Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man has a tricky job on its hands. The original series, which ran for six seasons and built a loyal following along the way, wasn’t exactly known for tying things up. It was, in fact, about momentum, big personalities, and the sheer pleasure of watching Cillian Murphy’s Tommy Shelby emerge out of the fog. By the end, though, that momentum had started to wobble a little. The news of Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man arriving was satisfying, to say the least. It was exciting for fans to finally see what had happened to Tommy after losing almost his entire family.
The film, however, does something unexpected. It takes the focus away from the usual markers of the show’s appeal. The power, conflict, and danger are still there, but Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man spends a great deal of time circling something else. We find a man who spent most of his life spinning blades and pulling triggers now picking up a pen. Tommy is writing a book, and it is the same title as the film, The Immortal Man, referring to himself, of course. But there is mention of another character who stayed hidden in the past throughout the series.
It is Zelda, the mother of the film’s second lead.
Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man – Who was Zelda to Tommy Shelby? Her heartbreaking story explained
In Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man, Zelda is revealed as a woman from Tommy’s early life. She came into his life for a short period of time. And it was way before he built that empire, and had power and control. She was a Romani woman. Their relationship was short but intense, and from that relationship came Tommy’s first born, Duke.
Zelda is the mother of Tommy’s first child, Erasmus “Duke” Shelby. Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man gives us a glimpse of who Zelda was, even though she is not present in the story herself. Her identical twin sister, Kaulo, is introduced in the film, and through her, we learn what really happened between Zelda and Tommy. The two met at a fair in 1914, where Zelda stole Tommy’s watch. And somehow, they ended up sleeping together. This happened before Tommy left for World War I. It was a time when his life had not yet taken the shape we are so used to seeing.
When Zelda’s father found out about her pregnancy, he tried to harm Tommy, but failed. Tommy then left for the war and never returned to see her again. Zelda went on to raise Duke on her own, far away from the Shelby name and everything that came with it. Her life was very different from the world Tommy would later build. Yet Duke was never completely alien to his father’s world.
The most painful part of Zelda’s story in Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man is how it ends. She dies while Duke is still young, which means she never gets to see her son find his place or confront his father. There is no closure for her. She does not get a moment where things come full circle.
Duke grows up with that loss with him. He grows up without a father, and that absence turns into resentment. He hates Tommy for not being there and for never choosing to include him in his life. He tells himself he has no family or allegiances, but deep down, he wants that. Towards the end of the film, however, things change. The father and son finally unite. Tommy chooses to pass on the crown to Duke, who decides to be a part of the Shelby family and carry on its legacy.
Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man makes an absent character have so much importance in the story. Zelda existed before Thomas Shelby became the Tommy we know, yet she holds a very crucial place in his life. She is a reminder of a time when Tommy’s life was untouched by guilt and trauma. Her memory shows how far he has come and now forces him (through Kaulo) to face who he has become, while also confronting the ghosts of his past. Zelda is a symbol of everything Tommy chose to walk away from.
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Edited by Parishmita Baruah