Eamon Bailey

Eamon Bailey is the main antagonist of the 2013 book The Circle and its 2017 film adaptation of the same name. He is the charismatic CEO of The Circle, a perfectionist, cult-like technology company whose products increasingly limit people's privacy. He is played by Tom Hanks.

Traits and role
Bailey is, along with Tom Stenton, one of the key people of The Circle, a company which aims to increasingly connect the world through technology. He has a charismatic character and frequently makes humorous comments that make the audience laugh during his lectures. He is also sympathetic towards Mae Holland, the protagonist, as he believes in her potential and helps her climbing up the company's ladder.

On the other hand, he supports the development of very intrusive technologies and manipulates his subordinates into believing that privacy is wrong and selfish. He persuades Mae to become the first "transparent" member of the company, which means that she is committed to livestream everything she does with the company's HD cameras, 24 hours a day, with the only exception being a few minutes of bathroom usage. He also encourages a hesitant Mae to use the SoulSearch technology to track her friend Mercer against his wishes, which eventually leads to a fatal accident.

Fate
His fate differs slightly between the movie and book versions. In the book, a brainwashed Mae tells Bailey about Ty Lafitte's plans to bring down The Circle, what effectively silences the rebellion. In the movie, Ty's plans work at least partially as Mae publicly declares that Bailey and Stenton have become "transparent" as well and makes all their private information public, while the company keeps developing intrusive technologies she is still firmly believes in those ideals.

Quotes
"Knowing is good, but knowing everything is better."

"We're so fucked."

- Bailey, after all his and Stenton's private data was leaked