| “ | Belphegor: That guy you just shot, it's Francis Tumblety. Dean: Who? Belphegor: Uh, Jack the Ripper? |
” |
Francis Tumblety (born 1833 – May 28, 1903) is a man who in life was the infamous serial killer Jack the Ripper. Released during the Ghostpocalypse, Francis assumes a position of leadership over the other Hell Ghosts before being trapped in a Soul Catcher by Rowena MacLeod.
History[]
Francis Tumblety was an Irish-born American medical quack, who was also known by the name Jack the Ripper, and was responsible for a murder spree in Whitechapel, London, in 1888. His preferred victims were women, all of whom were prostitutes.
At some point in time in the past, Tumblety had a dalliance with Rowena, whom he decided to let live unlike all of his other "dates."
Season 15[]
Francis Tumblety, while possessing the man Rob, repeatedly stabbing the woman Nan in the stomach
In Raising Hell, during the Ghostpocalypse, a woman, Nan, sneaks into her quarantined neighborhood to retrieve allergy medication for her daughter, when she is startled by a neighbor named Rob who is just standing in the street. Nan begins talking to him, but he remains quiet, before grabbing hold of her and repeatedly stabbing her in the stomach. Rob collapses soon after, revealing Francis Tumblety had been possessing him. While patrolling the perimeter, Belphegor and Dean spot Tumblety attempting to escape and shoot him with rock salt.
The ghost Francis Tumblety gathers a group of spirits to discuss the situation
The next day, Tumblety gathers a small group of spirits together and informs them he has learned why they were spit out of Hell, revealing God has released them and they are being trapped in Harlan by hunters and the demon Belphegor. Tumblety suggests they gather all the souls still hiding in the shadows and build their numbers.
Francis Tumblety appears with two possessed people as hostages, demanding the Winchesters and Belphegor power down the warding
Tumblety later confronts the Winchesters and Belphegor, demanding they power down the warding, using two possessed people as hostages. When Sam and Dean refuse his demands, Tumblety has the ghosts begin shredding the insides of the possessed, until the sudden arrival of Arthur Ketch, who fires iron flakes from a weapon, forcing Tumblety to disappear and the possessing ghosts to be ejected from their humans.
The ghosts are not afraid of Kevin anymore-one of them Francis Tumblety signals another ghost to stops Kevin from leaving
Tumblety attempts to rally the other spirits to amass their power and attack the weakest point in the warding. Kevin Tran arrives and begins to question Tumblety's plan on what to do with the hunters, but Tumblety tells him that unlike the other ghosts, he was never impressed with Kevin in Hell like his colleagues. He reveals he is aware of Kevin's relationship with Sam and Dean Winchester, due to overhearing the demons complaining about the brothers all the time. As Kevin attempts to leave, Tumblety signals a ghost to prevent him from doing so.
The ghost Francis Tumblety meets Rowena whom he had a brief dalliance with centuries ago in England
As Rowena enters the quarantine zone to meet with the Winchesters, Tumblety appears before her, noting that it's been a while since they last saw each other. He tells her he always thought she was special, considering he gutted his other dates. Realizing she is working with the hunters, he tells her to give a message to Sam and Dean—he has Kevin Tran and wants to talk. Ketch soon appears and fires rock salt at Tumblety, forcing him to dissipate, and allowing Rowena to escape. Tumblety soon re-materializes and strikes Ketch in the back of the head with a rock.
The ghost Francis Tumblety begins absorbing Kevin Tran when the Winchesters brothers refuse his demand
At the meeting with the Winchesters, Tumblety threatens to devour Kevin whole unless they shut down the warding. When they refuse, Tumblety drives his hand into Kevin and begins absorbing him until Rowena arrives with Belphegor and begins absorbing ghosts into the soul catcher, forcing Tumblety to flee.
Francis Tumblety, while possessing Arthur Ketch, intends to use the Soul Catcher containing the souls to break open the barrier
At the barrier, Rowena begins absorbing more ghosts, but is suddenly knocked down by Ketch, who reveals himself to be possessed by Tumblety. Threatening to use the soul catcher to bring down the warding, he is quickly shot by Dean with iron rounds and forced out of Ketch, where he is then absorbed into the soul catcher by Rowena.
In The Rupture, when Rowena tries to perform the Rafforza l'incantesimo, she has a flashback to Francis's attack in the street along with the actions of several other ghosts and announces that she can't strengthen the barrier as it is too weak and the ghosts are too strong.
Powers and Abilities[]
Francis was an extremely powerful ghost.
- Invisibility - As a ghost, Francis was naturally invisible.
- Thermokinesis - His mere presence also caused the temperature to drop in rooms.
- Soul Absorption - Like Whitman Van Ness, Francis can absorb the souls of other ghosts, draining them into himself.
- Teleportation - After Rowena began using the Soul Catcher, he was able to teleport away to safety.
- Ghost Possession - Francis was capable of possessing a person's body.
- Ectoplasm Secretion - When possessing Arthur Ketch, Francis caused some ectoplasm to emerge from his eyes like tears.
- Super Strength - As a ghost, Francis is much stronger than when they were as humans, being incorporeal and able to generate great amounts of force without discomfort. While possessing Arthur Ketch, he is able to knock down Rowena without difficulty.
- Immunity - Francis shows a high level of immunity to iron, recovering in moments from Arthur Ketch's iron flakes.
Weaknesses[]
- Salt - Like all ghosts, he could be dissipated with salt.
- Iron - Dean was able to kick him out of Arthur Ketch's body by shooting Arthur with iron bullets. However, he displays a high level of immunity to it, quickly reforming each time he's hit.
- Magic - Francis was able to be affected by various forms of magic.
- Soul Containment Barrier Spell - Like the other souls released from Hell, Francis was trapped by the barrier created by the spell. However, he could pass the barrier by possessing a living person.
- Soul Catcher - Rowena was able to trap him in the Soul Catcher with the other ghosts.
Appearances[]
- Season 15
- Raising Hell
- The Rupture (flashback only)
Trivia[]
- In real life, Francis Tumblety was in fact one of the men suspected to be Jack the Ripper.
- He is the third serial killer from the real world to ever appear in the series, after Henry H. Holmes and John Wayne Gacy.