Joseph

**Joseph** is a young prostitute who gave an important clue to John Moore in his pursuit of the Killer. After his traumatic experiences, he was taken by Dr. Kreizler as one of his wards.

He is a character in “The Alienist” portrayed by Jackson Gann.

## Character Overview

Joseph is referred to as “Bernadette” when with clients. The child appears to be about 12 or 13. Bernadette is the employee of brothel owner Scotch Anne. Bernadette speaks and dresses as a female but uses a male voice and name after Detective Sergeant Isaacson shows her a police badge.

## Biography

**March 1896.** Joseph was a child prostitute who worked at the Golden Rule with the alias “Bernadette.” Following the abduction and brutal murder of another child prostitute, Ali ibn-Ghazi, sold to Scotch Ann by an indebted father, Detective Sergeant Marcus Isaacson and John Moore inspected the brothel. On the roof, Joseph approached the two men to tell them what he knew about his friend Ali, or “Fatima” for the customers.

Joseph revealed that in the days before his disappearance, Ali had met a “Saint”, a man who had seduced him with a promise to take him to live in a Castle in the Sky. John Moore immediately warned Joseph not to give confidence to anyone, especially to a man with a silver smile. Moore then proceeded to remove the make-up Joseph had on his face.

In the days around the Feast of Ascension, Joseph was in a *gelateria* when he met John Moore. After Moore bought an egg cream for the boy, he asked him a little about his life and Joseph told how he started prostituting himself from a very young age. Joseph wanted to know about Moore, and he was amazed to find that his job was to draw portraits and illustrations.

A couple of evenings later, Joseph and Moore met again at The Slide, a brothel where Dr. Kreizler and his team intended to set a trap for the Killer. Joseph, however, was not frightened, but mostly overheated by being shut up in the room with his wig on, as Moore had suggested.

In April 1896, Joseph and Moore crossed their paths again. The man was seriously concerned about the conditions of Joseph and the other tenements boys, forced into prostitution. Then a loose-footed predator that killed in a serial way only made things more terrible. Joseph was still not worried, saying that he could take care of himself, and he had trusted friends who watched his back. It was worth nothing Moore's attempts to send the boy to a safe hostel or, even better, Kreizler Institute. However, Joseph had no interest whatsoever in it, believing that all the so-called benefactors all had a secret agenda and were not really interested in helping the poor.

At the Bath House, Joseph and Maxie bathed with other boys until the guardian put an end to their games at closing time. Joseph was already ready to go out but Maxie said he would join them later because he had a date. Once outside, Joseph noticed that Maxie had stolen his money and returned to the building to face him. Unfortunately for him, Joseph saw Maxie on the ground in a pool of his own blood and a naked man stabbing him. Frightened, Joseph ran to hide but was soon found by the Killer.

Joseph was held hostage by John Beecham in a secret hiding place in a dark and damp attic. The child was terrified by the threatening presence of the man, especially when he saw him banging a sack against a brick wall; inside there were kittens. Joseph wet his pants and for that, was mocked and humiliated by Beecham.

Later, at Croton Reservoir, Joseph was rescued by Dr. Kreizler and John Moore before Beecham could torture and murder him as he did with other children before.

Once rescued, Joseph was taken to the Kreizler Institute, where Dr. Kreizler tried to calm the child in a clear state of shock from the recent traumatic experience.

## Memorable Quotes

**Joseph**: “*You know, there are some of us who don't even believe he's even human. Think he might be a spirit.*”
— Ascension

**Mr. Moore**: “*What if I were the killer?*”
**Joseph**: “*Yeah, no offense, Mr. Moore, but there's more chance of pigs flying.*”
**Joseph** (about charity workers): “*I wouldn't trust those sons of bitches as far as I could kick 'em. They just pretend to care so they can cop a feel.*
—Requiem

## Appearances

The Alienist

* Ep. 4: *These Bloody Thoughts*
* Ep. 6: *Ascension*
* Ep. 9: *Requiem*
* Ep. 10: *Castle in the Sky*

## Notes

* In the novel by Caleb Carr, Joseph was killed by John Beecham and left on the front door of Moore's house as a warning. In the TV adaptation, Joseph overlaps the unidentified last kidnapped boy saved by Dr. Laszlo Kreizler and Moore at the Croton Reservoir.

## Gallery

* Promo Stills
* Screencaps
* Videos

 *Photo by Kata Vermes and Jesse Giddings. [Courtesy of TNT Pressroom]*

The Alienist Castle in the Sky - Season Finale BONUS SCENE EXCLUSIVE TNT
## References

1. ↑ *‘The Alienist’: Joseph's Promotional Quote on TNT Instagram account.*
2. ↑ Gina Gionfriddo & Cary Joji Fukunaga (writers) & James Hawes (director); (February 12, 2018); "These Bloody Thoughts". Episode 4.*The Alienist*. TNT
3. ↑ E. Max Frye (writer) & Paco Cabezas (director); (February 26, 2018); "Ascension". Episode 6.*The Alienist*. TNT
4. ↑ Hossein Amini (writer) & Jamie Payne (director); (March 19, 2018); "Requiem". Episode 9.*The Alienist*. TNT
5. ↑ Cary Joji Fukunaga, John Sayles & Chase Palmer (writer) & Jamie Payne (director); (March 26, 2018); "Castle in the Sky". Episode 10.*The Alienist*. TNT
6. ↑ The Alienist Castle in the Sky - Season Finale BONUS SCENE EXCLUSIVE TNT