Man in Black

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William
Information
Also known as	"Billy", but only to Logan the MiB, The Black, The Man
Status	Ambiguous[citation needed]
Species	Human
Actor	Young William - Jimmi Simpson Old William - Ed Harris
Appearances
Seasons	Season One
First Seen	Young William-"Chestnut" Old William-"The Original"
Last seen	"The Bicameral Mind"
History
Occupation	Executive Vice President of the Logan's family company Majority shareholder/owner of Westworld, philanthropist
Narrative & Backstory
Family	Juliet Young Wiliam's fiancée Old William's deceased wife Emily, daughter Logan, brother-in-law
Physical Attributes
Age	Young William - 30s Old William - 60s
Gender	Male
Ethnicity	Caucasian American
Hair	Young William - Brown Old William - White
Eye	Blue

“	A first-time guest at Westworld, William is hesitant to experience what the park has to offer.	”
–Official Description

“	You want to know who I am? Who I really am? I'm a god. Titan of industry. Philanthropist. Family man. Married to a beautiful woman. Father to a beautiful daughter. I'm the good guy, Teddy. Then, last year my wife took the wrong pills, fell asleep in the bath. Tragic accident. Thirty years of marriage, vanished.	”
–Man in Black to Teddy

William is one of the main characters of the Westworld series. He is a first time guest to the park. He arrives with Westworld veteran, co-worker, and soon to be brother-in-law, Logan. William is played by Jimmi Simpson. Before arriving at Westworld, William was promoted to Executive Vice President but is junior to Logan. In the first season finale, William is revealed as the younger version of the Man in Black.

As the Man in Black, William is a Westworld veteran; he has been visiting the park for over 30 years. William believes that the original park creator, Arnold, hid some mystery in the park before he died 34 years earlier, and he focuses on finding out what this secret is. In "The Bicameral Mind", William reveals that he is the majority shareholder and, in effect, owns the Westworld theme park. William is portrayed, as an older man, by Ed Harris.

He is on first name terms with Dr. Robert Ford; in the episode "Contrapasso" he greets Ford and says "How'm I doin' Robert?" Likewise, in "The Bicameral Mind", Ford greets him with "Hello William".

Background

William

William at some point meets Juliet and her brother Logan. He gets engaged to Juliet and is made Executive Vice President of Logan's family's company, Delos. Logan takes him to Westworld.

Man in Black

As the Man in Black, William says he has been visiting Westworld for more than thirty years, and wants to visit the deeper levels of the game he believes is hidden in the park. He says he regularly visits Dolores Abernathy, a host who lives on the outskirts of Sweetwater. Among other hosts within the park, he has made acquaintances with Teddy Flood and Lawrence.

The Man in Black is a wealthy person outside Westworld, wealthy enough to operate a foundation and to be recognized by other guests in the park. He does not though, appreciate having his vacation interrupted by guests who recognize him, or anyone else for that matter.

Season One

"The Original"

• Old William

"Chestnut"

• Young William
• Old William

"The Stray"

• Young William
• Old William

"Dissonance Theory"

• Young William
• Old William

"Contrapasso"

• Young William
• Old William

"The Adversary"

• Old William

"Trace Decay"

• Young William
• Old William

"The Well-Tempered Clavier"

• Young William
• Old William

"The Bicameral Mind"

• Young William
• Old William

Personality

The Man in Black is a ruthless figure, who has no compunctions about killing, torturing or mutilating hosts in a number of ways. Unlike some other guests that see the hosts as nothing more than toys to be used or discarded with impunity, the Man in Black relishes the game. He will slip in and out of talking to the hosts in character and out of it. He will occasionally mock or taunt them, but it is usually as a way to mess with their minds, force them to realize they are in some way powerless next to him or to bring out extreme emotions from the hosts.

The Man alternately sees Westworld as a park and as a game. He feels he has seen almost everything about the park except the "Final Chapter", although he notes along way there are some characters and story lines he had not yet indulged in his 30 years of visits. While he takes advantage of the inability to be killed, he appears to crave a worthy adversary, and the real danger of the possibility of death. On some level, he is aware he is attempting to run away from his growing wreck of a home life, his wife having committed suicide and his daughter being driven away by his cold personality.

In the real world, the Man in Black is at least connected to a foundation that saves people's lives. However, at least while in the park, he has no problem threatening a real human. It is unknown how much that is him playing to a ruthless black-hat character he is in the park, but it is close enough to his true personality that it drove away his family.

Relationships

Dolores Abernathy

The Man seems to have some kind of connection with Dolores, having known her for a long time, perhaps as long as he has been coming to the park. He delights in causing her anguish and pain, but it is unknown whether he truly feels anything for her or thinks she is part of his search for the Maze. In the events of the finale, it is revealed that the Man in Black is in fact William; Dolores was the reason for William's eventual moral decline as he became obsessed with finding and freeing her. William eventually does find Dolores again, but due to the fact she was reset, she had no memory of him - leaving him even more cynical and jaded. He becomes obsessed then with finding the maze, in order to potentially free not just Dolores, but also the other hosts.

Emily

Emily is the Man's daughter. They do not have a good relationship, as she blames him for her mother's death and claims that her mother committed suicide. It is unknown what their relationship was like before her mother's death.

Man in Black's Wife

The Man and his wife were married for 30 years before she allegedly committed suicide. According to the Man it was because she feared the darkness she saw in him. In the finale, the Man in Black is revealed to be an aged, more ruthless version of William; as such, it can be inferred that his unnamed wife was Logan's sister, Juliet.

Notes

• The Man in Black's appearance and outfit is reminiscent to the Gunslinger from the original film Westworld, played by Yul Brenner. In the film, the Gunslinger was a robot programmed to start duels and lose, but he eventually begins killing humans. He was the main antagonist in the original film. The Man in Black being human may be representative of the TV series' willingness to subvert the original movie, and/or a perspective change in that now the humans are the ones acting evil and the robots are the innocents being killed; though steadily that narrative seems to be changing. The Man in Black, at least in a conversation with Lawrence, sees himself as the potential hero for the hosts, claiming he is there to set them free.
• When William changes his shirt in Pariah (at the same time that Dolores changes into slacks), it is the same grey shirt that the Man in Black wears. Right after he changes his shirt color, they go on a heist to steal nitroglycerin. On the heist, William shoots dead an unarmed man.
• William is also shown with the same knife that the Man in Black is always seen with.
• When one asks about the Man in Black on the Westworld Website this is the response:
  • AEDEN: I’M SORRY, PER THE WESTWORLD CONFIDENTIALITY POLICY, WE CANNOT DISCLOSE PERSONAL INFORMATION ABOUT ANY OF OUR GUESTS.
  • AEDEN: JUST BETWEEN YOU AND ME, THOUGH, THE MAN IN BLACK IS SOMETHING OF A VIP. WHAT ELSE WOULD YOU LIKE TO KNOW ABOUT THE PARK?

Appearances

• Season One
  • "The Original"
  • "Chestnut"
  • "The Stray"
  • "Dissonance Theory"
  • "Contrapasso"
  • "The Adversary"
  • "Trace Decay"
  • "The Well-Tempered Clavier"
  • "The Bicameral Mind"

Quotes

“	That gentlemen gets whatever he wants.	”
–Stubbs about the MiB, Chestnut