Val Quinlan

**Valerie "Val" Quinlan** (Hilary Swank) was the main villainess from the 2020 thriller, *Fatale*.

## Backstory

Val Quinlan was an acclaimed police detective, though her backstory revealed that she was once married to politician Carter Heywood, with the marriage resulting in a daughter, Haley. Three years prior to the events, a drunk Val left her service weapon out in the open and unattended, after which Haley took the gun an accidentally shot herself. As a result, Haley was disabled, and Carter divorced Val and filed a restraining order against her.

## Introduction

   The film's events introduced Val as a woman approached by main protagonist Derrick Tyler, after another man hits on her and fails. Val and Derrick's bond resulted in the pair engaging in a one-night stand later that evening, though the following night saw the Tylers' home being invaded by a masked assailant attempting to kill Derrick. To Derrick's surprise, Val was revealed as the detective on the scene, and both she and Derrick quickly masked their past encounter in Vegas.

Later on, Val approached Carter as he and his current wife were about to leave with Haley, after which Val pleaded with her ex-husband for visitation rights. Carter reminded Val of her drunken incident three years prior, and responded to Val's statements about her sobriety by reminding her that she was in violation of the restraining order, while denying her request and being told that she would never see Haley again. Val continued to interview Derrick regarding the break-in, though their conversation turned to their one-night stand, with Val informing Derrick that she would keep quiet about Vegas, adding that if he gets exposed, so does she.

A cautious Derrick searched for information on Val before he was approached by the detective, who drove him to a beach and pointed him in the direction of a nearby house. The house included a shocking revelation: Derrick's wife, Tracie Tyler, was engaged in an affair with his business partner and friend, Rafe Grimes. As Val also revealed, Rafe was the masked intruder, as he was enlisted to kill Derrick under Tracie's orders. Derrick became angry over the revelation, after which Val made a suggestion that Derrick should kill his wife and her lover, with Derrick voicing his temptation to do so. Later on, Val informed Carter that she would file for custody of Haley until the inquest on him is over, only for Carter to inform his ex-wife that he got to the judge and that Val was never going to win against him.

## Heel Turn

   Shortly afterwards, both Tracie and Rafe were found shot to death inside the Tylers' home, and following the murders, Derrick became a person of interest and was interrogated by Val, who informed Derrick that his wedding ring was found at the scene. Derrick revealed to Val that he did go to his house to find out the truth for himself, and found Tracie and Rafe together, after which he removed his wedding ring in anger. Derrick denied killing his wife and Rafe, though he remained under a cloud of suspicion, and it was after Derrick returned home from his wife's funeral that he encountered Val once again, who informed Derrick that he went from person of interest to suspect.

At that moment, Val turned heel by cryptically revealing herself as the actual killer, doing so by asking Derrick if the killer was the one who pulled the trigger or the person who wanted it done. The villainess informed Derrick that his realization wouldn't be believed, and after pulling a gun on Derrick, she ordered him to return to his family and continue portraying the grieving husband. All the while, Val entered Carter's home and glared ominously at her ex-husband, and was later confronted by Tyrin (Derrick's cousin) and Bumpy, who held the villainess at gunpoint and demanded answers for her plan to frame Derrick.

Val feigned being sick just so she could be taken to her bathroom, where the villainess unleashed her shotgun and killed Bumpy before shooting down Tyrin after a gun battle. Afterwards, Val used Tyrin's phone to call Derrick and arrange a meeting at the beach house, and after Derrick arrived, Val admitted to killing Tyrin in self-defense, prompting Derrick to take Val's gun and point it at him in anger. In response, Val suggested to Derrick that they allow Tyrin to take the fall for the murders, as his criminal record would make the claim believable and put both of them in the clear. Derrick refused and fired the gun, which turned out to be full of blanks.

## Climax and Death

    At that moment, the evil Val unleashed her gun and later revealed the true motive for her actions. As it turned out, Val killed Tracie and Rafe as part of her twisted plan to enlist Derrick to kill Carter, while adding that the gun Derrick pulled was the one used in the murders. The maniacal villainess stated that she planned to use Derrick just like he used her in Vegas, and gave the order to kill Carter, with her motive being getting Haley back. Val revealed Carter's running route to Derrick and ordered him to meet Carter there and kill him, threatening to frame Derrick for her murders if he didn't comply.

Derrick received the gun for the murder from Val, though during his approach, he held up the gun and attempted to warn Carter about Val's evil plans against him, only for Carter to fight back against Derrick. In the struggle, the gun went off and accidentally killed Carter, and afterwards, Derrick went to Val's home and informed him that the deed was done, albeit accidentally. The callous villainess mocked the accidental nature of her ex-husband's murder before presenting Derrick with the gun used in her previous murders, only for Derrick to voice his fears that Val would kill him and set him up, after which Val would be portrayed as a hero detective instead of a murderous villainess.

In response, Val stated that she didn't need him dead and that they were both clean, and regarding Derrick's statement that she killed four people, the villainess informed Derrick that she would kill more to get Haley back. Derrick took the gun, while commenting that Haley deserved better, only for Val to pick up another gun and attempt to kill Derrick, who anticipated Val's heel turn and fired his own weapon at the deranged villainess. Derrick had believed that he killed Val, but at that instant, Val attacked Derrick from behind with a knife, leading to Derrick shooting Val inside the elevator.

Val noticed Derrick laughing and asked what was funny, with Derrick later revealing that he recorded Val's confession on his phone. Val ended up dying of the gunshot, though in the film's final scenes, she was posthumously outed as a serial murderess, officially clearing Derrick.