| “ | The wisemen say that thou art The Promised One. Tis said that thou will journey for the book to help us, and that thou will lead our people against the evil. | „ |
| ~ Sheila (to Ash Williams) (Army of Darkness) |
Sheila was a resident of Castle Kandar during the 14th Century. Following the death of her brother (a knight in the service of Lord Arthur), Sheila had a romantic with the time-traveler Ash Williams, the legendary "Promised One" written of in the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis who would battle the evil forces unleashed in her time.
Sheila's first and only appearance was in the 1993 film Army of Darkness. She was portrayed by Embeth Davidtz.
Biography[]
"The Age of Darkness" (1300 AD)[]
During the era in which Sheila lived, the Kandarian Demon had been unleashed upon the world of the living, roaming unchecked through the Dark Forest and terrorizing the denizens of Castle Kandar. With tensions already high across the land, Lord Arthur (ruler of Castle Kandar) and Henry The Red ("Lord of the Northlands") went to war against each other for reasons unknown during this time. In this "age of darkness", Sheila remained at the castle as her brother went off to fight alongside Lord Arthur against Duke Henry's army.
It was following a seemingly triumphant battle against Henry The Red that Lord Arthur returned to his castle and informed Sheila that her brother had been killed in battle. Angered by the loss, Sheila took out her growing rage and sorrow on a member of one the prisoners from the battle, a stranger who many (including Arthur and Sheila) believed to be one of Henry The Red's soldiers. This man was not one of Henry's vassals, but was in fact Ash Williams, a man from the 20th Century who had been pulled back in time after fighting the terrors of the Deadites in his time.
Sheila watched as Williams fought the abominations which resided in "The Pit" before making his escape back up to the castle's courtyard (the first person ever to do so). Upon seeing this act, most if not all of Castle Kandar's occupants were convinced of Ash's validity of being "The Promised One", the champion who would lead the people of this time against the forces of evil. Several hours after the incident at The Pit, Sheila had come to the chamber in which Ash now resided in an effort to apologize for her words and previous actions during his initial arrival. Before any more words could be exchanged between them, a Deadite infiltrated the chamber, prompting Ash to once again go into action and take down the demonic hag with his Boomstick before she could inflict more harm on anyone else.
After the disposal of the Deadite witch, Sheila watched from the corners of the workshop as Williams and The Blacksmith constructed a prosthetic hand using Ash's future mechanical knowledge and a repurposed gauntlet from a suit of armor. Late in the hours of the night, Sheila presented Ash with the gift of a blanket which she had made for him, ultimately leading to the two spending the night in each other's company before Ash was to ride off and retrieve the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis the following morning.
Captured[]
Williams would eventually retrieve the Necronomicon from the cursed graveyard in which it resided, though not without failing to recite the incantation which would allow the book to be removed from the altar without awakening the dead which resided there. Upon returning to Castle Kandar, Williams was eager for The Wise Man to fulfill his end of the deal and use the Ex-Mortis to return him back to his proper time before the undead could attack, prompting many to now view him as a coward unwilling to face the consequences of his actions. Though Sheila initially still had hope Ash would be their savior, her belief in him also diminished after talking with Williams directly. Disheartened that her lover had lost his courage, Sheila began to make her way back to her bedchamber, only to be attacked by a flying Deadite. Though Ash chased the creature across the castle courtyard, he was too late, forced to watch as the demon flew off into the night with the girl.
Taken to the graveyard which Ash had recently ventured to, Sheila found herself face-to-face with Evil Ash, who proceeded to infect her with a Deadite spirit. Now serving as the "queen" of Ash's devious doppelganger, Sheila rode with the legion of the undead during the siege of Castle Kandar, seeking out the real Ash to attack. During her confrontation with her former lover, Ash managed to knock Sheila into the very pit which he had fallen into upon his initial arrival at the castle, though she quickly escaped. As Williams raced up the castle's wall towards his evil clone (who was just within arm's reach of the Necronomicon), Sheila attacked once more, though Ash managed to toss her over the stone wall and send her plummeting to the ground below.
Aftermath[]
Following Evil Ash's destruction via a bag of homemade gunpowder, the Deadite army began to dissipate and collapse, and Sheila was released of her possession. Reunited with Ash, Sheila stood by his side as Lord Arthur and Henry The Red made amends and brought an end to their personal war. Some time shortly thereafter, Ash and Sheila parted ways, as Williams was eager to return to his proper time. Outside the gate of Castle Kandar, the two shared one last kiss before Ash rode into the distance.
What happened to Sheila following these events remains unknown.
Weapons & Equipment[]
- Spear: During her time as a Deadite, Sheila used a spear at the battle of Castle Kandar.
- Dagger: A small dagger was briefly seen in the possession of the Deadite Sheila before the attack on Castle Kandar commenced, though she did not use it during the battle itself.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Sheila was the first on-screen Deadite without solid white eyes, and instead featured pale blue eyes.
- In the 1991 shooting script of Army of Darkness, Sheila died after attacking Ash on "The Deathcoaster". This was ultimately changed during filming itself to where Sheila would be released of her possession after Evil Ash's destruction.