Phoebe Frost

**Phoebe Frost** is a recurring character during the first season of FOX's *The Gifted*. She was promoted to series regular for the second season. She is portrayed by Skyler Samuels.

She, along with her identical sisters Esme and Sophie, are telepathic mutants who share a hive mind-like connection.

She and her sister Sophie were incarcerated by Sentinel Services for unknown reasons, before being freed by their other sister, Esme.

## Early Life

Phoebe was one of five mutant clones created by a lab funded by Creed Financial. For years, Phoebe and her sister clones were instructed to use their telepathic abilities in service of the lab's anti-mutant agenda. During these "exercises", two of the sisters were left behind as leverage to coerce the other three into complying.

In 2009, when the sisters were 13 years old, Phoebe, Sophie, and Esme were ordered to extract information from the mind of a captured mutant. After they completed this task, Phoebe and her sisters decided to turn against their captors and used their powers to orchestrate a brutal slaughter. However, they were unable to save their sisters Mindee and Celeste, who were killed by shocks generated by the inhibitor collars on their necks. Phoebe, Sophie, and Esme felt the agony of their sisters' death, and at some point after this incident, they joined the Hellfire Club.

Two months prior to Exploited, Phoebe's sister, Esme, using the fake name Stacy, went undercover as a staff member for Senator Montez during one of his rallies. She asked him if she could attend some of the meetings along with him, and he agreed. After he went back talking to his campaign manager, Esme was interrupted by a telepathic warning from Phoebe and their other sister, Sophie, who told her to get out of there, as Sentinel Services had arrived at the rally looking for them. Esme ran outside and into the crowd, trying to escape as her sisters continued to yell at her telepathically in unison.

Esme escaped however Phoebe and Sophie were taken into custody by Sentinel Services and imprisoned at a facility although the sisters psychic link wasn't broken which lead Esme to beginning planning a massive mutant prison breakout with the intend to recuse her sisters.

## Throughout the Series

* Season 1
* Season 2

### Season 1

In *"Exploited"*, she along with Sophie are reunited with their identical sister Esme after casually massacring several Sentinel Services agents during a prisoner transfer from Trask Industries. With more Sentinel Services agents approaching, Phoebe, Sophie and Esme's eyes glow blue as they instruct the leading officer to fire on his fellow agents, killing them all. As Andy, Lauren, Clarice and the other mutant prisoners exit the transport vehicle, Phoebe, Sophie and Esme speak in unison. "Time to go boys and girls. The fun's just starting."

In *"3 X 1"*, Phoebe, Sophie and Esme recount the Trask escape with William, an associate of theirs. The alarms were going off. People were coming. They went one way while the Mutant Underground went another. They took the Struckers without so much as a thank you, the girls add. And in the 2 days since that, they've had no interaction with the Underground, who felt used. So Phoebe, Sophie and Esme wanted to give them some space since their parting moment was heated, to say the least. William is displeased with the mess they left at the Trask lab. But as Esme points out, they barely got out of their alive. William explains that he was recruited to rebuild the Hellfire Club with them. So activities like his, such as taking down a hedge fund are essential, while their transgressions will only make things more difficult, like their killing of a dozen Sentinel Services agents. They made a lot of noise, yet the Hound program is stronger than ever. So they need to act quickly and they'll need the Underground's help.

Phoebe, Sophie and Esme arrive at the station unannounced. They've come peacefully as they only desire to talk about the Hound program, which is expanding, and they want the Underground's help in taking it down. However, Marcos and Reed are still upset that Esme used and lied to them. Admittedly, Esme mislead them, but she also saved their children and her family. The ends justify the means as far as she is concerned. As for why they need the Underground's help despite their own powers being so great, Sentinel Services knows what they look like. So they can't take them on by themselves. They have information about Dr. Campbell's plans and resources to share. Meanwhile, the Underground has the muscle. While Caitlin and Marcos refuse to even consider an alliance of any kind, John seems more willing though he does kick them out after hearing what they have to offer.

One of the Frost Sisters visits Andy at the Fairburn station after the Struckers left the Underground. When Andy asks which sister he is talking to, she replies that it doesn't matter much as they're essentially Three-in-One. She heard about the Struckers running off from Atlanta. Andy explains that his parents wanted to protect him and his sister. However, Andy is hardly someone who needs protecting. She tells him to speak to his parents as "Andrew Von Strucker" if he wants to be taken seriously. He's surprised that she knows about his family's history. She claims that she knows all about the Strucker family and who Andy is meant to be. She tells Andy that he's not a child anymore and that they need him most of all.

Phoebe, Sophie and Esme rescue the Underground as they are under attack by Sentinel Services and their Hounds at the Fairburn station. The Hounds in question are wearing a manacle that allows them to combine abilities, making them even more dangerous and powerful. As Thunderbird, Eclipse, Polaris, Blink, Lauren, Wes, Andy, Reed and Caitlin quietly move throughout the woods, the Sister telepathically speak to Andy and guide them out the woods. The Underground makes it out to the road where they find Phoebe, Sophie and Esme waiting with escape vehicles.
When Marcos questions how they even found them in Fairburn, the Sisters claim that they have sources. The Hounds that attacked them is what the Sisters tried to warn the Underground about. But it was only the start. It's going to get worse, which is why they need the Underground's help to take down Campbell and Trask.

The Frost Sisters reconvene with William, who is irate. He has been taking calls for hours. The inner circle is angry with their stunt. The sisters wonder if the inner circle had a better idea. Because if they did, they could've shared it instead of hiding behind their screens and chessboard. Phoebe, Sophie and Esme risked a lot of lives as they were responsible for tipping off Sentinel Services to the Fairburn station. The Frost sisters defend their actions by reasoning that someone times you have to sacrifice a few pawns if you want to win. The Underground needed to understand what they are all up against. It would seem that their stunt went exactly as planned as the Underground has agreed to the alliance.

In *"eXtraction"*, the Frost Sisters discuss a plan to stop the Hound program with the Mutant Underground. However, before starting, Marcos makes one thing clear, that their being there, doesn't make them friends. Phoebe, Sophie and Esme know this, and then go onto explain that they're dealing with a secret program that must be stopped as soon as possible as their sources have informed them that Dr. Campbell is working his political connection to take the program International. Their best chance to stop him will be at the Humanity Today Summit in Charlotte tomorrow, where major anti mutant politicians, business heads and Purifiers will be present. The Frost Sisters want to kidnap Campbell to stop the program. When Clarice opposes the idea, the Sisters claim that they know all about her criminal past and "old friends", something she had not shared with the Underground.
Phoebe, Sophie, Esme, John, Lorna, Marcos and Clarice arrive at a very large and expensive looking safe house in Charlotte. Clarice notes that it looks "boujee", so the Sisters sarcastically offer to accommodate by bringing in mold and smashing holes in the floor. Esme then sees them inside while Sophie and Phoebe remain outside.

The Frost Sister and the Underground plan to kidnap Franklin Bennett, a big fundraiser for anti-mutant causes. He attends the Humanity Today Summit every year. If they're with him, they get past the gate. After Esme, John, Lorna, Marcos and Clarice intercept Bennett's route and bring him back to the safe house, the Frost Sisters handcuff him to a chair and force him to make a phone call to the Humanity Today Summit. Their eyes glow blue as they take over Bennett's mind and force him to make changes to his security detail. He then tells the Frost Sisters that they will be tracked down and exterminated. They don't even deserve to breathe the same air as human beings as far as he is concerned. Since he doesn't want to breathe the same air as them, the Frost Sisters make him hold his breathe. They can see inside his mind. They see the twisted videos he watches of mutants being tortured. They can feel the hate that he harbors. Clarice enters the den with the others just behind her. She brings a stop to their torture of Bennett.
Afterward, the mutants infiltrate the Summit. They get pass the front gate as Bennett's security detail. The second Senator Montez's speech is over, Polaris will knock out the frequencies for phones and walkies. Eclipse and the others are going to need to hurry because once communication goes down, the area is going to be crawling with security. Some time later, Sophie and Phoebe dump Bennett while Polaris and Esme sit in the SUV.

In *"X-roads"*, the Frost Sisters discover that Campbell and Montez filed a flight plan for Washington after they got away at the Summit. Sophie and Phoebe take Polaris to handle the matter. Whiling driving to the airport to intercept Campbell and Montez, Sophie and Phoebe tell Polaris that it was noble of her to keep her friends out of it. But sooner or later, her friends will join them. Polaris doubts it since the Underground means everything to John and Marcos. The Frost Sisters explain that the Hellfire Club protected mutants once as well, which is why they're trying to rebuild it. They know what she's thinking, but Polaris has to remember that Marcos loves her and that he'll come around. Polaris then tells them to stay out of her head.
Sophie and Phoebe arrive at the airport with Polaris. They question if she's sure that she can go through with it. Polaris assures them that she's capable of doing what's needed. She then tells the Frost Sisters to leave as she doesn't want her friends to think that she's doing it for them.

### Season 2

In *eMergence*, the Frost Sisters attend a meeting of the Hellfire Club's Inner Circle. Reeva Payge, organizer of the meeting and member of the Inner Circle would like to offer an explanation for her recent actions regarding Atlanta. Also in attendance is William. Reeva reminds those of the Inner Circle that they're all fighting for the same cause, peace and freedom. But for that to happen, mutants will require a place of their own. While in Atlanta, the Frost Sisters discovered mutants powerful enough to accomplish said dream, though it required them to go against commands. With these new recruits, Reeva would like to push forward to building a better future. Unfortunately, William is unconvinced. He reminds her that the mutant homeland project has been discussed and dismissed due to the risk. However, Reeva refuses to stand down, reminding William that mutants are dying and that she didn't claw her way out of the mutant slums of Chicago just to watch her own people suffer. "You know what they say, William. Well-behaved women rarely make history.", the Frost Sisters add.

Nonetheless, William is very much against the recruitment of Polaris, a mentally unstable, pregnant women and Andy, a child. Reeva reminds William that Polaris is exceptional, a mutant such as herself doesn't come around too often, and Andy is a von Strucker. His family helped build the Hellfire Club. Regardless, as one voice on the council, Reeva had no right to make this decision, acting completely without authorization. However, as pointed out by the Frost Sisters, who acted on Reeva's instructions, waiting on William's authorization would result in nothing being done. The point is, Reeva acted without the blessing of the Inner Circle, William says. While this is true, Reeva always believed that it is better to ask for forgiveness than for permission. She says this before using her mutant powers by generating a high note to subdue the other members of the Inner Circle long enough for the Frost Sisters to shoot and kill each of them, one-by-one, ending the onslaught with William.

Six months later, Washington, D.C., Lorna is much further along, and so the Inner Circle must prepare for her inevitable chaotic pregnancy. So, Phoebe, Esme and Sophie and Reeva take Lorna and Andy to the facility in which they intend for Lorna to give birth at. It was initially a munitions warehouse, according to the Frost. All stone and concrete, which they plan to modify for Lorna's comfort as it's the only place strong enough to contain her powers. Just then, Lorna appears to experience stomach pains, causing her to unintentionally move the SUV they arrived in. Lorna apologizes, explaining that the baby is kicking.

The next day, Phoebe, Sophie, Esme and Sage pull up to the guard's booth at the munitions warehouse, where the Sisters use their mind control over the patrolling guard in order to gain access to the facility. Once inside, they enter the owner's office and command him to evacuate the property. However, he initially refuses, forcing Sage and the Frost Sisters to bribe him with a suitcase full of money. They instruct him to inform the others that there was a class-one toxic materials spill and that the facility needed to be evacuated. Still, the owner refuses. So, the Frost Sisters make it perfectly clear that they could force him to do what they want, but paying him off is easier. The question isn't whether this place is there's. The question is whether he will give it to them, or they take it. With that, the facility owner agrees to their terms.

The following night, The Frost Sisters barge into the labor room of the munitions warehouse with Andy and Lorna, requesting that everything metal is locked down as Lorna is going into labor. As Andy guides Lorna to her cell, her contractions worsen, causing her powers to violently manifest. They get Lorna in the cell and get her settled. She starts to scream out in agony as the birthing begins. Phoebe, Sophie, Esme, Reeva and Andy stand at her side as she pushes. In doing so, the magnetic fields only worsen, causing objects even outside the building to move dramatically. Unfortunately, she's not dilating. Her blood pressure is off the charts, and she won't be able to take this much longer. It's not a medical issue, the doctor explains. It's a mental block of some kind, and if they don't do something soon, she could die.

In light of this unforeseen issue, Reeva and the Frost Sisters to regroup and come up with a plan to help the baby and Lorna by reminding her what they are all fighting for. Reeva tells Lorna that she needs to be strong. They're going to show her the dawn of a new age. The Frost Sisters use their abilities to plant a telepathic vision in Lorna's head of a future, where mutants have secured a safe world for themselves. Reeva tells Lorna that this world could be for her daughter, but only if she shows that she wants it. Seeing this, Lorna says that she wants it more than anything, and so she gives another big push that nearly brings the entire building down as a forklift slams through the wall, but she does deliver the child, whom she names Dawn, bringing a smile to even the Frost Sisters' and Reeva's face.

In *unMoored*, at the Inner Circle's base of operations, Phoebe, Esme and Sophie are called in by Reeva to alert them of the alarming news headline and social media posts, all reporting the massive blackout across D.C. when Lorna went into labor. Esme tells Reeva that their engineers assured them the facility would be able to contain Polaris' powers during the birth. Nevertheless, Reeva isn't placing blame on anyone as Lorna was simply stronger than anyone realized. So, Reeva reached out to some of her political contacts. The Department of Energy is going to put out a statement about a lightning strike at a substation, but they will still need to tie up the other loose ends. Esme doesn't believe that killing the witnesses is necessary, but Reeva disagrees. Everyone who saw them and the facility have to go in order to secure the future for the mutant homeland. While Esme is reluctant, Phoebe and Sophie are more than will to carry out the task, even taking a shot at their sister, claiming that Esme went soft while with the Mutant Underground when they were locked up. Esme reminds Reeva that they're supposed to be training, but Reeva states that it can wait.

The following day, Phoebe, Esme and Sophie call Bulk from the airport runway. After getting word from him that he was in position, the Frost Sisters alert Fade, who kills the guard they had previously mind controlled to gain access to the munitions facility. Once that is done, they signal Bulk to blow up the facility.

The Frost Sisters approach David Hine at the airport, where he is seemingly purchasing an airplane with the money they bribed him with to close down the munitions warehouse. Phoebe, Esme and Sophie are displeased with his actions as he was told to keep his mouth shut and hold onto the money for six months. He claims that this is what he was doing, but they aren't buying it, reminding him that "lying to telepaths is a bad idea." He swears that he isn't going to say a word to anyone, but they need to be sure. So, the Frost Sisters use their mind controlling abilities to force David Hine into walking into a moving airplane propeller. However, Esme, has something different in mind. She instead has him hit by a truck, killing him instantly. This is her response to them calling her soft earlier.

After Andy performs terribly during another training session, Reeva calls in Phoebe, Esme and Sophie to look into his mind to discover the cause of this. They discover that Lauren is the problem.

Phoebe, Esme and Sophie communicate telepathically as Reeva paces back and forth, trying to determine what she should do about Andy given that he's making calls to the Underground. He could tell them of the Inner Circle's location. But as Esme reminds Reeva, Fade said he made only one call and hung up. However, all this, along with his poor performance during training has Reeva worried. He didn't even make a dent in the boron carbide. If he can't get through that, then their operation fails and their dream dies. Perhaps his family connection is stronger than they realized, Reeva says. Esme counters that his family is the reason he's there, given that he's a Von Strucker. This does them well but only if he's on their side. However, if he doesn't trust them, then they can't trust him, Phoebe and Sophie interject. Reeva will talk to him, to assess the situation to determine if he's reliable. If he's not, then Reeva will have to kill him, which Esme is against.

In *coMplications*, at the Inner Circle's base of operations, it would seem that Dawn is extremely ill. So, Lorna wants to go to Marcos for help, but Phoebe, Esme and Sophie attempt to convince her otherwise, explaining that they have all the resources they could need and that bringing Marcos to headquarters could expose their entire operation. However, Dawn has been diagnosed with jaundice and normal light therapy isn't working. Given the nature of Marcos' powers, he could possibly be the solution. Reeva agrees with Lorna that they need Marcos' help, so she orders the Frost Sisters to retrieve him.

Phoebe, Esme and Sophie find Marcos in a diner. They call to him, leading him out back, where they confront him. They didn't come for a fight. Quite the opposite in fact. They need his help. Marcos immediately lowers his guard as they reveals the baby is in trouble. After retrieving Marcos, Phoebe, Esme and Sophie drive back to headquarters. While in route, they hand Marcos a black bag to cover his face, for security purposes. Marcos wants to know what's wrong with his child, but the Frost don't answer, only replying that he'll find out when he gets there. In reading Marcos' mind, they discover that he blames himself for his family falling apart. If he wishes to redeem himself as a father, they tell him to do as he's told.

Phoebe, Esme and Sophie arrive at headquarters with Marcos. They sit him in front of Reeva and remove the hood. His child has been diagnosed with a severe case of jaundice. Normally, this is easily treatable, but this case has been stubborn. Reeva reminds Marcos that he is in fact a guest. She continues, also telling Marcos that when he sees Lorna, their own discussion is to be about the child. Lastly, Reeva tells him to help the baby and leave.

Once Marcos cures Dawn, Phoebe, Esme and Sophie demand that he leave. The Frost Sisters proceed to escort Marcos out. Handing him the black hood to put over his head in order to ensure that their location remain secret. As Marcos prepares to put the hood on, he begins to have flashes of his time spent with Lorna. It seems to be causing him some kind of physical strain, as he fights the Frosts control. Phoebe, Esme and Sophie increase their reach on Marcos, but he continues to resist, telling Lorna that they're lying to her and that they're in her head. Marcos then breaks their control, knocking Phoebe and Sophie to the floor before burning Esme on her upper right arm. He then he progresses towards Reeva and is stopped in his tracks.

Later, Esme tells Reeva that Marcos is stubborn and won't give up, which Reeva is very much aware of, but she still wonders how he broke free of their control. Esme explains that while they can put thoughts into people's minds, it's hard to overcome powerful feelings. Esme thinks it would've been easier had they just finished Marcos off. While this is true, Reeva reminds Phoebe, Esme and Sophie that their plans are bigger than Marcos and any of them. They are creating something special.
## Personality

Phoebe is the more sassier one in the trio having a certain bite to her voice as she usually the one that challenges authority figures making her more aggressive one out of the sisters.

Phoebe and her sisters have a tendency to speak in unison, allowing each other to take over the conversation when they talk. They are also strategic and cold-blooded given that they risked the lives of the Mutant Underground in order to persuade them into agreeing to an alliance after seeing how advanced their enemy was becoming.

Unlike Esme, Phoebe and Sophie are still hardened from being treated as a experiment and aren't hesitant to kill innocent people when called for. Although, she disapproves of Esme supposedly "softening" after her time spent with the Underground.

## Physical Appearance

Phoebe is a young Caucasian woman with light skin, dirty blonde hair and blue eyes. When she uses her telepathic abilities, her eyes glow with a bright blue hue, and glow even more when acting under the hive mind. She and her sisters are completely identical to each other, including the tendency to have matching hairstyles and outfits, even down to the accessories.

## Abilities and Skills

* **Telepathic Hive Mind:** Phoebe and her sisters share a linked hive mind, which allows them to share thoughts, communicate and maintain a continuous telepathic connection over great distances. The link is strongest when they are in close physical proximity, and their collective mind also allows for increased telepathic power and shared intellect. When the girls use their telepathy, their eyes glow bright blue, and they glow even more when acting under the hive mind.
	+ **Telepathy:** Phoebe and her sisters possess the ability to read minds and project their thoughts to others. They are able to analyze people's memories and influence minds, as seen when her sister, Esme, implanted a vivid nightmare into Polaris' mind while she slept. Though they individually possess their own telepathy, their telepathic abilities are greater when the girls join together.
	+ **Empathy:** Phoebe and her sisters possess limited emphatic abilities, as Esme could read Chloe Tans' emotions, sensing a lot of need and pain.
	+ **Mind Control:** Phoebe and her sisters have shown the ability to control multiple people’s minds at the same time, as demonstrated when they forced several Sentinel Services agents to kill both their fellow agents and themselves. However, the target must be taken by surprise and unaware of the effect.
	+ **Pain Inducement:** Phoebe and her sisters can induce mental pain inside people’s minds, as shown when they rendered two Sentinel Service agents writhing on the ground, clutching at their heads in pain.
	+ **Psychosomatic Symptoms Inducement**: Phoebe and her sisters have the ability to influence the minds of others to produce a series of illusory psychosomatic actions, that cause the body to react as if it were actually physically experiencing it; for example, they have shown to be able to induce an interruption of the respiratory tract by telling their victim to "stop breathing".
* **Limitations:** Their powers are not quick, and if they are being physically attacked, they cannot summon their powers easily, as shown when Polaris choked Esme with the necklace she was wearing. Also, their hive mind can be weakened if one of them begins to differ too much with their other two triples, which was exemplified when Esme began to have her own personal feelings. Also, individuals with strong enough emotions have been shown to resist the Frosts' control

## Appearances

* *3 X 1*
* *eXtraction*
* *X-roads*
* *unMoored*
* *coMplications*
* *outMatched*
* *afterMath*
* *iMprint*
* *no Mercy*
* *gaMe changer*
* *eneMy of My eneMy* (mentioned)
* *meMento*
* *hoMe*
* *teMpted*
* *calaMity*
* *Monsters*
* *oMens*

## Trivia

* In the comics, Phoebe Cuckoo is one of the Stepford Cuckoos, a set of telepathic quintuplets and one of the clones of Emma Frost. The clones were created by the Weapon Plus program *(the same program that grafted adamantium to Wolverine's skeletal structure and gave Captain America his superhuman abilities)*. The project was code-named **Weapon XIV**, and the goal was to create thousands of telepathic clones of Emma Frost *(one of the most powerful telepaths on the planet)*, that when combining their telepathic powers into a hive-mind, they would be capable of killing every mutant on the planet. Five of the clones were sent to infiltrate the Xavier Institute, to both gain the X-Men's trust and hone their telepathic abilities, and there, those five clones *(Esme, Celeste, Phoebe, Irma and Sophie)* took on the code-name the **Five-In-One**, or as they were more commonly referred to as - **The Stepford Cuckoos**.
	+ Coincidentally, the mutant drug Kick was mentioned in the episode Esme was introduced in. In the comics, Esme Cuckoo had ingested the drug to boost her telepathic abilities, and that was ultimately one of the contributing factors to her eventual death at the hands of Xorn. Esme had also influenced her sister, Sophie, to partake in the drug and that eventually led to her death due to overdose. After those events, with only three sisters remaining, the Five-In-One became known as the **Three-In-One**.
* Skyler Samuels revealed through an Instagram livestream that the names of Esme’s sisters are Sophie and Phoebe and that their last name is Frost.
* In 3 X 1 it was stated by Doctor Campbell that She and Sophie were experimented on after they were brought to him.

## Gallery

* Promotional Images
* Season 1 Screencaps
* Season 2 Screencaps

## References

1. ↑ 'The Gifted': Skyler Samuels Promoted to Series Regular for Season 2
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Kamoche, Dawn & Blejer, Ariella (writers) & Goi, Michael (director) (November 6, 2018). "iMprint". *The Gifted*. Season 2. Episode 6. FOX.
3. ↑ The Gifted's Skyler Samuels Teases the Frosts' 'Incredibly Traumatic' Backstory - TVLine