Mark Stefflin (Classic Gerosha)

Mark Stefflin is a supporting character in the mystery thriller miniseries Blood Over Water, and the catalyst for every other character's actions throughout it. He was portrayed by actor Zach Foster, who primarily also portrayed Mark's twin brother Aaron.

Character bio
Some time before the miniseries' timeline began, Mark and Aaron were both very close friends with Chris. The three of them would occasionally do stuff around town in Big Rapids. However, new management at Sleet Mountain changed that. At some point, the bottling plant became embroiled in a controversy. The new management wanted to save money by dumping some plant pollution in a pond, and then lying about the cleanup process to trick the EPA. Not cleaning the pond as opposed to paying for an expensive cleaning process allegedly could save the plant "millions" of dollars, according to Mark's coworker Kyle Tugrass.

In spite being offered bribes to keep his mouth shut, Mark refused to play along with the unethical scam. This angered Clyde, who sent Vance Lingolin to hunt for Mark. However, Mark vanished with a "Confidential"-marked manila envelope just seconds before Vance would've discovered him. Mark quit his job, and began looking for new work. However, he kept Aaron in the dark about his quest. He did drop hints, suggesting they needed to "check the water levels" when they went on a "fishing trip." Aaron assumed it was some chemical test, and they were otherwise going to a lake to do actual fishing. Mark hides his stolen envelope behind a mini-fridge located in his bedroom.

Vance attempts to confront Mark, but loses control of his SUV and crashes it, killing himself in the process. Clyde then puts pressure on George to recruit Chris and Kyle to deal with Mark. Meanwhile, Chris has kept the crew in the dark about Aaron's existence; so they wouldn't know that Mark also has a twin brother. Chris recruits Ashley Phillips to assist him as well. Chris and Ashley agree to carry out the assassination; and then George and Kyle are to be the cleanup crew.

Mark reads a book before calling it a night, but is interrupted by Ashley knocking on his door. He doesn't recognize her as working at Sleet Mountain, given how new a recruit she is. She asks him for directions to "201A," as Mark is in 201H at Hillcrest Apartments. While Mark is distracted, Chris sneaks up on him from behind Ashley. Chris quickly strangles Mark to death, then has Ashley "pull a car around," so they can deal with the body. The two of them ransack the apartment, but forget to check behind the mini-fridge. Frustrated that they can't find the envelope, they ask George and Kyle to search for it while cleaning the place.

Chris and Ashley bury Mark in a low bank near the Muskegon River. His disappearance leads to him not calling Aaron to wake him up,and not responding to phone calls. When Aaron goes to the apartment and discovers the envelope behind the mini-fridge, he walks out with it - and is spotted by George and Kyle. The two of them mistake Aaron for Mark, and high-stakes drama ensues. Aaron later discovers Mark's body, after Chris tells him where to find it. He vows to have it exhumed from the shallow grave, and to get justice for Mark.

Personality
Mark is portrayed as being a fairly uptight-but-worldly individual. Details of his love life are not well-known, but it is known that he has a strong bond of family loyalty to his twin brother, as well as a firm sense of friendship loyalty with Sleet Mountain co-worker Chris Kennal. In the series, Mark is mostly contrasted with Aaron. Mark is a stuffy office worker with very little known personality, who is shrouded in mystery.

Mark requires glasses to see, unlike Aaron. The reason for this is never explained, but it is assumed that Mark's frequent computer work at Sleet Mountain has damaged his eyesight while the more outdoors-oriented Aaron doesn't share that problem.

When frightened, Mark prefers to remain as calm as he can and take the rational approach. Aaron, however, is far more emotional in his responses; especially his responses to threats. Aaron has also shown himself capable of far more survival skills than his brother ever demonstrated. Nevertheless, the two of them are equally willing to throw themselves into dangerous situations to expose corruption.

Trivia

 * Mark was originally known in development merely as "Twin M," meaning, he was the "Missing Twin."
 * He eventually acquired the name "Mike Monaco" for the Mountain of Cabal working title.
 * His twin "A" (for "alive") was named "Alvin Monaco."
 * "Mike" and "Alvin" were renamed "Mark" and "Aaron" to appease director Chris Wilson.


 * In the initial Remastered Recut of Blood Over Water, Mark and Aaron do not have listed last names.
 * Production of the first two cuts by editor Kyle Mayer listed Aaron's surname as "Stieffel," in spite the Dozerfleet founder's objections.
 * In addition to "Monaco," last names for Aaron and his brother have ranged from Sterplin to Stefflin.
 * In the final approved-for-cable release, Aaron's last name was changed back to Stefflin and Zach's real surname was masked behind a pseudonym of Zach "Finster."
 * For YouTube, Zach's real surname of "Foster" was listed properly in the end credits. This ending is retained for the 3D cut.
 * For convenience's sake, Mark's apartment was 201H - Chris Wilson's actual apartment in 2009. Chris Kennal's home address was never specified in the miniseries.