Warning! SPOILERS for BarbarianAfter a series of red herrings in its first half, Frank's crimes in Barbarian suggests that he sexually assaulted the kids and even grandkids of the women he abducted, making it evident that The Mother was one of his victims and is presumably his daughter and granddaughter. However, the fact that The Mother still lurks in the tunnels with no other victims in plain sight raises many questions about the fate and whereabouts of others who were imprisoned and abused by Frank.
Andre, the homeless man who pulls Tess out of the basement, claims that no one ever comes out of the house after being taken in. Going by his word, it seems likely that even after Frank stopped abusing his victims and decided to hide in his underground room, many people showed up at the rental and never made it out alive. Although neither Tess nor AJ (played by horror movie staple Justin Long) encounter any dead bodies in the tunnels, the sheer length of the tunnels suggests that the victims' bodies are buried somewhere in the depths of its dark expanse. Considering how Andre says that The Mother is not even the worst thing in the tunnels, it is possible that some other victims also mutated into creatures far more dangerous than The Mother and still exist somewhere in the tunnel's unexplored burrows.
How Many Women Did Frank Kidnap In Barbarian?
When AJ goes through Frank's room in Barbarian, he discovers a rack full of snuff films, which gives a fair estimate of how many women Frank might have kidnaped. Going by the number of tapes, Richard Brake's Barbarian character, Frank, probably abducted at least 41 women. The number could be way higher, given how AJ does not meticulously explore Frank's room. Since there is no formal investigation surrounding Frank's crimes in Barbarian's timeline, the accurate number cannot be determined.
Why Is The Mother Frank's Only Surviving Victim In Barbarian?
The Mother's mutated genes from incest seem to have given her an edge over Frank's other victims. Many scenes in Barbarian, where The Mother brutally overpowers men, establish that she has superhuman strength. She easily smashes Keith's head into the wall and even effortlessly snaps Andre's whole arm out of his body. Towards the ending of Barbarian, The Mother also falls off a giant tower but still somehow survives. These scenes affirm that her enhanced durability and strength might have helped her survive despite the dire conditions in the tunnels.
The Mother's violent tendencies could have also spelled trouble for Frank's other victims. Just like how she treats Tess and AJ as her babies but tries to kill them when they defy her, it is possible she murdered anyone else who tried confronting her in the tunnels. These nagging questions surrounding The Mother's origins and character development leave enough room for a potential prequel. However, reportedly (via Barbarian's The Mother navigates the day-to-day snags of the outside world.
