Theresa "Tree" Gelbman is a fictional character from Christopher Landon's slasher filmHappy Death Day and its sequel Happy Death Day 2U. She was created by writer Scott Lobdell and portrayed by Jessica Rothe in both of her performances. Gelbman's storyline revolves around her being murdered on the night of her birthday and finding herself reliving the day repeatedly. She uses this as an opportunity to figure out her killer's identity and prevent her death from ever occurring.
Biography
Theresa "Tree" Gelbman was born on September 18, and is the daughter of David and Julie Gelbman, sharing a birth date with her mother. She attends Bayfield University and is a part of the Kappa Pi Lambda sorority. Her mother died three years ago, and Tree has become a more bitter person as she has had trouble coping with the death. On her birthday in 2017, Gelbman was murdered by somebody wearing the university's mascot mask. She relives the same day 12 times until she figures out the identity of her killer, revealed to be her roommate, Lori Spengler, who initially releases serial killerJohn Tombs in order to provide her with an alibi. After she kills Tombs on the last loop but dies in her sleep from eating the poisoned cupcake Lori originally intended to use, Tree manages to stop Lori by stuffing the aforementioned poisoned cupcake in her mouth and kicking her out a window. In the sequel, Tree re-enters the loop in a new dimension and learns there is a new killer. In this second loop, Tree learns that Lori is not trying to kill her, Tree's mother Julie is still alive, Carter is romantically involved with her friend Danielle and Tree is not having an affair with her teacher Dr. Gregory Butler. The second killer is revealed to be Dr. Butler, in league with his wife, Stephanie. Tree learns they were after Lori instead of her. After Dr. Butler betrays and kills Stephanie, Tree kills him with a screwdriver to the heart and saves Lori. At the conclusion, Tree returns to her original reality as she recognises that her relationship with her mother is subtly different enough that she would always be aware of the changes.
Other appearances
was a featured character in "The Horrors of Blumhouse" house at Halloween Horror Nights 28 in 2018. Jessica Rothe additionally reprised her role as Tree in Whitney Avalon's "This Song is Killer ", in promotion of the then-upcoming Happy Death Day 2U.
Reception
John Squires of Bloody Disgusting described Gelbman as a modern example of the "final girl" trope and contrasts her to Friday the 13th's Alice Hardy, writing "The Happy Death Day movies present a heroine so wonderfully and completely realized that this may very well be the first ever slasher franchise with a 'final girl' character as the main selling point. A character who evolves. A character who, with each new film thus far, becomes a better person right before our eyes." Padraic Maroney of EDGE Media Network praised Rothe's portrayal of the heroine, stating "More than anything, what makes these films work is lead actress Jessica Rothe.... Rothe offers a new take on the final girl." Style Island described the character as "the coolest girl in horror" and proceeded to say "Rothe plays the role with refreshing wit and the perfect amount of edginess mixed with empathy." Nick Perkins, on ComingSoon.net, lists Tree as fifth on his list of slasher film final girls, writing that "Tree Gelbman starts off the first Happy Death Daymovie as kind of a terrible person. She's selfish, apathetic and blissfully unaware. By the end of the movie, she's a rock star.
