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Season 4 Whiterose
Whiterose
Species: Human
Allies: Francis "Cisco" Shaw
Otto Irving
Grant
Phillip Price
Leon
Wang Shu
Enemies: Elliot Alderson
Mr. Robot
Tyrell Wellick
Status: Deceased
Portrayed by: B.D Wong
Every hacker has their fixation. You hack people, I hack time.

— The Whiterose


The Whiterose is the leader of the Dark Army, a Chinese hacker group. She is a transgender woman masquerading as the male Zhi Zhang, the Chinese Minister of State Security. She's also the founder and leader of the Deus Group.

She was portrayed by B.D Wong.

History[]

Background[]

The Whiterose is shrouded in mystery. By the mid-90s, she has risen to her position of power within the Dark Army and has set up a relationship with E-Corp. In 1995, she had the E-Corp CEO, Lester Moore killed in a plane crash over matters concerning her interest in the Washington Township power plant. Her group recruited Francis Shaw, a white 10 year old outcast living in Shanghai in 1996.

The Dark Army has garnered the reputation of having no code, hacking for anyone including Russia, North Korea, Iran; giving the impression that they hate U.S. capitalism. It is said that many Dark Army haven't even met the Whiterose and believe their leader to be a man.

Records indicate that Zhang does not have a sister. She also wear a watch that beeps whenever a minute has passed due to her obsession with managing time. She has an extremely rigid schedule, rarely seeing anyone twice.

The Whiterose has a personal project situated at the Washington Township power plant. Both Emily Moss and Edward Alderson unknowingly contributed to the project during their employment at E-Corp, and it was the radiation from the power plant which contributed to their deaths. The details of her project are unknown, however she has a strong interest in the plant and is willing to go to great lengths to protect it.

Season 1[]

In early 2015, the Dark Army is prepared to participate in fsociety's attack on E-Corp by destroying the redundant backup data housed in China. Their contact Cisco is in talks with Darlene. On the night of March 31st, the Dark Army bans her from IRC and cuts off all contact. She learns that they have pulled out of the operation. (“eps1.6_v1ew-s0urce.flv”)

In May, Darlene has stolen Cisco's handle and is trying to convince the Dark Army to rejoin the attack. Cisco informs her of a meeting between Whiterose and Elliot Alderson. On May 7th, Cisco forces Oliver Parker to send Elliot on a menial task to Blank's Disk Recovery at 36th and 5th at 2:00, assuring him not to be late. There, Elliot is led by the Hamburger Man downstairs into a Faraday Cage, which prevents electromagnetic interference. Elliot meets Whiterose smoking a cigarette as she fixes the drives he gives her.

In their 3 minute conversation, Elliot is flustered trying to convince the Dark Army to join the attack. the Whiterose eventually tells him that electing to frame Colby caused Gideon Goddard to install a honeypot on the security server. The Dark Army hacked Allsafe using Ollie and Angela to be safe and discovered the trap. She chastises him for wasting time and gives him 50 hours and 23 minutes to remove the honeypot. At the end, she says she will never see Elliot again, according to her schedule. (“eps1.7_wh1ter0se.m4v”)

On the night of 5/9, Elliot contacts the Dark Army to initiate the hack. They do so. The Whiterose is next seen appearing at a gathering of rich, international men as Zhang in a mansion. She brings up business about coltan mines in Congo with the distressed CEO of E-Corp, Phillip Price. The Whiterose was told they know who was responsible for the lawsuit emerging against the Washington Township power plant, to which Price assures they will handle that person as they usually do. Whiterose notes a woman playing a harp and muses, as her watch beeps, about the legend of Emperor Nero merrily playing the lyre as Rome burned. (“eps1.9_zer0-day.avi”)

Season 2[]

In late June, the Whiterose is applying her makeup in a bedroom while speaking to Phillip over the phone using her male, Zhang voice. They discuss using "her", Angela, to achieve something for the Whiterose's purpose of keeping the power plant open. Phillip is annoyed at the ticking clock (her beeping watch), claiming pressure needs to cook in order to push the President to swing a UN vote. The Whiterose hangs up when Phillip sarcastically asks for more time as her assistant, Grant, enters the room. She speaks in Chinese with her feminine voice, displeased that Price is opting for his E-Coin strategy. They discuss Stage 2, which is six months' minimum from complete. Grant shows her an FBI file about the discovery of fsociety's arcade. Whiterose wishes to be informed. She asks for an opinion on earrings and kisses him. (“eps2.2_init1.asec”)

Zhang

The Whiterose as Minister Zhang greets the FBI team in China

An FBI team consisting of SAC Ernesto Santiago, Agent Dominique DiPierro, and others come to China to investigate Five/Nine. Santiago has a photo op with Minister Zhang at a government before they all go behind closed doors to talk. Santiago wants to visit the E-Corp backup sites, which is set for Tuesday, July 1st. He begins to dance around a subject when Dominique bluntly brings up the Dark Army, drawing stares from everyone. Zhang agrees to provide a dossier before inviting them all to a party on Monday night.

At the party, Zhang finds Dominique alone upstairs in his room full of different clocks. Dominique says the rare, German clock is something her parents bought from Kmart. They talk about her being born in New Jersey and raised and that she joined the FBI because of her disgust and fascination for the selfish brutality of the world. Zhang takes her to see a painting in the library and gets her to tell her origin story, of how she quit law school on the day before graduation because the person she was dating proposed. Zhang takes her to a dresser and shows Dominique beautiful Chinese dresses. When she asks to whom do they belong, Zhang says his sister. Zhang then gets tearful, wondering aloud what the world be like without 5/9, if there are alternate realities where they are living different lives. The clocks strike midnight. Zhang walks away and says they must get back to the party. On Tuesday morning, as the FBI are in the hotel lobby for their inspection, gunmen attack, killing many, only to kill themselves when Dominique fires back. (“eps2.3_logic_b0mb.hc”)

In mid July, Elliot is saved from an attack in prison by Leon. Elliot is told to tell the Whiterose Leon did good and to do as a letter he will receive tells him to do. (“eps2.5_h4ndshake.sme”)

In early August, the Whiterose is in the United States at the grave of Lester Moore in, the former CEO of E-Corp until he died in 1995: a plane "crash" rather than an "accident" the Whiterose stresses. She tells her assistant he was going to shut down her project after the Washington Township scandal before he died. She says she is in the mood to repeat herself. As her watch beeps and her assistant urges that they’ll be late, the Whiterose feels it is important to urinate on his tombstone.

After Elliot is released from prison on August 6, believing it to be the work of the Whiterose, teams with Darlene and Cisco to investigate the Dark Army. They hack the phone of Xun, Cisco's contact, and meet with him to demand to know about Stage 2, hoping to eavesdrop on his later conversations.

Zhang and Phillip Price walk with umbrellas in the rain on a large estate. Zhang laments the state of the United States, which Price wonders if it may be intentional. Zhang congratulates Price on Angela succeeding. Phillip addresses the failed bailout, due to the shootout in China, which he blames on Zhang. He explains that on Friday, in two days, the federal government will seize E-Corp facilities, including the Washington Township plant. Zhang reminds the CEO what happened to his predecessor, but Phillip reminds him that his death will not save the plant. Only cash will. He proposes that China lend E-Corp the money at little to no interest. Zhang agrees, but upon making a further threat, Phillip says the next step is World War 3 and he would gladly take Zhang down with him. Phillip leaves.

Later that night, as Darlene is listening in, Gao Xun brings up the encounter with the Whiterose. She finds it odd, since Stage 2 is Elliot's plan. She knows he is a master at this stuff and breaks Xun's phone. (“eps2.7_init5.fve”)

Around the same time, China loans the E-Corp 2 trillion dollars and Price pulls strings so the UN will vote on China's annexation of the Congo. Early morning on Aug 7th, Angela is kidnapped by the Inconspicuous Man and Woman who have been following her since Five/Nine. (“eps2.8_h1dden_pr0cess.axx”)

She is taken to a NJ suburb and placed in a strange room. For hours, a little girl who looks like her asks her bizarre questions using old technology after showing a bruise on her own body to make Angela comply with the test.

Once the fish is dead in a tank that had been slowly emptying, the Whiterose enters the room and sits across from Angela. She lights a cigarette and says these past hours were to ensure this meeting, given a generous 28 minutes, wasn’t a waste of her time. She says it has been nearly 4 hours yet Angela never tried to walk out the door. The Whiterose finds doors fascinating, as their infinite potential is hindered by a lock to those who are lazy. Angela notes that the fish died, making her captor a terrible person. She assures her the girl's bruises were makeup. The Whiterose says it was part of the test to gets sensitive information out of someone who should have been dead 90 days ago on 5/9. The Whiterose claims to be a woman of time who keeps finding Angela like an annoying penny for whom Phillip is endangering their relationship. She tells Angela that they have an event and person in common, the Washington Township scandal and Elliot Alderson. Angela asks about Elliot, only to be told that their parents died for a reason, to bring humanity to the next level.

The Whiterose won’t kill her, but prove why she should drop the mission. Angela sheds a tear and agrees to give up the files she stole from E-Corp on Washington Township if she can go free. She finds Angela still a threat to her project so she wants her belief. She asks if Angela believes in willing things into existence through her imagination. Angela says she did, but she admits that’s not the real world. The Whiterose is interested in defining "real". (“eps2.9_pyth0n_pt1.p7z”)

Season 3[]

A blackout occurs on the night of August 8th, as a scientist gives a walking speech to others about the truth of reality and a parallel universe at the E-Corp Washington Township nuclear powerplant. Minister Zhang and Assistant Grant, walk by. In a room, Zhang looks at Otto Irving's photos and calls Elliot crazy. Grant begins to say "they are both" before Zhang reminds him that practice makes perfect. The man insists that they (Elliot and Tyrell) are both unstable and asks to be put in charge of Stage 2. Zhang recounts that Elliot's father used to work on his project unknowingly and contributed to its early successes. He notes that it must be a coincidence that Elliot works for them. You don’t believe in coincidences, the man contends, to which Zhang emphasizes that it was Elliot's drive to destroy E-Corp that was the opportunity for their plan. However, Elliot lacks focus. Time presented Elliot to the Dark Army, therefore his will must be their guide. Once he completes his work, then Elliot can die, just like his father. Zhang and the man are looking out a window at a massive hadron collider which transitions into Elliot’s open eye. (“eps3.0_power-saver-mode.h”)

In September, Zhang is seen in attendance at the G20 Summit in Turkey, watching Price give a speech condemning China for being the only holdout against E-Coin, thus weakening the economy by waging a currency war for Bitcoin. Afterwards, Zhang finds Price in a backroom for a brief meeting, simply because it was on the way out. Price demands China sign the Accord to not cause doubt in other countries, as in 11 days the UN will vote to allow China's annex of the Congo. Zhang tell Price that his success is secondary. When Price threatens that the UN vote could not go through, Zhang threatens Angela, having spoken to her and seeing why Price likes her, yet contemplating putting a bullet in each of her eyes had they not been so hypnotizing. Zhang insists that Price not mistake generosity for generosity.

Later, Zhang is seen in a curtained limo, ordering that Stage 2 occur on the day of the UN vote regardless if it goes their way. Grant warns that Stage 2 was only supposed to be if Price failed, as it has serious implications. Zhang says that it's time Price's hand got slapped. (“eps3.1_undo.gz”)

Season 4[]

After Stage 2, Angela felt an immense guilt knowing that she participated in an attack that resulted in thousands of deaths, as she wasn't aware of how big the attack would be. Price has a meeting with her, eventually revealing that he is her biological father. Now that she knows how much destruction Stage 2 caused, Angela is out to get vengeance on the Dark Army, but Price tries to convince her to stop it. After their discussion is over, Price walks away. A group of Dark Army hitmen show up from behind and murder Angela, angering Price who has now had enough of the Whiterose and the Dark Army. He decides to cooperate with Elliot Alderson to take down the Whiterose, so he gives him information about how the Whiterose founded the Deus Group, a group consisting of the world's most powerful individuals used to finance corrupt activities all over the world. The Whiterose's purpose with this was to finance a project of her own, which not even Price knows what it truly is about. The Whiterose talks with her new assistant, Wang Shu, about Elliot cooperating with them. But they come to the conclusion that Elliot is unreliable and that they are better off without his help.

Price confronts the Whiterose in a big room, most likely her own house, and tells her that he is resigning as CEO of E-Corp, meaning that they have to find a new CEO. The Whiterose tells him that it isn't possible, but Price tells her otherwise. After Price leaves the room, the Whiterose pushes a big christmas tree in the room down out of anger. The day after, the Whiterose talks with Shu and tells her to have a Deus Group meeting arranged tomorrow, as Price is resigning. She comes up with the idea of Tyrell Wellick becoming the new CEO, which Shu initially disagrees with but has to accept.

In the sixth episode, the Whiterose is shown having a discussion with Shu again. Shu tells the Whiterose that Darlene has been put in custody, which was orchestrated by them, and now it's time to deal with Elliot. The Whiterose disagrees, instead, she believes that they should convince Elliot that her project is going to make the world a better place and that they are in the end on the same side.

In the ninth episode, the Whiterose and Price are having a meeting. The Whiterose has discovered that Elliot and Price cooperated with each other. He has two choices; if he tells her now what their plans were, he will die peacefully in his sleep, at home - if not, then it'll be quicker and perhaps brutal. Price doesn't reveal it. The Whiterose starts talking about how Tyrell is doing well at the Deus meeting as the up and coming CEO of E-Corp. But Price responds that it can't be like that as Tyrell isn't even there, which Shu confirms, which angers the Whiterose. Elliot calls Price while in his Mr. Robot persona, which the Whiterose answers. The Whiterose tells him that if he stops going against her and the Deus Group, then the Whiterose will reveal something about Angela, who was supposedly murdered by the Dark Army soldiers. The Whiterose tries convincing Mr. Robot that Angela never died and is still very much alive, but as Elliot saw the picture of Angela's dead body, he knows she is lying.

Darlene films a fsociety video where she tells the world about the Deus Group and how it rules the world. She also reveals the location of the current meeting going on as well as private files. The video is broadcasted on the news, which angers the Whiterose when she sees it. The Deus Group members start escaping the meeting to avoid all attention, and hang up when the Whiterose calls them. The Whiterose and Price walk out of the museum they are in. When walking down the stairs, Price suddenly stops and starts talking about Angela. How she lives on in those who cared for her. This before revealing that the Deus Group's bank accounts are being overdrawn until there is no money left, thanks to Elliot's hacking. The Whiterose's project is no more, it is destroyed. There is no chance of it becoming reality, as she has no money. The Whiterose initially laughs, not believing what she is seeing. But when she realizes just how real it is, the Whiterose goes insane and grabs a gun from one of her henchmen. She shoots Price multiple times to make sure he is dead, in front of tens of random people walking on the sidewalk. Back in her residence, policemen can be heard hitting at the front door. They want her to open the door and surrender, but she doesn't, so they open the door and start shooting.

But the Whiterose had prepared a bunch of Dark Army henchmen who shot the policemen in order to let their master escape. When Elliot walks to the Washington Township Plant, he is taken into some sort of chamber by some Dark Army henchmen. The Whiterose appears and tries to get Elliot to understand her project. Her project is elaborated on, as it is to open up the doors to parallel universes, which is according to her a better universe. She states that her motive always has been to create a better world, where people can be what they want to be, as throughout her life she has suffered due to not being allowed to be who she wants to be. Elliot doesn't believe her and sees her primary motive as hate against humanity rather than a will to make a better and fairer world. The Whiterose responds by laughing and saying that Elliot shouldn't be talking about others hating people, as he's "Mr. Robot". Elliot responds by admitting that he hates people, but that he still acknowledges that there are good people, which is why he won't give up on the world they're living in. The Whiterose's watch starts sounding the alarm, which means that the machine she has been working on is absorbing all the power in the plant, resulting in a meltdown. The machine will place Elliot in the parallel universe, and Elliot will see "what Angela saw".

The real point of the Whiterose's machine was to nuke the world and have people enter the parallel universe. Elliot calls out the Whiterose on the plan, seeing as it is completely insane and most likely wouldn't work. The Whiterose then pulls out a gun from a box and points it at Elliot, stating "all I ever wanted, Elliot, was your belief" and that "he decides". She then points the gun at her head and commits suicide.

Elliot is placed in a game named "exit", which the Whiterose made for him. It is supposed to show Elliot the parallel universe, most likely in order to brainwash him into completing the Whiterose's cause after her suicide. It is unknown if the "exit" really was the parallel universe, or if it was something else.

Personality[]

A defining characteristic of the Whiterose, or Zhi Zhang, is the two different personas she has coveted as she leads both the Deus Group and the Dark Army.

As Zhi Zhang, they masquerade as the Minister of State Security for China, putting on a mild, polite, and calm appearance as she influences the Chinese Government to act in her best interests. However, privately, with Phillip Price, the mask slips, revealing the Whiterose's sinister nature. She despises the man for his unsuccessful attempts to undermine her, and constantly lords her authority over Price, manipulates him, and threatens both him and his daughter, Angela. Her spite for him seems to stem beyond pragmatism, as she orchestrated an attack on several E-Corp buildings, which lead to thousands of deaths, all because she had to "ask him twice' to push forward her U.N vote to annex the Congo.

Her true identity, however, is that of the Whiterose. In her persona of leadership over the Dark Army, she is an individual with a single goal and an unrelenting determination to achieve it, even being willing to sacrifice those close to her, like Grant. Constantly remaining in control of the Dark Army, she is highly intelligent, cold-hearted, calculating, cunning, cruel, ruthless, and completely remorseless. However, her goal does not stem from a desire for self-interest, and she genuinely believes her project will make the world a better place.

Quotes[]

There's much work to do, great work, as each second passes I push myself to keep moving.

— The Whiterose


Now I've gotten a chance to talk to her, I can see why you like her. She makes a very good companion, and those eyes of hers, I contemplated firing a bullet into each of them, but there.. so hypnotising. Don't mistake my Generosity for Generocity.

— Zhang confessing to Phillip about involving Angela Moss into Stage 2


I have learned to listen when time speaks, our paths were too precisely linked to this moment, for there not to be a reason, this is why you get to decide.

— The Whiterose's last words before executing herself and giving Elliot the option to continue the exit project


Episode appearances[]

Trivia[]

  • Her hacking skills are not yet known. She has stated that she "hacks time".
  • The way the Whiterose's legal name is given in the show is incorrect. As she is Chinese where they put surnames before personal names when giving full names the name should be referred to as Zhang Zhi, not the other way around that's used in the show.

Gallery[]

Promotional[]

Season 2[]

Season 3[]

Season 4[]

See also[]


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