Rachel Partson (Josie Davis) is the main villainess of the 2008 Lifetime film The Perfect Assistant (airdate January 1, 2008).
Backstory[]
Rachel's parents died when she was young and she was sent to live with her aunt, uncle, and cousin Nora. She never felt she belonged in the family and longed to be loved since then. Prior to the events of the movie, Rachel worked as the executive assistant to David Prescott, the head of a firm, for three years. Over that time, she became obsessed with him, desiring to become his wife. However, David already had a wife Carol and a young daughter Isabelle. She and Nora also became roommates, which led Rachel to strongly despise her cousin.
Events[]
When Carol becomes sick and is hospitalized, Rachel immediately rushes to the hospital, bringing a juice box for Isabelle. She offers to take Isabelle home and drop her off at school the next day, comforting the young girl and assuring her that her mother would be OK. Later that night, she goes through David's things and steals a home movie of him and his family. She also helps David manage things at the office during this time, during which we see her disdain for co-workers Judith Manion (who also worked closely with David) and Wally, who often tried to ask Rachel out for a date. She makes a dinner for David and Isabelle and learns that Carol has contracted encephalitis, which she researches later while bemoaning the prospect of David having to watch Carol suffer and die like that. Rachel is shown to have great tension with her cousin Nora, which increases when Nora finds the home video she stole from David and realizes how obsessed she is with him.
When Rachel finds out that the doctors are hopeful Carol will recover, she sneaks into the hospital and kills her with an injection of air to cause an aneurysm, justifying the act by saying that Carol wouldn't be the same even if she could recover. After the funeral, David begins looking for a nanny and Rachel uses some manipulations to get David to choose the one she prefers. When Rachel finds out the firm is in financial trouble if they don't get an account, she takes Wally up on his date offer and finds out from him that the other company that is in the running for the account is led by Grady Bransen, a former employee who had an affair with Judith. Using a computer at an Internet cafe, Rachel sent Grady an anonymous email threatening to expose the affair to his wife if he doesn't drop the account. He does and, while out having drinks to celebrate, Rachel finds out that Judith is accompanying David on a business trip to New York, causing her to have a breakdown in the restroom. Wanting the time alone with David, Rachel poisons Judith's coffee and fakes a call to David's nanny Eleana from Immigration claiming her appointment regarding her ill mother (whom she was trying to move into the country for better healthcare) had been rescheduled, leaving her to go to New York alone with David and Isabelle.
Late one night, David and Rachel share drinks and David gives Rachel a watch, a present for all she had done to help him. Rachel then kisses David, who doesn't reciprocate. He apologizes for if he had led her on, but Rachel states that it's her fault and goes to the bathroom, where she scolds herself for moving too quickly and concludes that he needs space. When Rachel returns home, she finds Nora in her bedroom using her computer, her own having gotten a virus during an online date. Rachel has a meltdown, insulting Nora and saying she hates her. Nora finally stands up to Rachel, telling her that she treated her like family when her parents took her in. Rachel in turns accuses her of treating her like an outsider, which Nora denies. As Nora insults Rachel, telling her that David would never want to be with her, Rachel pushes Nora down the stairs, killing her. Later, when David learns from Judith and Wally about Rachel's lies, David fires her. Rachel is at first upset, but then delusionally thinks that he fired her so he could date her without feeling guilty about her being an employee. She surprises David at his home with a teddy bear to give Isabelle, where David outright tells her he is not interested in her. Scorned, Rachel bursts in on an office party, locks David and all their employees in the dining room, and pulls out a gun. She rants to David about how he didn't appreciate all she had done for him and barks at Wally to put his phone down when he tries to call for help. David tries to convince Rachel not to kill him and orphan Isabelle, but she claims she'll survive before revealing that she plans on killing David and then herself. She then shoots Judith in the shoulder, blaming her for turning David against her. When someone tries to open the door, David pushes the distracted Rachel into a wall and disarms her, causing her to break down in tears as David gets help for Judith, begging him not to leave her. Rachel is arrested and the final scene shows her writing a letter to David, saying how much she misses him and can't wait for them to be reunited.
Trivia[]
- This was Josie Davis's first villainous Lifetime film role.
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| Josie Davis |
|---|
| Serena | Marta | Sally Hawkins | Rachel Partson | Molly Matson | Paulette Bolton | Ms. Sinclair |