Jim Rennie

Jim Rennie
Under the Dome character
Dean Norris as Jim Rennie
First appearance	Under the Dome (novel)
Last appearance	Under the Dome (TV series)
Created by	Stephen King
Portrayed by	Dean Norris
In-universe information
Full name	James Rennie
Nickname	Big Jim
Title	First Selectman
Occupation	Used Car Salesman, First Selectman of Chester's Mill
Family	Jim Rennie Junior (son)
Spouse	Pauline Verdreaux-Rennie (deceased)
Religion	Protestant
Home	Chester's Mill, Maine
Nationality	American

James "Big Jim" Rennie is a fictional character in American writer Stephen King's 2009 science fiction novel Under the Dome and its 2013 television series of the same name, in which Rennie serves as the primary antagonist.

Rennie owns Jim Rennie's used cars in the fictional town of Chester's Mill, Maine, and serves as the town's Second Selectman, with the First and Second Selectmen being Andy Sanders and Andrea Grinnel, respectively. However, Rennie tends to be the single most powerful person on the board, using Andy and Andrea as figureheads.

On October 21, Chester's Mill is inexplicably covered by a dome. Soon, the Police Chief, Howard "Duke" Perkins is killed when his pacemaker explodes when he gets near the dome. In reaction to this, Rennie, who opposes Duke, places Peter Randolph as the new Chief. Randolph is incredibly loyal, and, with the aid of Rennie Junior, his son, and several other provisional officers, takes advantage of the dome to turn the town into a fascist dictatorship.

Character Background

Rennie owns Jim Rennie's Used Cars on Route 119 in Chester's Mill. In the book, it is implied that the dealership is not successful, even though Rennie is the wealthiest people in town. Instead, it acts as a front for Rennie's methamphetamine laboratory that he runs alongside Philip Bushey, or "The Chef," and Lester Coggins. His wife, Pauline Verdreaux-Rennie, in the show, left Chester's Mill, but returned after the dome dropped to reunite with her son. There, she is stabbed by Lyle Chamley, her ex-boyfriend, and is mercy killed by Rebecca Pine.

Inspiration

Rennie is based on various real-life politicians, such as Donald Trump and former vice president Dick Cheney. He is corrupt, doing very little for the good of the town, laundering funds through the town church's funds, and misappropriating town funds. Once the dome drops, he steals propane from the hospital to continue running his methamphetamine lab, leaving the hospital and his own house to run out of propane for their generators. He stops alcohol sales and reduces medication distribution, so he can use them to control people, especially Third Select woman Andrea Grinnel, who is addicted to Oxycodone. After Dale Barbara is arrested, he calls for his unlawful execution, such as Trump has done in various tweets.

Reception

Rennie has largely been received well, being described as Norris as a "great character." However, he has been described as a comic super villain and unnecessarily evil.