| “ | That woman deserves her revenge, and we deserve to die... But then again, so does she. So I guess we'll just have to see, won't we?
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| ― Budd to Bill |
Budd, code named Sidewinder, is one of the secondary antagonists Quentin Tarantino's film series Kill Bill, appearing as a minor antagonist in the 2003 film Kill Bill: Volume 1 and a major antagonist in the 2004 film Kill Bill: Volume 2. He is Bill's degenerate brother and a member of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad.
He was portrayed by Michael Madsen, who also played Vic Vega in Reservoir Dogs, Joe Gage in The Hateful Eight and the sheriff Hackett in Once Upon a Time In Hollywood.
Biography
Background
Budd was recognized by Bill as "the only man [he] ever loved." Together with Vernita Green, O-Ren Ishii, Beatrix Kiddo and Elle Driver, Budd was a member of the assassination group of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad, led by Bill. Together with the rest of the members, he attacks a wedding community in El Paso on the orders of Bill. Since Beatrix Kiddo wanted to marry and leave the organization, Bill ordered that all the wedding guests and Beatrix 'groom should be murdered. The vipers succeeded in the assassination attempt, which killed nine people, but Beatrix survived and fell into a coma.
After the assassination team was dissolved, Budd ironically moved to El Paso, where he took to living a rather lonely life in a recreational vehicle, where he steadily became a redneck like alcoholic, making ends meet by working as a bouncer at a strip club. Bill offered him a way out of his financial difficulties, but he refused. He is not without remorse for what he has done. When told by Bill that Beatrix was coming to kill him, Budd philosophically said "that woman deserves her revenge. And we deserve to die. But then again, so does she. So, I guess we'll see, won't we?" When asked about his Hanzo katana, Budd lied and claimed he pawned the sword (for $250), much to Bill's chagrin, who stated that such a sword was "priceless".
Facing Beatrix
Beatrix eventually tracked him down and approached his trailer. Though she wanted to do a sneak attack, Budd was one step ahead and surprised her by shooting her in the chest with rock salt the moment she walked through the door, then he sedated her in the backside. It can be debated he knew she was there. As there was a scene prior that he put his back to her position (later known under trailer) and laughed. He then dragged the startled (and paralyzed) Beatrix onto a wooden coffin to bury her alive (later described as a "Texas funeral"). After burying Beatrix, Budd stole her priceless Hattori Hanzō sword.
Elle's Betrayal and Death
| “ | The venom of a black mamba can kill a human in four hours, if, say, bitten on the ankle or the thumb. However, a bite to the face or torso can bring death from paralysis within 20 minutes. Now, you should listen to this, 'cause this concerns you. The amount of venom that can be delivered from a single bite can be gargantuan. You know, I've always liked that word, "gargantuan", you so rarely have an opportunity to use it in a sentence.
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| ― Elle Driver (the last words that Budd will ever hear |
Elle arranged a meeting with Budd at his trailer, with the former agreeing to pay a million dollars for Beatrix's sword. Again, it can be argued that Budd was purposely walking toward his own death. Upon asking for the sword, she handed a large briefcase containing $1,000,000 in cash to Budd as payment. While indulging at his reward, Bud unknowingly grabs money out of the briefcase and reveals a black mamba snake hidden by Elle. The snake bites him on the face several times, sending Bud to the floor swollen and convulsing due to the venom as the snake slithers into his trailer. Watching Bud moaning in pain, Elle sits and tells him that she has researched about the black mamba on the internet before she came. She then proceeds to take out copious handwritten notes, and lectures him at length on the utterly deadly nature of the venom coursing through his body. Moments later, Budd finally expires.
Elle expresses regret that Beatrix (whom Elle branded as the best warrior she ever met) apparently lost her life to a "bushwacking, scrub, alkie piece of shit" like Budd. She collected Beatrix's sword and the money before leaving. She then lied to Bill over the phone, telling him that Beatrix planted a black mamba in Budd's camper which killed him and that Elle herself was the one who killed Beatrix.
Budd was the only Deadly Viper who defeated Beatrix. Nonetheless, and fittingly enough, he was killed by a black mamba, which was Beatrix's codename.
Code Name
The Sidewinder moves sideways to cope with the nature of the desert terrain. This refers to Budd’s sideways attack and the fact he was living in the desert.
Skills
- Marksmanship: Budd's weapon of choice was a shotgun which he used against Beatrix. Apparently, he frequently used rock salt in the cartridges, in lieu of pellets, to subdue his targets. He also wielded an assault rifle during the Massacre at Two Pines.
- Strategy and Tactics: Budd was able to predict how Kiddo would attack him and chose the best position for a counter-attack, allowing him to wound and incapacitate her with his rock salt from his shotgun.
- Melee weapon: Budd owned a Hattori Hanzō sword given to him by Bill, implying he had some proficiency in swordfighting. Though by his own admission he hadn't practiced in a long time, but he'd also said (yet lied) that he'd sold the sword.
- Miscellaneous skills: Since Budd never fought on screen, the degree of his physical and combative prowess remains unknown. As part of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad, it can be assumed that he was a very strong and able fighter. He may have even been trained in kung fu by Pai Mei, as his brother, Beatrix, and Elle were all trained by him as well.
Trivia
- Madsen has said he views his character as being the conscience of the film, given his character having walked away from his career as an assassin in pursuit of living a regular life.
- Despite appearing to be the least competent or threatening of the DVAS, Budd comes the closest to successfully killing the Bride.