Catherine Banning

Catherine Banning is the lover of Thomas Crown, and the secondary protagonist of the remake film, The Thomas Crown Affair.

She is portrayed by Rene Russo.

Plot
At the Metropolitan Museum of Art, an attempted robbery of precious paintings fails when museum employees discover imposters posing as staff. In all the confusion of locking down the museum and capturing the robbers, Thomas Crown slips into an adjacent room and steals the painting of San Giorgio Maggiore at Dusk by |Monet. The insurers of the $100 million artwork send investigator Catherine to assist NYPD Detective Michael McCann in solving the crime.

In reviewing video of the rooms involved in both robberies, one of which was strangely "blank", Catherine follows clues to discover how both robberies are connected. She quickly comes to suspect that the wealthy financier Thomas is behind the theft. Catherine is intrigued at his motivations and begins a game of cat-and-mouse to recover the painting. Despite the fact that both of them intuitively know what the other is up to, the two of them continue to meet in high class locations and intimate surroundings while Catherine continues to search for the painting. The constant contact, matching of wits (and the romantic pursuit of Thomas), cause Catherine to fall in love with him. But her commitment to her job and her doubts about Crown's true intentions make her hesitate.

To prove his love to her, Thomas promises to return the stolen artwork to the museum. In her doubt, Catherine betrays Thomas' plan to Detective McCann who fills the museum with dozens of police officers in an attempt to catch him in the act. After a grand game of misdirection, the painting is returned and another one is stolen; one which Catherine had previously expressed a desire to possess.

Since the second stolen painting is insured by another company and her job is now finished, Catherine's knowledge of Thomas' plan allows her to meet him at a prearranged spot. But the person she meets instead convinces her that her betrayal has cost her more than she can bear. Thomas' witty nature ultimately allows for both him and Catherine to run away and live happily ever after.