Barney Bux (known only as Bastian's father in the book) is a character that appears in The Neverending Story, the the first film adaption and it's sequels.
The Neverending Story (1979)
Bastian's father is a dental technician who works in his home laboratory. When Bastain was young his father would tell him stories and play with him, though he is described as becoming distant when his wife (Bastian's mother) dies unexpectedly and an "invisible wall" appears around him. He buys Bastian whatever he wants and spends time in his presence though rarely speaks to him, making Bastian feel neglected.
"[Bastian] couldn’t talk to his father anymore. There was an invisible wall around his father, and no one could get through to him. He never found fault and he never praised. Even when Bastian was put back in school, his father hadn't said anything. He had only looked at him in his sad, absent way, and Bastian felt that as far as his father was concerned he wasn’t there at all. That was how his father usually made him feel."
In the final chapter when Bastian returns home his father listens to him explain his adventures in the Neverending Story and they reconcile.
Films
Bastion's father portrayed by Gerald McRaney
In the first film adaptation Bastian's father is portrayed as being dismissive of Bastian's feelings, telling him that his mother's death can't get in the way of getting things done, berating him for having his head in the clouds.
In the second film adaptation, which takes place 2 years after the first film, he is given the first name "Barney". When Bastian is in the Neverending Story Barney notices his disappearance.He finds the Neverending Story in Bastian's room and sees a sticker on the front cover listing Mr. Coreander's bookstore's address. Barney rushes to the bookstore where Mr. Coreander tells him that he will find the answers inside the book. Returning later with a police officer, Barney is shocked to see the bookstore abandoned. Eventually, Barney reads the book where he follows Bastian's journey and is reunited with him at the end of the film.
In the third film he appears to have no memory of reading the book. He marries a woman called Jane, who has a daughter Nicole, thus creating some of the conflict within the story.
Trivia
- Bastion’s father is never given a name in the book nor the first film. He is given the name “Barney” for the second film.