachel rejected Sue’s help, and Sue became desperate to prevent another chaotic experience similar to Carrie White's prom night.
It was then that Sue snuck Rachel’s institutionalized mother, Barbara Lang, out of an asylum after discovering that Rachel shared a father with Carrie (the father being Ralph White). Sue rushed to an after-game party at Mark Bing’s mansion, only to be too late. Rachel had already been terribly humiliated, and had closed off the doors to the house before causing panic and chaos.
[edit] 2002 Television Movie
 Sue Snell |
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| Gender: | Female |
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| Status: | Alive |
| Town/City based in: | Unmentioned |
| Portrayed by: | Kandyse McClure |
The television portrayal of Sue was basically the same as the original novel.
Like the novel and 1976 movie, Sue had participated in shouting obscenities at Carrie when she had her first period in the locker room. Following Chris and Tina's prank of shoving tampons in Carrie's locker, Sue felt guilty, and asked her boyfriend, Tommy Ross, to take Carrie to the prom instead of her, in hopes of making Carrie happy and accepted.
Once Carrie accepted, Sue proceeded to help her get ready for the prom, something she didn’t do in any portrayal before. She assisted Carrie with her make-up, helping her choose a good shade of lipstick.
Following the destruction at the prom and the death of Margaret White, Sue eventually found Carrie, unconscious in a bathtub full of water. Sue pulled her out and successfully revived her, despite later testifying that she had found Carrie dead and had left her. Later, she and Carrie visited the graves of Carrie and her mother before leaving for Florida with Carrie.
[edit] Death
The only portrayal of Sue to be killed off was in the sequel to the original 1976 film, The Rage: Carrie 2.
In the film, after having smuggled Rachel's mother out of the asylum, Sue rushed to the party to stop a catastrophe from happening, but only made it to the door before she was indirectly killed by Rachel. Rachel had used her telekinesis to impale an escaping party-goer through the head with a fire poker as he ran to the door. The fire poker rammed through the peephole, right into Sue’s head as she reached the other side of the door, killing her instantly.
| Carrie (by Stephen King) |
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Novel |
