Vanessa Ives

Vanessa Ives is the main protagonist of the story. Throughout the series, her character is given an elaborate backstory that follows her from her childhood to the beginning of the series.

Growing up in England, Vanessa was best friends with Mina Murray (Olivia Llewellyn). The two were inseparable, and despite religious differences (the Ives were devout Roman Catholic), so were their families. One evening, Vanessa spotted Mina's father Sir Malcolm (Timothy Dalton) having sex with her own mother. Years later, a resentful Vanessa seduced Mina's fiancé, ruining their friendship.

Not long after, Vanessa fell ill. Her sickness was enigmatic, and her family was unable to help her. Unbeknownst to them, she had been possessed by the Devil. She checks herself into a mental asylum, where she befriended an orderly (Rory Kinnear) - who, unbeknownst to her, would go on to die and be reanimated by Victor Frankenstein (Harry Treadaway) as an undead creature calling himself John Clare. At one point, Vanessa was visited by visions of Lucifer and his brother Dracula, but she used her own powers to scare them away. After a trepanning, she was released back into her mother's care. The surgery was unsuccessful, however, and her mother dies of a heart attack after seeing Vanessa having sex with Lucifer. Not long after, Vanessa has a vision of Mina, who begs her former friend to find and save her.[1][2]

Determined to find Mina, and understand her own powers, Vanessa seeks out the Cut-Wife of Ballantree Moor (Patti Lupone), an infamous witch living in the moors of England. Under her tutelage, Vanessa learns about her own powers and others who would desire them. Nightcomers in service to Lucifer, led by Evelyn Poole (Helen McCrory), scheme to separate Vanessa from the Cut-Wife, and deliver the former to their master. To these ends, Evelyn seduces a lord and convinces him to arrange a mob to execute the Cut-Wife. Her plan is successful, and Vanessa watches her mentor burn, before being branded herself. She leaves the Moor soon after, traumatized by what she has seen.[3] Soon after, she seeks out Sir Malcolm, and the two agree to work together to find Mina, despite the animosity between their families.

Vanessa attends a Wild West show, headlined by Ethan Chandler (Josh Hartnett). She offers Ethan a job as a hired gun, which he accepts. They are unable to find Mina, but enlist Dr. Victor Frankenstein into their cause.[4] Vanessa and Malcolm attend a party and participate in a seance, where Vanessa becomes possessed by a variety of spirits before.[5]

As they continue their search for Mina, Vanessa pursues a romantic relationship with the enigmatic Dorian Gray (Reeve Carney). During a sexual encounter with Dorian, Vanessa becomes possessed by Lucifer once more.[6] She begins by taunting Malcolm and Victor with their former sins, before the demon completely takes over her soul. She becomes feral and violent, and needs to be restrained. For a month, she battles the Devil inside of her, and he appears to her under many different visages. Malcolm implores Vanessa to reach out to Mina, but she is unsuccessful. Eventually, a priest comes to give a dying Vanessa her last rites, but she attacks him. In a moment of clarity, she begs Ethan to kill her. Instead, he holds a pendant of St. Jude to her forehead, and chants in Latin, begging for divine intervention. The exorcism is successful, and Vanessa collapses. When she wakes up, she claims to know where Mina is.[7]

The group finds a horde of vampires at a theater, and fight through them. Mina reveals herself, and initially seems happy to see them. However, she quickly turns violent and attempts to bite Vanessa, claiming to be delivering her to her Master. Malcolm shoots Mina, claiming Vanessa is his only daughter. The two are distraught over Mina's death, but bond over their grief. Vanessa seeks out a priest and asks for a formal exorcism. Once the priest asks her if she truly wants to be normal, however, she apparently changes her mind and refuses.[8]

Vanessa and Ethan are beset upon by Nightcomers: witches in service to Lucifer. Vanessa becomes paranoid, and the group goes to great lengths to protect her. During this time, she also befriends John Clare, a homeless man who she does not recognize as the reanimated orderly from her imprisonment in the Banning Clinic.[9]

After fleeing back to Ballentree Moor, Vanessa and Ethan are called back to London when the leader of the Nightcomers, Evelyn Poole, takes Malcolm captive in her manor. Vanessa steals away to face the witch alone, and is confronted by a ventriloquist dummy made in her own likeness. The dummy, controlled by Lucifer, tries to convince Vanessa to join him, but she refuses and destroys it. Evelyn grows hysterical and attempts to kill Vanessa, but is intercepted by Ethan and killed.[10]

Despite her victory, Vanessa is more lonely than ever. She offers her love to Ethan, but he refuses and turns himself in to the police. Sir Malcolm leaves to escort Sembene's remains back to Africa. Victor descends further into drug addiction. Spiraling into depression and struggling with the guilt over her own sins, Vanessa turns away from God. She takes the cross from her wall, and throws it in the fire.[11]

Having spiraled into a deep depression, Vanessa is convinced to see Joan Clayton (Lupone), a psychiatrist who she is shocked to see greatly resembles her late friend, the Cut-Wife. Vanessa also falls in love with Dr. Alexander Sweet (Christian Camargo), a zoologist whom she met at a museum. Upon deducing that Dr. Sweet is in fact Dracula, however, Vanessa resolves to kill him. However, upon their confrontation, Dracula asks Vanessa to join him in bringing about the Apocalypse, and promises to love her unconditionally and eternally. Cryptically responding "I accept myself" when asked if she would accept Dracula's love, she submits and allows him to bite her. With Vanessa finally becoming the Mother of Evil, darkness falls upon London and a plague spreads.

Vanessa quickly becomes disillusioned with Dracula's affections. Once Ethan and Malcolm return to London to confront her and Dracula, she begs Ethan to kill her and end the darkness that has overtaken the world. The two finally kiss and declare their love for each other. After saying the Lord’s Prayer, Ethan shoots her and Vanessa dies in his arms, but not before happily declaring she can finally see God. Vanessa's death breaks Dracula's hold on London, and his plague is lifted.

She is buried in London. Malcolm and Ethan are despondent after her death, but find solace knowing that Vanessa finally found peace in death. John Clare, who Vanessa had briefly befriended, watches her funeral and weeps at her grave.[12]