Redeemed villainess Judith Fessbeggler
Judith Fessbeggler (Amanda Peet) is the main (redeemed) antagonist from the 2001 comedy, Saving Silverman (alternately titled, Evil Woman).
Backstory[]
Judith Fessbeggler is a psychiatrist and the love interest of main protagonist Darren Silverman, who (as described by one of Darren's friends, Wayne LeFessier) is a pushover for women. Judith's backstory revealed that she actually did date more assertive men, with one of them being Josh, a deathmatch fighter. Some point before the film's events, Judith attended one of Josh's fights, and was heartbroken to see that Josh not only lost the match, but his life as well. After Josh's death, Judith decided that she was done with assertive men, and decided to date (perceived) pushovers, while also acting cold and emotionless.
Events[]
Judith first appeared when she walked into a bar attended by Darren, Wayne, and J.D. McNugent, who were coming off another performance as Diamonds in the Rough--a band made as a tribute to their favorite singer, Neil Diamond. Despite Judith's refusal to be set up, Wayne introduced her to Darren, who Judith shoots down. However, when another man flirts with her, Judith grabs Darren and claims him as her boyfriend, starting their relationship. Judith's controlling personality is shown quickly, but despite this, Darren decided to bring Judith to Wayne and J.D.'s house, where they were watching football. Immediately, Judith is put off by the personalities of Darren's friends, and things are made worse when Judith falls during J.D.'s attempt to fix his recliner, and the pair of them spraying beer in celebration was the last straw for her.
On their way out, Judith gave Darren an ultimatum: either he dumps Wayne and J.D. or she'll withhold sex. As Wayne later revealed to J.D. during another performance (with a replacement for Darren), Judith made Darren get butt implants and she burned his Neil Diamond records. The duo's attempt to get to Darren regarding Judith falls on deaf ears, so they decided to confront the villainess in her office. In response to the pair's demand to dump Darren, the evil Judith stated that she enjoyed manipulating Darren and that there was nothing Wayne and J.D. could do to stop her. The pair's attempt to set up Darren as a philanderer failed when Judith easily spotted Wayne's tattoo, leading to Judith threatening to kill the pair if they went near Darren again. Seeing Judith forcing new friends on Darren drew the ire of Wayne and J.D., who vowed to save Darren from Judith's clutches, especially after Darren told his friends that he and Judith were engaged--and that he would be taking Judith's surname (under Judith's insistence).
Kidnapped[]
After Darren refused a set up with his former high school love, Sandy Perkus, Wayne and J.D. decided to abduct Judith and make it appear that she dumped Darren. Despite Judith fighting back against the pair, she was successfully abducted by the dimwitted duo and taken to their house. The pair left a break up note under the claim that it was from Judith, but even after seeing the letter, Darren refused to believe that his relationship was over. Wayne and J.D. decided to fake Judith's death, doing so by digging up a cadaver and sending it over a cliff in a car, a plan which works.
Meanwhile, Judith successfully fools J.D. into revealing his identity, receiving the knowledge that Wayne and J.D. were her abductors. After they back out of actually killing Judith, J.D. ended up in a makeshift session with Judith that revealed a secret he had figured for a while: he was gay. During J.D.'s emotional breakdown and elation over Judith understanding him, he is knocked out by the villainess, who later escaped. Wayne and J.D. chase Judith in the former's truck, and managed to bring her back to the house. This time, Wayne chains her to a chair and places a catcher's mask on her, and later goes to help Darren out during his date with Sandy.
After getting into a tussle at the restaurant that Darren and Sandy were attending, Wayne returned home with food from Arby's for Judith (after originally denying Judith's request). Once Wayne removes the mask from Judith, he asked her why she would be with Darren, as he suspected that he wasn't his type. Judith revealed her backstory and her relationship with Josh, while also stating that his death motivated her to stave off assertive men. Wayne later asked Judith if she loved Darren, with Judith dancing around the question, confirming Wayne's suspicions that she doesn't care about Darren. Judith defended her demeanor by claiming that one has to make cold decisions in relationships; however, she later praised Wayne's ability to abduct her--twice--leading to Wayne falling for her charms. The two of them began making out; a session that even included Wayne freeing one of Judith's arms. They were interrupted by a knock at the door, which was made by their former football coach, Coach Norton, who was out of jail.
Judith still had possession of the key, and she used it to escape, fighting off Wayne and Norton and scaring off J.D. in the process. She later arrived at Darren's home and found him with Sandy, with Darren shocked to see that Judith was alive. With that, their original relationship was back on, and Wayne and J.D. were arrested, but not before Darren beat them up in anger.
Redemption[]
The film's climax had Wayne and J.D. broken out of jail by Norton, and after they picked up Sandy from the convent, they drove to Darren and Judith's wedding, with Neil Diamond as a passenger. At the wedding, Neil appeared and sung one of his classic songs, Hello Again, with Sandy singing along. Judith forced Darren to say "I do" on two occasions, with Darren refusing both times. Darren declared his love for Sandy, saying that she was his one and only someone. Judith later broke down and asked where her "one and only someone" was, and it was at that point that Wayne, now deeply in love with Judith, sings Neil's song while walking towards her. Judith runs towards Wayne, only to grab one of the folding chairs and strike him.
Judith accused Wayne of ruining her life and loudly stated that she would never be with someone like him even after losing Darren. Wayne asked Judith why she couldn't admit that she liked kissing him, only for Judith to punch him and knock out his tooth. Wayne delivered the same blow, and then told her to admit that he's the assertive man she wanted, while also saying that Judith was the "hardcore bitch he's always dreamed of." After this, the pair stopped fighting and ended up making out with each other passionately. Judith's redemption was cemented in the film's end, as she married Wayne as part of a triple wedding, with Darren marrying Sandy and J.D. marrying Norton, who also came out as a gay man.