Gilliam Knute is the wife of Carl Knute and mother of Deunan Knute.
Appleseed (1987 manga)[]
In the manga, specifically Volume Three (The Scales of Prometheus), Deunan speaks of her mother, though fails to name her. In this earlier (and alternate) version of the Appleseed saga, she was not necessarily an integral part of the story at all, and although she died in Deunan's youth like the later movie, it was at the hands of black supremacists in Los Angeles, persecuting her for her "impure" mixed ethnicity that ultimately included distant Afro-Sudanese ancestry. Like Carl Knute, she was not pictured or depicted.
Appleseed (2004 movie)[]
Gilliam embracing Deunan in her childhood
In the 2004 movie, Dr. Gilliam Knute was an accomplished scientist that was responsible for the creation of the Bioroid species of humans, as well as the D-Tank sterility virus. She also preserved the Appleseed genetic data, making her unwittingly both a preserver of humanity, as well as a potential destroyer of it. Although never actually seen alive, a holographic video recording depicted her last moments prior to her murder. Deunan's mother is shot unintentionally by a startled soldier when she happened to be holding a pistol and lunged forward. But she was only lunging forward to protect Deunan and get her out of the room with the soldiers. This happened in a closed computer laboratory. It is later revealed that her actual murderers were in fact the Seven Elders, who were convinced that humankind would inherently destroy itself and ultimaely concluded that the future of Earth must be left to Bioroids. For that reason, Gilliam hid the Appleseed data with Deunan so that they could not go forward with their plan and instructed her to give it to Athena Areios.
Appleseed XIII[]
In XIII, Deunan's mother's death is intentionally planned by a sniper rifle-wielding assassin. It happens in an open area while the pair are walking down the street.
Trivia[]
- In XIII, she is going to be African, has black skin.