Now, Women In Horror Month is all about honoring the wonderful women, real and fictional, who contributed to the genre. Well, this article is a little bit different. I was having a bit of writer’s block when I came across a Dread Central article defending the character, Juno from The Descent. I know I’ve written about her quite a few times and I’m probably sounding like a broken record at this point. However, since it’s Women In Horror Month, I decided to give her her very own article. Today, I’m sharing my overall thoughts on her! (MAJOR SPOILERS!!)

Let’s start with everything she did wrong:

When She Slept With Sarah’s Husband Then Abandoned Her

Juno (Natalie Mendoza) was sleeping with Sarah’s (Shauna Macdonald) husband, Paul (Oliver Milburn) for who knows how long. It wasn’t just about sex either, there was an intimate connection between them right behind Sarah’s back. While driving after a rafting trip, Paul was so distracted in his own head (most likely about the affair) that he crashed the car, killing him and their young daughter, Jessie (Molly Kayll). Sarah lost everything that day and Juno just hightails it out of there. She could’ve stayed with Sarah in her time of need and they could’ve mourned together, but no! She abandoned her and didn’t see her again until a year later. SARAH had to go to HER for this cave diving trip.

When She Planned The Trip But Had Rebecca Take Care Of Rescue Plans For The Wrong Cave

So, Juno brought her friends to a cave that she made them believe was safe and well known, Boreham Caverns. In reality, she brought them to a cave that she believed no one discovered before and didn’t have any sort of plan in case things went wrong. If you’re the only one who knows exactly where your group is going, why on Earth would you let someone else organize the rescue plans for an entirely different cave?! On top of that, as far as I know, Juno also told no outside party where they were going just in case they disappeared. Of course, she decided not to tell her friends about any of this until after the cave collapsed and they were all trapped.

When She Left Beth To Die

If things weren’t bad enough that Juno and her friends were trapped in the cave, they soon found themselves prey to underground, blind, ravenous creatures. After being attacked, the group split off in a panic and Juno was left fighting the creatures away from her friend, Holly (Nora-Jane Noone). After killing one of the creatures, Juno heard a sound and without hesitation, she swung her weapon and ended up stabbing her friend, Beth (Alex Reid). Now, I don’t blame Juno for what happened there. She was already on edge and Beth gave no indication that she was right behind her. That was purely an accident. It’s what Juno did after that I have a problem with. Bleeding and struggling to breathe, Beth begged Juno not to leave her like that and she just does. Now, you’re probably wondering, “what could Juno have done in that situation?” You might not like my answer, but I have to say that Juno should’ve mercy killed her. She just left Beth to the creatures capable of tearing people apart with their bare hands. She left her to a possibly worse fate and she left it to Sarah, Beth’s BEST friend to do the mercy killing.

This article was just going to point out everything she did wrong in the film, but as I was writing, I felt it was necessary to also point out the right things she did in this film:

When She Saved Rebecca And Sam

Admittedly, when the group was separated and Juno was calling out for them and Sam (MyAnna Buring) made that remark about how it was better that they went after Juno rather than her, that bothered me. That seemed really out of character. Now, as Sam and Rebecca (Saskia Mulder) tried to navigate their way to an exit, they’re ambushed by one of the creatures. It almost killed Rebecca but Juno saved her life and killed it. It was pretty bada** how she stepped out of the dark and snapped its neck, I’m not going to lie.

When She Collected The Little Bit Of Rope They Had

After the cave-in, the group realized that one of the rope bags was crushed in the collapse. With only one rope bag for the 6 of them, they tried their best to climb from one tunnel to the next. Everyone went through and when Juno was the last, she didn’t want to leave any of their equipment behind. She did her best to climb across the ceiling and collect all the rope and hooks. This was one of her smartest decisions as they had to preserve everything they had left in a dire situation.

When She Refused To Leave Without Sarah

After the group got separated, Juno did her best to find the others. On her search, she came across markings on the cave walls pointing out the directions to one of the exits. She could’ve found her way out and left everyone behind, but she didn’t. She went to look for the others and when she found Rebecca and Sam, she told them about the markings and she refused to leave the cave without Sarah. That itself was a selfless move!

Now, the Dread Central article brought a very good point about whether or not she deserved to be left for dead by Sarah after everything. I always rejoiced in Juno’s demise whenever I watched this film, but really thinking about it now, I’m starting to reconsider. Sarah exposed her lies about Paul and Beth and she stabbed Juno in the leg and left her to the hoard. Considering how brutally these creatures kill people, I’d have to say no, she didn’t deserve that kind of fate. She made a lot of terrible decisions, but I don’t think she deserved to be eaten alive. I guess what I’m saying is that after reading that article, I’m very conflicted on how I view this character now. What are your thoughts on Juno? Do you think horror movie fans like me are too harsh on her, or do you think the criticisms are justified? Do you think her bad decisions outweigh her good ones? Let me know!