Rita Desjardin - 1976 Film

1976 Film

In the 1976 film version of the novel, Miss Desjardin is renamed Miss Collins, and is portrayed by Betty Buckley. Unlike the character in the book, Miss Collins does not first experience revulsion toward Carrie, as she is suggesting in the beginning that the students pass the ball to Carrie in their volleyball game. After the locker room incident, she becomes more sympathetic and attempts to help Carrie overcome her awkwardness and connect with other students. During the prom, Miss Collins is trying to move the unconscious Tommy, along with another teacher and three students, when Carrie, (who believes she was laughing at her, too, but this was only in her mind), pulls her across the floor and pins her against the wall. Miss Collins then screams, "Carrie!" to no avail. Carrie smashes a basketball rafter into her, crushing her pelvis and stomach area, killing her.

Notably, the story she tells Carrie about her prom experience differs from the novel, when she tells her that her date was the captain of the basketball team who was 6'7" tall, instead of being extremely short as in the novel, and the downside of her experience was from her having to walk a few miles to the prom wearing 3-inch spike heels when her date's truck broke down.