Chris Hargensen

Christine "Chris" Hargensen is a fictional character created by Stephen King. She is the main antagonist in his first published novel, Carrie.

In every adaptation and portrayal of Carrie, Hargensen is portrayed as a manipulative, mean-spirited and snobbish teenage girl and the leader of a clique in high school. After tormenting Carrie White in the locker room, she is banned from the prom, and blames Carrie for her misfortune. Billy Nolan, Chris's boyfriend, helps her humiliate Carrie by dumping a bucket of pig's blood on her at the prom, which triggers Carrie's psychokinetic powers with disastrous results.

Novel
Chris is the leader of a notorious clique of girl bullies at Ewen High School. She delights in bullying unpopular students, whom she calls "Mortimer Snerds". In junior high, she once slipped a firecracker in the shoe of a girl with a harelip, and nearly blew off two of her toes. She has been sent to detention numerous times for her violent behavior. Chris is stated to have a rather high IQ, 140, but rarely puts it to good use. Despite the history of being sent to detention 76 times and her unimpressive grades, her wealthy family has pulled several strings to get her admitted to Oberlin College.

As the main narrative of the novel begins, Chris leads 10 other girls, including Sue Snell, in taunting Carrie after she has her first period in the shower after gym class. A few days later, gym teacher Rita Desjardin berates Chris and the other girls for their treatment of Carrie, and threatens them with three days' suspension and banishment from the prom unless they attend a week's detention in the gym. Chris tries to rally the other girls to walk out, but is silenced by Sue. Chris skips detention and is suspended for three days and banned from the prom. When her father, powerful town attorney John Hargensen, finds out about this, he threatens to sue the school unless Chris is permitted to attend the prom, and Desjardin is fired. However, the principal responds that if Mr. Hargensen goes forward with his suit, the school district will counter-sue Chris for her assaults on Carrie and other students. After finding out that the school district does have grounds to file such a suit, Mr. Hargensen has no choice but to drop the matter. Chris is outraged and blames Carrie for her misfortune.

In a fit of pique, Chris convinces Billy to help her get revenge on Carrie. Chris, Billy and a few of their friends slip into Irwin Henty's farm, kill two pigs and drain their blood. Billy pours the blood into two buckets and hangs them in the gym rafters. Chris' friend Tina Blake then manipulates the prom king and queen elections so that Carrie and her date, Tommy Ross, are elected. As the school song blares, Chris pulls the rope and drenches Carrie from head to toe with blood, humiliating her in front of the entire school.

Chris and Billy slip out of the school unnoticed and head to a roadhouse. As they make out in the backseat, one of their classmates, Jackie Talbot, warns them that their school is burning to the ground. Some time afterward, just as Carrie arrives in the roadhouse's parking lot, Chris and Billy hurry to Billy's car, start it up and make their way toward the bloodied and weakened Carrie, intent on killing her. Carrie takes control of the car with her mind and sends it crashing into the roadhouse. The car explodes and sets the building on fire, killing both Chris and Billy.

1976 film
In the original film adaptation by Brian De Palma, Chris is portrayed by Nancy Allen. She initiates the shower incident, causing her and the other girls in her class to serve a weeklong boot-camp style detention with Miss Collins (Betty Buckley). Chris attends the first day's detention, but refuses to admit she did anything wrong. Midway through the first day, she insults Miss Collins, who slaps her across the face. Outraged, Chris calls the other girls to walk out with her, but they refuse. Vowing revenge, Chris stomps off the field alone and is banned from the prom. As in the novel, Chris vows revenge on Carrie (Sissy Spacek), and turns to her boyfriend Billy Nolan (John Travolta) to help her get even.

The pair go out driving one night and Chris performs oral sex on him, saying, "Billy, I hate Carrie White."

A couple of nights later, Chris, Billy and two of his friends creep into a pig farm, kill a pig, drain its blood and pour it into a bucket. Billy and Chris later break into the Bates High School gym, where Billy climbs a ladder, places the bucket on a rafter and pours the pig's blood into it. Chris then manipulates the head of the Prom Committee into nominating Carrie for prom queen.

Later, during the prom, Chris and Billy spend most of their time hiding under the stage, looking for Carrie and her date Tommy Ross. Meanwhile, Chris' top henchwoman, Norma Watson, replaces the real ballots with fake ones for Carrie and Tommy. When Carrie is elected prom queen and ascends the stage, Chris pulls the rope tied to the bucket of blood, which spills onto Carrie, humiliating her in front of the entire school. Billy and Chris ran to their car to watch the show &mdash; only to watch helplessly as Carrie uses her telekinetic powers to destroy the entire school.

Later, Chris and Billy chance upon Carrie as she is apparently walking home. Chris revs up the car and foots the gas pedal, heading straight towards Carrie. However, Carrie uses her powers to rupture the gas tank and upset the car, sending it rolling into a clearing for a few yards. After a while, the vehicle explodes, killing both Chris and Billy.

Musical
In the musical version of the novel, Chris is portrayed by Charlotte d'Amboise. She sings the songs "Don't Waste the Moon" and "Do Me a Favor" (with Billy, Sue, Tommy and others), "In" (with Miss Gardiner and the other girls) "Out for Blood" (with Billy and the boys) and "Heaven" (with Carrie, Tommy, Sue, Miss Garder, Billy, and boys and girls). She dies in the prom when Carrie takes her revenge. In the 2012 off-Broadway revival of the show, Chris is played by Jeanna de Waal and gets a new song explaining the reasons behind her endless bullying of Carrie White and other high school outcasts, "The World According to Chris." In the 2012 musical, Chris dies by snapping her own neck under Carrie's command.

2002 remake
In the made-for-TV adaptation, Chris is portrayed by Emilie de Ravin. In this version, after the locker room prank, she and Tina spray-paint "Plug it up" on Carrie's hall locker, and fill it with tampons. The tampons spill all over the floor when Carrie opens her locker. The next day, Chris and her friends are confronted by Miss Desjarden, who throws a gym bag full of tampons at them and berates them for their cruel treatment of Carrie. Chris stomps out of the locker room, and is banned from the prom. As in the novel, Chris sends her father to the school, threatening to sue unless she is allowed to attend the prom and Desjarden is fired. However, he is forced to abandon the idea after the principal calmly replies that he will countersue Chris for her acts of cruelty towards Carrie and other students. Chris enlists her mentally unstable boyfriend, Billy Nolan, to get revenge on Carrie.

2013 film
The character will be played by Portia Doubleday in the 2013 remake of Carrie.