Netflix’s Ripley centers around the character Thomas Ripley, created by Patricia Highsmith in her 1955 book The Talented Mr. Ripley. The narrative shows how a man weaves a web of lies in search of wealth; however, in a world of lies and deception, Thomas Ripley isn’t the only man who relies on these tactics to evade the law. The character Reeves Minot is a man of similar moral inclinations. In Ripley, played by John Malkovich, Reeves has a minor role, but in the books, Reeves Minot is a rather important character as Ripley’s trustworthy partner in crime.
Spoilers Ahead
Who Is Reeves Minot?
Reeves Minot is a fellow American man whom Tom Ripley runs into at a party hosted by Vittorio Araldi, a local Venetian Count. Reeves is a man of a diverse skillset. What he does exactly by profession is not revealed, but then, it’s quite obvious that he is a man of a certain reputation in the world of crime.
Reeves Minot’s appearance in the series seems more like a homage to the man, who again is an important recurring character in the book. Not much is known about his past, but the way he identifies Tom Ripley as a commoner in a party filled with pretentious aristocrats, it is obvious that he himself has had humble beginnings. Reeves Minot built himself up to this point in life through means that may even be morally ambiguous.
Reeves resonates with Tom’s disgust at the people present at the party. He sees how the people coming from privilege see Dickie’s plight as something to capitalize on, which is why he muses with Tom how people on this side of society are often merely walking pocketbooks. These people have not had the struggles that the likes of Reeves and Tom had to face.
Reeves Minot is an established businessman, possibly in the criminal world, judging by the number of business cards he carries for each of his branches around Europe. When Tom asks about what he does, Reeves jokingly introduces himself as an art dealer. It’s as if Reeves wants Tom to see through the mask he’s wearing. He knows that the other people at the party wouldn’t exactly figure out who he actually is, but a self-made man like Tom Ripley would. This is a reason why Tom also claims to be an art dealer.
How Does Reeves Help Tom?
Reeves already knows about Tom from the articles about Freddie Miles’ murder in the newspapers. It’s even possible that Reeves already sees through the lies that Tom has cooked up and how he’s duping the world with his deception. For a person who has his contacts, it won’t even take Reeves a lot of time to uncover Tom Ripley’s background as a lowly criminal in New York. It’s likely that he already knows everything about him, which is why he offers Tom his business card. Even in the books, Reeves is a man who provides solutions to Tom Ripley’s problems. Perhaps this is how their relationship as trusted business associates began.
At the end of the series, after Tom evades the police and clears his name in front of Herbert Greenleaf, he meets up with Reeves once again. Turns out they already had an arrangement earlier to forge a British passport for Tom under the alias Timothy Fanshaw. Jobs like these are not new for Reeves either. He is even a better forger than Tom, and Tom recognizes his talent, which is why he pays him for this request. Reeves expresses that he likes the name Tom has chosen, hinting at the fact that they’re able to possess aliases of their preference. Perhaps Reeves and Tom are pretty much the same person at different stages in life. Even though they have different ideals, Reeves can resonate with the conundrums Tom has been facing. One might even say that Reeves Minot is like an alter ego of Tom Ripley.
