The Real Villain In Final Destination Isn't Who You Think

William Bludworth is introduced in the very first film in the franchise, 2000's "Final Destination." Played by horror icon Tony Todd, Bludworth is a mysterious character from the start. As a coroner and the owner of Bludworth Funeral Homes, he is easily the most knowledgeable in the whole series when it comes to the forces and powers that death can wield.

In "Final Destination," Bludworth shares the single most powerful rule about death with protagonists Alex Browning (Devon Sawa) and Clear Rivers (Ally Larter). The coroner explains that those who cheat their end will be hunted down by the unseen force until it gets its way. Bludworth returns in the second film to explain how only new life can defeat Death completely. However, it's his appearance in "Final Destination 5" that throws his true intentions into question. In the 2011 film, Bludworth's advice is very different. He offers an alternative to the new life theory to a group of survivors, explaining that the only way for the characters to keep on living is to take the lives of others. In doing so, every person they kill adds that person's lifespan onto their own.

So why is there such inconsistency in Bludworth's advice? He neglected to tell any of the survivors in the first movie how to escape death. Then, his advice in "Final Destination 5" seems to serve Death itself by leading many of the characters to consider (and in some cases, commit) murder as a way out of their horrifying circumstances. Bludworth's vague, dangerous guidance makes it seem that he is not as trustworthy as appears. His culpability in the survivors' mistakes and their deaths implies he is perhaps the true villain in the "Final Destination" series.