Josie Wellstead is a main character on TNT's Snowpiercer. She is portrayed by Katie McGuinness.
She is a strong, no-nonsense woman who lives in poverty at the tail of the train. Josie's downfall at the hands of Melanie Cavill is a mere example of the extreme lengths Cavill will go to protect her secret.
In Season 2, it's discovered that Josie is actually still alive, severely frostbitten, and labeled as a Jane Doe in the Second Class Clinic.
History[]
Little is known about her early life other than that she was a vet before The Freeze. She does not have a ticket to Snowpiercer and lives in the Tail.
Throughout The Series[]
Tail's rebellion[]
Josie is first presented as one of the leaders among the Tail along with Andre Layton. When Andre is taken upfront to solve Sean Wise's murder, however, she receives backlash from the Tailies as they believe they have been betrayed by Layton.
Despite the revolt against her in the Tail, she remained an integral part of the revolution and actively engages when the planning was in process. She further participated when Pike ordered that the revolution was to go ahead. Following this, she was happy to see that Layton had not betrayed the Tail, but was actually working uptrain to gather blueprints and other information that would aid in their revolution.
Using an access chip passed to her by Layton, Josie moves around the train undetected during sanitation work hours. She speaks with Astrid about Layton and is told that he has solved the murder but has not yet returned to the tail. Josie becomes worried when nobody is able to locate Layton and suspects that he has been suspended within the drawers. She actively goes looking for him and finds him in one of the drawers but is caught by John Osweiller. Luckily, Bess Till knocks Oz unconscious long enough for Josie to escape with Layton and seek refuge with Zarah Ferami.[2]
Presumed Death[]
After learning that Miles has been selected as Melanie's newest engineer apprentice, she feeds him a mild poison so that he ends up in the infirmary where Josie can contact him. Later, she is outed by Zarah for helping Layton, and Melanie arrests and interrogates her. Realizing Josie is unwilling to reveal any information, Melanie proceeded to freeze her finger with a hose before promptly smashing it with a hammer. After getting help from Bess, Josie broke free of her handcuffs and fought Melanie in the interrogation room. However, during the fight, Josie kicked the hose, causing it to disconnect, leaking frozen vapor into the room. After a quick fight in which Josie tried to strangle Melanie, the latter gained the upper hand and broke free, running out of the room and locking the door. Soon after, Josie was frozen presumably to death by the dry ice leaking into the room. Melanie then gave orders that her corpse was to be fed into the compost system on Snowpiercer.[3]
Survival[]
While helping out in the Third Class clinic, Zarah discovers that Josie is actually still alive, having been brought in as a Jane Doe by the Jackboots after her presumed death. However, Josie has suffered extensive frostbite and is bedridden. To protect her new life, Zarah considers killing Josie but later tells Layton the truth. Layton rushes to Josie's side and she wakes up as he sits at her bedside.[4]
Later, Josie is visited by several Tailies, but she refuses to speak with Miles, not wanting to see her in such a state. When Layton comes to visit her again, the two talk, and Josie expresses her anger at Layton for forming an alliance with Melanie and the number of Tailies that died in his revolution as a result. Layton explains that he did what is right to ensure the survival of the train, but Josie is reluctant to accept it. She later recognizes that Layton's baby and Melanie's plan represent hope for the future and agrees to support him.[5]
A few days later, Wilford agrees to allow the Headwoods to treat Snowpiercer's frostbite patients, causing Layton to suspect that someone is passing him information, including about Josie's condition. While the rest of the patients are rather easily treated, Josie's condition is far more serious and will require a more dedicated treatment aboard Big Alice. Despite Layton's reluctance, Josie knows that this is her only real chance for a recovery and tells Layton that she can observe Wilford from behind enemy lines as it were.
Before Josie's departure, Miles comes to see her against her protests, but Miles calls Josie "Mom" and his hero, brightening her spirits. The Last Australian reveals that Miles has been working on engineering life systems and Miles tells Josie that he wants to be one of the first people to recolonize the Earth. Tearfully, Josie tells him to keep that hope alive before being transported to the tail and aboard Big Alice to the cheers of the watching crowd. Later, Josie lays on a bed in the lab aboard Big Alice next to Icy Bob when Wilford shows up and looks in on her. When Josie turns her head to look at him, he's gone.[6]
Personality[]
Josie is head-strong and believes in the Tail rebellion. She is also persistent in keeping secrets.
Relationships[]
Miles[]
Miles is Josie's foster son. They have a close mother-son relationship.
Andre Layton[]
Josie seems to be romantically involved with Andre, as first seen in First, the Weather Changed. The two kiss each other in Access Is Power as a way for her to get the Access Chip. In Justice Never Boarded she gets him out of the Drawers and brings him to Zarah Ferami to hide, after Bess Till helped them escape. She and Layton both have sex with each other for the first time in Trouble Comes Sideways.
Appearances[]
| Appearance | EP1 | EP2 | EP3 | EP4 | EP5 | EP6 | EP7 | EP8 | EP9 | EP10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | M | M | M |
| Season 2 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |||
| Season 3 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ||
| Season 4 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Appeared | Did Not Appear | H = Hallucinations | ||||||||
| V = Voiced | M = Mentioned | F = Flashback | ||||||||
Memorable Quotes[]
- Josie Wellstead: "Do you remember your mum, Miles?"
- Miles: "I remember she smelled good"
- Josie Wellstead: "That's all?"
- Miles: "I only remember the train. You're my Tail mum."
- ― Josie and Miles
Trivia[]
She has spoken the opening dialogues for Prepare to Brace and Keep Hope Alive.
During an interview with actress Katie McGuinness[7], she discussed the experience of shooting the scene where Josie sees Old Ivan's traumatic end in the first episode of Snowpiercer.
"It was brutal and just at the beginning as well. The Tail’s carriage is quite small. We were shooting in the summer, it was really hot, and it’s easy to feel kind of crushed and oppressed in that environment. So, that kind of all added to it."
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