Villainess Review: Bethany Robertson (Christmas Catch)

I do love the holiday season for many reasons. Family, festivities, awesome gifts, TV specials, special sports games, you name it. We also get our share of holiday movies as well; even Lifetime gets into the holiday spirit with over a month's worth of sweet-natured holiday films. Now, Lifetime's holiday films rarely have anything resembling villains, and regarding female baddies, they're even fewer and far in between. I have learned in recent years that the holiday films that open the door for a semblance of "good vs evil" are usually found in other networks, with one recent example being Tubi's original film, Most Wanted Santa. Another example is the subject of this story, Christmas Catch, which aired on UpTV.

The film centered on Mackenzie "Mack" Bennett, a young detective (whose mother is the captain of the department) who ends up on the case regarding a jewelry heist that was believed to be committed by Carson Mills, who was encountered by Mack during a job. The FBI ended up being involved in the investigation, with one of their agents, Robertson, joining the case and learning about Mack's developing affinity for Carson, leading to the plan to use that to get more information from Carson regarding the heist.

So Mack and Carson have their first date, and it goes well; there is clear chemistry between them. However, Robertson ordered Mack to go on a second date to gain more information on the heist--which was revealed to have two other cohorts: David Sanders (a notorious safecracker), and Carson's ex-wife, Bethany. The emphasis on Bethany makes it clear that she was the mastermind of the heist, with Carson's description of his ex cementing the sentiment, as he informed Mack that Bethany was someone who relished in being a criminal villainess, as well as the fact that she got away when police were called.

It was also uncovered that a diamond reindeer was part of the heist, but the date ended abruptly when Mack was outed as a cop by Bethany. The case appeared to be done, though Mack witnessed an apparent attack towards Carson inside his home, leading to Mack heading there to check on Carson, finding him injured on the floor and encountering David. Their confrontation is interrupted by Robertson's appearance, with Mack stating that she would help arrest both of them, but as both David and Carson would reveal, there were two problems. First, David revealed that Robertson is no FBI agent, and more importantly, Carson revealed her true identity: the evil mastermind, Bethany.

Her true villainous identity revealed, Bethany boasted that David helped forged documents for her to pose as an FBI agent, and even mentioned how easy it was to fool Mack's mother before demanding the diamond reindeer. Carson claimed not to have it, only for Bethany to state that Carson had it all this time without knowing it; it was hidden in one of the decorations. In addition, Bethany revealed that Carson was the one who tipped off the police, and she later took out her gun and threatened to kill everyone around her (even David) during her planned getaway, which ended up being thwarted when Captain Bennett (along with Mack's partner, Reid) arrived and arrested the criminal villainess.

Christmas Catch aired on UpTV on December 2, 2018, but I watched this film a year later online. Genelle Williams appeared in this film as villainess Bethany Robertson, and my goodness, I loved this so much! I am a huge fan of Warehouse 13 and its cast members, and Genelle Williams (who played Leena on the SyFy series) is no exception. She really excelled in her villainous role, especially during Bethany's reveal, as we see her tone completely change and become sinister and ruthless--both fitting descriptions for Bethany. Williams has done the villainess thing before on shows such as Lost Girl and Republic of Doyle, and it even includes Warehouse 13, which featured Leena's brief heel turn in the end of Season One. Without question, however, Bethany Roberson is Williams' best villainous role; she was cunning, she was ruthless, and she was very deliciously evil.

Genelle Williams' other credits also include playing Sister Judith in the 2009 thriller, Orphan. In regards to the small screen, Williams appeared in the Lifetime film, Prescription of Danger (alongside fellow Warehouse 13 cast member Joanne Kelly), and also appeared on shows such as Bitten, Dark Matter, and Private Eyes.

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Click here for Bethany Robertson's profile on Villainous Beauties Wiki!