Reservoir Dogs - Characters & Cast

His primary motivation shifts from professional duty to a deeply personal sense of responsibility and guilt for Mr. Orange. He is driven by a need to protect the younger man, believing it's the honorable thing to do, even if it means confronting his own bosses.

Mr. White begins as a seasoned, professional criminal who believes in a code of honor. He takes the inexperienced Mr. Orange under his wing, forming a mentor-like bond. His arc is a tragic downfall fueled by misplaced loyalty. His guilt over Mr. Orange's injury causes him to break his professional code, revealing his name and defending Orange to the death. His realization of Orange's betrayal in the final moments completely shatters his worldview just before he is killed.

Initially, his motivation is to do his job: arrest Joe Cabot. After he is shot, his motivation becomes twofold: to survive his grievous wound and to maintain his cover until help arrives. His final motivation appears to be a need to confess the truth to the one man who trusted and protected him.

Mr. Orange is an undercover cop who successfully infiltrates the gang. His arc is defined by his performance and the moral toll of his deception. He's a good actor, convincingly selling his criminal persona. However, after being shot, his arc becomes a slow, painful journey toward death, during which he develops a genuine, albeit complicated, bond with Mr. White. His final confession to White is a moment of truth that stems from guilt and the strange connection they formed, leading to both of their deaths.

His primary motivation is sadistic pleasure. He enjoys violence and wielding power over others. He is loyal to the Cabots, but his actions are driven more by his own psychopathic impulses than any professional goal. He tortures the cop not for information, but because he finds it amusing.

Mr. Blonde has no real arc; he is a static character who serves as a catalyst for chaos. He is introduced as a loyal soldier to the Cabot family, having done prison time for them. However, his calm demeanor masks a sadistic and violent psychopath. His actions during the heist (needlessly killing civilians) and after (torturing a captured cop for amusement) demonstrate his complete lack of morality and professionalism. His arc is cut short when he is killed by Mr. Orange just before he can immolate the officer.

Pure self-preservation and greed. He is relentlessly focused on figuring out what went wrong so he can ensure his own safety and escape with his share of the loot. He argues against tipping because he doesn't believe in paying for something that isn't earned, a philosophy that extends to his entire criminal outlook.

Mr. Pink is a neurotic, high-strung, but ultimately rational criminal. His arc is that of the lone survivor, precisely because he refuses to let emotion or loyalty interfere with his logic. He is the first to insist they were set up and maintains a professional distance. While the others are consumed by their conflicts, he focuses on the diamonds and escape. His arc concludes with him fleeing the warehouse with the diamonds, though sounds of a crash and police suggest his escape may be short-lived.