The Adjudicator

* JW3
* TC

*"Do not make the mistake of thinking you exist outside the rules, no men do."*
—The Adjudicator to The Bowery King[src]
**Adjudicators** are agents of The High Table who are tasked with adjudging those who commit offenses against the High Table or commit severe violations of the organization's rules.

One such member served as a representative of the High Table in the search for the coin press stolen by Frankie Scott during the 1970s. Another member served as a representative of The Elder and was given authority by the High Table to deal with John Wick and those who aided him after the latter's assassination of High Table member Santino D'Antonio.

## History

### Events of *The Continental: From the World of John Wick*

*"What I'm sharing with you is very privileged information, information I only share with one kind of person. The kind you are about to die."*
—The Adjudicator
During the 1970s, a different and younger individual served as the Adjudicator of the High Table. Her mission was to recover a coin press of ambiguous but dire significance that had been entrusted by the High Table to Cormac O'Connor, the then warden of the Continental Hotel which had been stolen from him by Frankie Scott. This particular Adjudicator was obsessed with regaining the coin press, describing it as "the keys to the world". She had her bodyguard subjected Scott's friend to a savage beating whilst interrogating him on the whereabouts of the coin press and later interrogated Cormac O'Connor himself, threatening him with being replaced by the High Table as the manager of the Continental should he fail to regain it.

*"There are rules at play here, silly boy. You have no idea you're dealing with, but you soon will."*
—The Adjudicator to Winston Scott
Moments later after knowing that Cormac had killed his cellist on Continental grounds, the Adjudicator was informed by his henchman of what Cormac has done inside the hotel, but the Adjudicator tells him to do nothing and to leave him as his downfall is getting near. After Winston Scott took control of the New York Continental, she met with him on the front steps. In order to send a message to the High Table, Winston shot the Adjudicator dead.

### Events of *John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum*

*"Mr. Wick broke the rules. I trust you understand the repercussions if he survives."*
—The Adjudicator

Following the death of Santino D'Antonio at the hands of Wick, an Adjudicator was dispatched to the New York Continental Hotel. After examining the body of Santino, the Adjudicator informs Winston Scott that he will have to step down from his position as general manager due to having aided John by delaying his ex-communication from the Continental by one hour.

*"Under the Table, Serving the Table, Everything is under the Table. I understand that you have your loyalties, but this cannot be overlooked. Let me be clear. I am here to adjudge you. You have one week to get your affairs in order."*
—The Adjudicator to Winston Scott

The Adjudicator later visits The Soup Kitchen to inform the Bowery King that he will be forced to step down and close up the Soup Kitchen because he aided John by giving him a gun and seven bullets to kill Santino with. After Wick initially escapes from the assassins chasing after him, the Adjudicator visits Zero and hires him and his group of assassins to go after John.

*"Adjudicator: You gave John Wick seven bullets, The High Table is giving you seven days
Bowery King: Seven days for what, exactly?
Adjudicator: To settle your affairs and find a new home for your birds. In seven days, you abdicate your throne."*
—The Adjudicator's warning
    Later, the Adjudicator visits The Director, a leader of the Ruska Roma, to adjudge her for smuggling John out of New York. At the same time, Zero and his assassins murder several of the Director's guards. When the Director willingly serves her punishment, the Adjudicator had Zero stab the Director through both of her hands.

Soon after, the Adjudicator revisits the Soup Kitchen to punish the Bowery King. As Zero and his assassins kill the Bowery King's men, the Adjudicator has Zero slash the Bowery King seven times.

Later, after Winston refuses to step down as manager of the New York Continental and John refuses to kill him, the Adjudicator has the Continental's status as a neutral area revoked and sends in Zero, his assassins, and teams of the High Table's most well-trained assassins to kill him. However, John and Charon manage to kill all of them. After the first wave of assassins are slaughtered, the Adjudicator phones Winston and proposes a truce. The two meet on the rooftop of the Continental, where Winston refers to the successful defense of the Continental as evidence that he should stay in power. This persuades the Adjudicator, who reinstates the building as a neutral area. However, when John walks up onto the roof, the Adjudicator questions what will be done about him, and in response, Winston simply shoots John and lets him tumble off the roof and into an alleyway, shocking John.

However, when the Adjudicator attempts to have John's body recovered, it is discovered that it has vanished as the Tick-Tock Man carried John away. Informing Winston of this, the Adjudicator warned him of severe consequences should John remain at large. They both agreed of the consequences if he were to be alive.

## John Wick

### Appearance

The Adjudicator was a slim individual with blue eyes, a pale skin, and short dark hair. They wore a long dark vintage trench coat of black and green with a large belt, a pair of high black boots and gloves with a long dark caped jacket that seldom moved their shoulders to prevent it from falling, and bore a single silver bar earring on their left ear, along with a German phrase tattoo on their neck. Everything about their dark wardrobe, like their speech and body language, was neat and carefully measured.

### Personality

*"It seems circumstances have changed in your favor. Your transaction may now be conducted on Continental grounds."*
—The Adjudicator to Zero
A loyal enforcer to The Table, The Adjudicator is civil, polite and never personally threatens another character with physical violence, yet they command more authority simply by being present than any other villain in the story thus far, alongside with The Marquis, which both having execution-style manner rather than an actual fight. Even when directly threatened or surrounded by assassins who could easily kill them, the Adjudicator never flinches or changes their calm demeanor. However, this may appear to be the case because assassins may threaten The Adjudicator, but no one is naïve enough to shoot The Adjudicator. The Adjudicator has a cold, distant, confident and intimidating presence, their emotion isn't lost in physical motions, but rather in the articulation of their words and the emotional aim of the situation. In addition, The Adjudicator has no hesitation on speaking their commands from The High Table. However, The Adjudicator commented that it was "*a pleasure to meet*" John Wick when doing so for the first time, indicating that despite John's actions and status as excommunicated, The Adjudicator seemed to have at least a form of respect for John due to his skills and long career as the "*Baba Yaga*".

## The Continental

### Appearance

The 1970s Adjudicator was an slender, dark-haired young woman in her late 30s with smooth pale skin. She wore a plum-colored Thierry Mugler suit with structured shoulders, Alaïa corset belt and a purple cloak. She also has her gloves and her long hair in a tight ponytail, showing her commitment to order and control. She wore a porcelain mask over the lower half of her face and was hideously disfigured beneath it. Her facial scarring was apparently so horrendous that merely removing her mask in the presence of Cormac O'Connor was enough to ruin his appetite, to the point that he was unable to go on eating after she had put her mask back on and left, instead drinking deeply from his wineglass. Despite the damage to her lower face, the Adjudicator was still capable of eating without assistance. When she was killed and her mask fell off, it is revealed that the Adjudicator's lips were missing with scars on at least the right side of her face next to where her lips should be as well.

### Personality

*"Cormac: I want the High Table's resources...
Adjudicator: You have three days. You have three days to locate the missing coin press and bring those responsible to our feet. If you fail, the High Table will declare interregnum, suspend your position until we can name a successor."*
—The Adjudicator and Cormac O'Connor
The 1970s Adjudicator was as single-minded, cold, calculating and focused as her successor. She was highly ruthless, subjecting Frankie Scott to a brutal beating at the hands of her bodyguard and watching coldly as it took place, indicating a possible sadistic streak. This impression was enhanced by her playing the pop song Yes Sir, I Can Boogie by Baccara on a radio during Frankie's violent interrogation of Frankie, showing a cruel sense of humour which she also demonstrated in her dressing down of Cormac O'Connor in The Continental, in which she chided him for comfort eating when he should be searching for the coin press. The Adjudicator was supremely confident in her authority and the power of the High Table, claiming that it was an organization that predated the Roman Empire and that Frankie was a fool for thinking that he could outwit them. History seemed to be an interest of hers, as she rebuked Cormac for seeking comfort, in contrast with conquerors of times gone past on the eve of war. She seemed to enjoy the discomfort of others, removing her mask in order to reveal her scarred face purely to ruin Cormac's appetite, and asserting her authority further by helping herself to a piece of his food from his plate. The Adjudicator inspired significant fear and dread in those around her, with even the usually dauntless Cormac intimidated by her presence.

## Trivia

* The Adjudicator in the third film served as the main antagonist of *John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum* and was the first main antagonist in a *John Wick* film not to die in their debut film.
* Tattooed on the left side of their neck is "Einfühlung", which is German for empathy, perhaps indicative of a certain sardonic sense of humour on the part of the Adjudicator.
* Despite being the main antagonist of the third film, the Adjudicator's role is only slight compared to Viggo Tarasov and Santino D'Antonio, the main antagonists from the previous films, as they doesn't get into a fight or have near impact on John Wick.
* The Adjudicator does not return for *John Wick: Chapter 4*, instead being replaced by the Marquis Vincent de Gramont and the Harbinger. It is unknown if they are still alive or if John hunted them down off-screen, resulting in the Adjudicator being replaced. It's also possible that the Harbinger took their place because his role was more fitting to the situation since nothing needed to be adjudicated anymore.
* The Adjudicator in The Continental is the third villainous role to be played by Katie McGrath, the first being Lady Morgana Pendragon in *Merlin* and the second being Oriane Congost in *Labyrinth*.

## Gallery

The Adjudicator and Zero meeting for the first time.Detail of The Adjudicator having devil horns.The Adjudicator at The Continental's check-in desk.The Adjudicator with Charon.The Adjudicator meets Winston with the deceased body of Santino D'Antonio.The Adjudicator approaching The Director at the Tarkovsky Theater.The Adjudicator approaches The Bowery King and Tick Tock Man.The Adjudicator meeting Zero.The Adjudicator in The Continental: From the World of John Wick.The Adjudicator and Cormac.The Adjudicator facing Winston in front of the hotel.