Most Selfish Characters in Red Dead Redemption

Key Takeaways

• Selfish acts in Red Dead Redemption often have dire consequences, impacting relationships and leading to betrayal.
• Characters like Dutch, Micah, and Catherine prioritize their interests over others, causing harm and chaos.
• The Wild West setting of the game fuels selfish behavior, highlighting the survival-of-the-fittest mentality among its characters.

In the Wild West, it’s every man and woman for themselves and when the going gets tough, the tough get going. No one is to be trusted, and it’s a dog-eat-dog world out there, so no wonder a fair share of characters become incredibly selfish (if they weren’t already). There are a handful of circumstances under which acts of selfishness are warranted, particularly during an era where outlaws and thieves run rampant, but some Red Dead Redemption characters have no excuse for their one-way attitudes.

Sometimes, acting out of self-interest can also benefit the greater good, but the most selfish characters in the Red Dead Redemption franchise look out for nobody but themselves, and they’ll trample over just about anyone to get what they want.

1 Dutch Van der Linde

Manipulated The Gang’s Loyalty To Him

It’s been a hot topic of debate for a long time whether Dutch is the “real” villain of Red Dead Redemption 2. Compared to Colm O’Driscoll and Leviticus Cornwall, Dutch doesn’t seem that bad in the grand scheme of things, but his moral compass doesn’t always point to righteousness, and his hands are never squeaky clean.

First and foremost, Dutch values wealth and prosperity, especially during the collapse of the American Frontier, and he plays the role of a concerned family man convincingly, but Dutch’s intentions are always ambiguous. He always wanted the gang members to be loyal to him and do what he says — to implicitly trust him — even if that meant them dying. He believed dying for the cause would be a noble sacrifice, so long as it wasn’t him.

2 Penelope & Beau

Prioritized Eloping Over Their Family’s Safety

Beau Gray and Penelope Braithwaite were Red Dead Redemption 2‘s interpretation of Romeo and Juliet, with the pair of them acting as two star-crossed lovers and the Grays and the Braithwaites being the Montagues and the Capulets in this analogy. Both families are liars and hypocrites with a rivalry that’s already set in motion by the time Arthur meets them. At the center of this decades-long feud are Beau and Penelope, who are forbidden from seeing one another on account of their rivaling affiliations.

Arthur helps them contact one another, and then they eventually run off together, but it wouldn’t be right to say that Beau and Penelope aren’t selfish in doing so. Both of them cared little for how the Grays and Braithwaites would eventually destroy one another, as they only cared about eloping. They also abused Arthur’s kindness as their ticket out of a bad situation.

3 Abigail Marston

Continuously Ridiculed John And Ultimately Left Him

John Marston may not be a perfect man, but he’s far from the miscreant that Abigail makes him out to be. Throughout both Red Dead Redemption and Red Dead Redemption 2, John makes every decision with Abigail and Jack’s best interests at heart, even if it lands him in hot water with the local authorities. Driven by his love for Abigail, John vows to give up his outlaw lifestyle for her, so that they can live happily on their ranch and raise Jack together.

He builds their home from scratch with Charles and Uncle’s help, then earns some extra cash the old-fashioned way by becoming a ranch hand for the Geddes. After all of that, Abigail still isn’t satisfied, and she lets John hear about it constantly. In the end, Abigail takes Jack and leaves. While it’s understandable that she wouldn’t want Jack to be implicated in violent situations, it isn’t as if John ever intended to put them in harm’s way.

4 Micah Bell

Played Devil’s Advocate To Dutch And Snitched On The Gang

Often labeled as the overarching antagonist of Red Dead Redemption 2, Micah Bell can also be blamed for Dutch’s descent into apathy. In Chapter 1, Dutch is shown to be compassionate and caring, particularly after meeting Sadie Adler and draping a blanket over her. Once Micah starts to play devil’s advocate, he slowly begins manipulating Dutch into acting selfishly. Micah is greedy, opportunistic, and entirely untrustworthy.

He is indirectly responsible for the death of Molly, who takes the heat for being the rat that snitched on the gang to Ross and Milton when it was actually Micah who informed the authorities of the gang’s whereabouts and sold them out for some extra money. He also ridicules Arthur for suffering from tuberculosis, frequently calling him “Black Lung.” He holds no moral standards, treats everyone with contempt, and only cares about how quickly he can make a buck.

5 Colm O’Driscoll

Killed Dutch’s Lover And Uses His Men As Pawns

As one of several secondary antagonists in Red Dead Redemption 2, Colm O’Driscoll is Dutch’s archenemy. Their rivalry reached its peak after Dutch murdered Colm’s brother, prompting Colm to retaliate by killing Annabelle, Dutch’s lover. Ever since, the Van der Linde gang and O’Driscolls have been caught up in a blood feud. During the events of the game, it is made abundantly clear that Colm doesn’t care about the O’Driscolls, as he doesn’t even know many of their names.

As Kieran Duffy says, “When he talks to you nicely, it’s like the sun is shining, and when he’s mad at you, it’s like the devil is upon you.” When Colm tries to hire Arthur during his kidnapping and torture, he mocks Dutch’s philosophy and remains steadfast in his efforts to sway Arthur with nothing more than the promise of money. He doesn’t truly care about anyone but himself, so he uses everyone around him as pawns to achieve a means to an end.

6 Catherine Braithwaite

Cares Too Deeply About the Braithwaite’s Reputation

Catherine Braithwaite, the matriarch of the Braithwaite family, became acquainted with an Italian crime boss by the name of Angelo Bronte. She also began an illegitimate business selling moonshine to the Lemoyne Raiders. Catherine cares greatly for her societal image, the Braithwaite’s fortune, and family values, but she doesn’t much care for anyone whom she deems unworthy. She prioritizes the Braithwaite’s reputation over their wellbeing, as she keeps Gertrude Braithwaite locked in an outhouse for an indeterminate amount of time rather than transporting her to a sanitorium to assess her mental instability.

It is also believed that Gertrude is possessed, but Catherine simply adopted an “out of sight, out of mind” mentality. Above all, Catherine’s wealth and prosperity mean the most to her, not the Braithwaites and not the “Yankees” as she unfavorably calls them.

7 Edgar Ross

Violates An Agreement With John And Hunts The Van Der Linde Gang

Appearing in both Red Dead Redemption and its sequel, Edgar Ross is a member of the Pinkerton Detective Agency, which looks to rid modern civilization of outlaws. Although Ross answers to his superior, Andrew Milton, it can be argued that he’s the real mastermind behind the plot to wipe out the Van der Linde gang. Milton seems to be just following orders, whereas Ross develops a personal vendetta against Dutch and his followers, as he repeatedly mocks members of the gang — even doing so to young Jack Marston — and continuously reminds them that they are running on borrowed time.

After Milton dies, Ross becomes the driving force behind the continued pursuit of the gang’s members during the events of Red Dead Redemption. He violates an agreement made with John to keep Abigail and Jack safe, instead descending on John’s ranch to mercilessly gun him down, forcing John to sacrifice himself for the sake of his wife and child.

8 Leopold Strauss

Loans Money To Individuals Whom He Knows Can’t Afford It

Leopold Strauss is one of the shiftiest businessmen to exist, as he deliberately loans money to individuals whom he knows can’t afford to pay it back. Then, he sends Arthur Morgan to collect the debt by any means necessary, including brute force, even though many of the loaners are struggling to support their families and give up family heirlooms and life savings to settle those debts. He serves as the Van der Linde gang’s accountant but started up a loan sharking business to earn himself an additional income.

During Arthur’s confrontation with Thomas Downes, specifically, he learns that many of the loaners are destitute and have nothing to give, but Strauss doesn’t concern himself with the financial hardships of others and instead demands that Arthur retrieve the debt. Edith Downes can visit the camp at some point and inform Strauss of her husband’s death, but Strauss just selfishly bequeaths the debt to Edith instead.

9 Mary Linton

Tugs On Arthur’s Heartstrings To Get His Help

While Mary Linton certainly isn’t the bad apple of the bunch, she’s no peach either. Mary was Arthur’s lover during their youth, but his lifestyle as an outlaw drove her away. Eventually, Mary moved on and married a man named Barry, who contracted pneumonia and died, leaving her a widow. From then on, a widowed Mary continuously tried to contact Arthur and ask him for favors. Arthur can either accept or deny these favors, but Mary remains a selfish person who pulls on Arthur’s heartstrings to keep him at arm’s length, knowing that he would always come running to help her due to their shared history.

Mary uses this to her advantage, asking Arthur to rescue and rehabilitate her brother after he runs off to join a fanatical cult. She does admit that their relationship fell apart due to fault on both sides, but she often berates Arthur for his lifestyle choices despite ending up in no better of a situation herself.

10 Leviticus Cornwall

Serves As the Driving Force Behind The Campaign To Drive Out The Indians

Not only does Leviticus Cornwall financially back the Pinkerton Agency, which is already a misdeed in itself, but he’s also the typical wealthy, snobbish aristocrat. He was the one who convinced Colonel Henry Favours to drive the Indians out of their homeland after learning that it was an oil-rich deposit. He repeatedly undermined the authority of the United States government and singlehandedly caused the blood feud between U.S. law enforcement and the Indians, led by Rains Fall and Eagle Flies.

Dutch believed Cornwall to be the sole cause of the Pinkerton’s pursuit of them, but Cornwall posthumously incited a flat-out war that led to Eagle Flies’ death, which is precisely what he had planned all along. Although Cornwall’s campaign to drive out the Indians was in vain, he still selfishly cost the lives of many innocent people on both sides of an unnecessary war.