Ellie Woodcomb
| Dr. Eleanor Fay Woodcomb (née Bartowski) | |
|---|---|
| Chuck character | |
 Sarah Lancaster as Ellie Woodcomb | |
| First appearance | "Chuck Versus the Intersect" (Pilot) |
| Portrayed by | Sarah Lancaster |
| In-universe information | |
| Nickname | Ellie (primarily known as) |
| Gender | Female |
| Title | M.D |
| Occupation | Physician |
| Family | Chuck Bartowski (brother) Stephen J. Bartowski (father) Mrs. Bartowski (mother, location unknown) Dr. "Woody" Woodcomb (father-in-law) Dr. "Honey" Woodcomb (mother-in-law) |
| Spouse | Dr. Devon Woodcomb |
Eleanor Fay "Ellie" Woodcomb (née Bartowski), M.D., is the older sister of title character Chuck Bartowski on the television series Chuck. She is portrayed by actress Sarah Lancaster.
Biography
With the exception of her younger brother, Chuck (Zachary Levi), little is known about the Bartowski family. It is known that their mother left them when they were younger (Chuck was in the fifth grade), and that their father was "never really there."[1] Her father, Stephen J. Bartowski, first appeared in the episode "Chuck Versus the Dream Job." Ellie attended and graduated from UCLA's medical school, where she met and went to school with her husband, Devon Woodcomb. Devon was in love with her for three years ("give or take") before the events of "Chuck Versus the Seduction." They began dating when Devon gave her his sweater and said it was meant for her because the color matched her eyes.[2]
When her brother was expelled by Stanford University in 2003 he came back to Echo Park in Los Angeles to stay with her.[3] For much of their lives growing up, Chuck and Ellie relied on each other, and after Chuck returned home Ellie became one of his main sources of support as he recovered from Bryce Larkin's betrayal. At the beginning of the series, Ellie is throwing a birthday party for Chuck and has invited a number of her girlfriends for him to meet in hopes of helping him move past Jill.
Series
Ellie Bartowski is portrayed by actress Sarah Lancaster. She first appears in the series at the beginning of "Chuck Versus the Intersect," when Chuck tries to escape his birthday party which she arranged to try introducing him to real women.[4] She remains one of the most important anchors between Chuck and his real life throughout the series, and her safety is one of his foremost concerns. When Chuck discovered Casey had bugged the home he shared with Ellie, he was even prepared to threaten Casey if he found out he was spying on her as well.[2] When Chuck's extraction by the government was imminent, he made a point of telling her goodbye, and later asked Sarah to tell her something to make his disappearance "okay."[5]
Most of Ellie's appearances in the series have been as part of the side-plots involving Chuck's real life and coworkers at the Buy More, so she has rarely figured prominently into the main arc. Her most significant role in the main plot of an episode came in "Chuck Versus the Truth," in which Ellie attempted to treat nuclear expert Mason Whitney when he was poisoned by Reardon Payne. When Whitney later died, Payne, disguised as a police officer taking a statement, exposed Ellie to the same toxic truth serum he used on Whitney to find where he hid his nuclear codes. Ellie nearly died as a result of the poisoning until Chuck administered the antidote. Although she was in a coma during this time, Ellie became the first person Chuck told about his secret life.[2] She was also among the hostages in the Buy More when Ned Rhyerson crashed his car into the store while evading the police. For her sake, Chuck convinced Devon not to go through with a plan to overwhelm Ned, and later identified himself as the Intersect to Mauser to prevent him from killing her. The bracelet Chuck gave to Sarah in the same episode was a charm bracelet Chuck and Ellie's father gave to their mother when Ellie was born.[6]
Throughout the series, Ellie encourages Chuck and pushes him towards leaving the Buy More and doing something more suitable to his education level.[7] After Chuck expressed misgivings about his relationship with Sarah in "Chuck Versus the Suburbs," she encouraged Chuck to break up with her, before Morgan reminded her that Sarah was the best thing that had happened to him in a long time.[8] She was ecstatic when Chuck announced he was moving out and that he and Sarah would be getting a place together, but did not have a chance to react when Chuck later abruptly changed his mind.[9]
Devon proposed to Ellie at the end of "Chuck Versus the Marlin," and she accepted. This began a secondary arc throughout the second season covering the preparations for the wedding. Ellie's regret that her father would not be there led Chuck to decide to track him down and promise that their father would be there.[10] Their father indeed appeared at the end of the second season (see below). Ellie married Devon in the second season finale.
A major recurring thread in the series is the love/hate relationship she has with Chuck's best friend Morgan Grimes. Morgan has been in love with Ellie for a long time, but Ellie at first shown to barely tolerate him. However, as the series progresses, she and Morgan come to form something resembling a friendship, partly owing to them both missing Chuck as his spy life begins to interfere more frequently with his real life.[1] Morgan also offers her support and comfort during a fight with Devon, where he admits he sees her as a sister (that he wants to have sex with so bad).[11] Morgan's girlfriend Anna immediately takes a dislike to Ellie because of Morgan's long-standing crush.[12]
Development
Sarah Lancaster was cast in the role of Ellie Bartowski in March, 2007,[13] joining Zachary Levi, Adam Baldwin and Yvonne Strahovski. On January 16, 2009 it was announced that Scott Bakula would be appearing as Chuck and Ellie's father Stephen in a three-episode story.[14]
Personality
Ellie is kind and compassionate. Ironically, considering that Chuck's secret life has led him to save Ellie's on three occasions, she still plays the role of the over-protective older sister and deep-down still sees him as her baby brother. She frequently offers Chuck encouragement and advice on women in general, and his relationship with Sarah in particular. Although unaware of the truth of that relationship, Ellie is one of the first people to recognize that her interest in Chuck is genuine.[15] She was immediately concerned when Chuck ran into Jill again and was meeting her for dinner to catch up.[16]
She immediately took a liking to Sarah, and is one of the few characters who enjoys Casey's company or refers to him by first name ("He's so sweet!").[12]
After Chuck, the most important person in Ellie's life is her husband, Devon Woodcomb. She's the only character who never refers to him as "Captain Awesome," although she did refer to his parents as the "Very Awesomes" when they were planning a visit.[17] She loves him dearly, but under the effects of truth serum angrily complained about his frequent use of the word "awesome," and what she felt as moments of neglect of her feelings in the relationship.[2] Ellie later accuses him of self-centeredness and disregard what she wanted when he bought washer and dryer for their anniversary (as opposed to a big-screen TV).[11]
Although usually calm and collected, Ellie was greatly intimidated during a visit from Devon's parents, and was quickly driven to frustration by Honey Woodcomb's interference with the wedding plans.[10] She was also deeply disturbed by her perception of Devon's bachelor party, after seeing incriminating photographs taken by Lester of an unconscious Devon with Agent Forrest (dressed as a cop-themed stripper).[18] She was hurt, and believes Chuck and Morgan are covering up willful actions taken by Devon during the party.
It is unknown whether she has the same ability to absorb and retain visual information as her father and brother.
References
- ^ a b "Chuck Versus the Sizzling Shrimp"
- ^ a b c d "Chuck Versus the Truth"
- ^ "Chuck Versus the Alma Mater"
- ^ "Chuck Versus the Intersect"
- ^ "Chuck Versus the Marlin"
- ^ "Chuck Versus Santa Claus"
- ^ "Chuck Versus the First Date"
- ^ "Chuck Versus the Beefcake"
- ^ "Chuck Versus the Lethal Weapon"
- ^ a b "Chuck Versus the Sensei"
- ^ a b "Chuck Versus the Undercover Lover"
- ^ a b "Chuck Versus the Nemesis"
- ^ Development Update: Friday, March 16, The Futon Critic
- ^ Cast Update: January 16, Zap2It.com
- ^ "Chuck Versus the Tango"
- ^ "Chuck Versus the Ex"
- ^ "Chuck Versus the Gravitron"
- ^ "Chuck Versus the Broken Heart"