What is Rachel Weisz's character's name in Vladimir? The Netflix series is hiding a big hint
The author of the original book has explained why her name is never revealed
Vladimir stars Rachel Weisz, but here’s the thing: the Netflix series never tells you her character’s name. However, there’s a clue… if you know where to find it.
Based on Julia May Jonas’ novel of the same name, Vladimir follows a middle-aged professor (Weisz) who becomes infatuated with her university’s new professor (Leo Woodall).
While fantasising about… you know, she also tries to help her husband, John (John Slattery), who’s been accused of sexual misconduct by multiple students.
Inevitably, loyalties and obsessions collide. And, as Netflix says, Weisz’s character is a “slippery, inscrutable narrator” – which makes it even harder to figure out her real name.
What is Rachel Weisz’s name in Vladimir?
While we’re never told Rachel Weisz’s character’s full name in Vladimir, we have found a single initial: M.
Could this be a nod to its author’s ‘May’ moniker? Could her name be Mary, Madeleine, Michelle, or another name beginning with M? That’s open to speculation.
Even if you scour every episode of Vladimir – all of the brief glimpses of her book, her text messages, any documents – Weisz’s character’s name is nowhere to be found.
However, her M initial can be found deep in the credits. If you go past the initial run of credits to the dubbing credits, you’ll find Weisz and co.’s international voice counterparts – and Weisz’s character is always listed as M.
Of course, there’s a chance this is just a placeholder, and her name may not begin with M (or even include M) whatsoever. But it’s all we’ve got to go on!
Why Vladimir hides Rachel Weisz’s character’s name
Vladimir cleverly utilises every conversational workaround to avoid saying Weisz’s character’s name.
Whether it’s just saying, “Hey!” without saying their name – and, be honest, how often do you say someone’s name when you greet them unless it’s in an email? – or other substitutes (“honey”, “you”, “sweetie”), you won’t find any clues in the show’s dialogue.
This is completely by design. Jonas, the author (who also serves as showrunner), doesn’t say the character’s name at all in the book.
During a 2022 appearance on The Maris Review, Jonas explained why she chose not to name her.
“I wanted us to feel inside of her head, I didn’t want us to look at her as if she was an object outside of us,” she said.
“I also feel like there’s a tradition in gothic novels of these unnamed narrators, and it does add this sense of urgency. My book is not particularly spooky, but spookiness as a vibe, say.”
She echoed this in a 2022 interview with Harvard Book Store. “If I gave her the name… I don’t even a name for her in my head, still to this day. I was working on describing her with someone and they were saying, ‘Can we have a shorthand, can we give her a name?'” she explained.
“‘No… we can call her the letter B, maybe.’ But I just don’t want to name her. The reason why is because I feel like once she has a name, she’s over here. She becomes an object that we’re looking at, and the thing I was interested in was exploring is her gaze, her desire, feeling like we’re inside of her body and inside of her mind.”
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