Mr. Williams is the main antagonist of "Private Channel," the third segment of the 33rd episode of the 2nd season of The Twilight Zone's 1985-1989 iteration, airing in 1987. Distraught after losing his family in a plane crash, Mr. Williams sought to destroy a plane and all aboard it in order to both avenge his family and force the airlines to take drastic measures in increasing their safety procedures.
Mr. Williams was portrayed by Andrew Robinson. who also played John F. Kennedy in an earlier episode, "Profile in Silver".
Biography[]
In the 1980s, Mr. Williams had a wife and young daughter, who were killed in a plane crash. Mr. Williams, who was not on the flight, was stricken with rage and grief upon hearing the news, especially when he saw news that the crash was due to negligence. Filled with even more rage, and a desire for vengeance, Mr. Williams came to believe that the airlines were run by incompetent, greedy, insensitive, reckless bureaucrats who played God with people's lives by sticking them in what he believed to be unsafe machines. He then acquired explosives and a detonator to construct an improvised explosive belt, planning to destroy a plane in the air to not only avenge his family, but also force the airlines to take drastic action concerning safety, believing that his bombing would be the only way they'd be prompted to act.
Mr. Williams soon booked a flight to commence his plan, strapping the explosive belt on before arriving at the airport. On the plane, he was assigned to seat 34A, located next to a teenager named Keith Barnes, who quickly annoyed him with his portable radio, drumsticks, and attitude. Sometime during flight, as the plane flew through a storm, Keith left to the bathroom, when a bolt of lightning struck the plane, briefly making it shake. Mr. Williams, unfazed, went to bathroom shortly after Keith had exited. Unknown to him, Keith's radio had been affected by the lightning, somehow transformed into a device that was capable of tuning into people's thoughts. He used it to listen in on Mr. Williams while testing his new powers, seeing an image of Mr. Williams putting on the explosives and discovering what he wanted to do. As Mr. Williams exited, Keith tried to secretly tell a flight attendant, but she didn't believe him when he tried explaining how he knew, so Keith returned to his seat, finding that Mr. Williams was already sitting down and looking over the plane's evacuation plan manual. Listening in on Mr. William's thoughts again, he saw another image of Mr. Williams putting on the vest while ominously saying he'll give the airlines an "emergency exit" they'll never forget, but Mr. Williams noticed Keith staring at him and snapped him out of the mind-reading by asking him if something was wrong. Keith quickly played it off as being entranced by a song and offered the radio to Mr. Williams, who turned it down.
After Mr. Williams turned away again, Keith put the radio's headphones back on, once again tuning into Mr. William's thoughts, seeing an image of him saying goodbye to his wife and daughter at the terminal, screaming in anguish upon hearing of the crash, discovering the negligence reports, and mourning at his family's graves. Keith then asked Mr. Williams not to do it, surprising him. Mr. Williams asked if Keith was talking to him, but Keith, learning Mr. Williams' name through the radio, told him that he knew what Mr. Williams was planning, and tried to say that the bombing wouldn't bring his family back, urging him not to. Mr. Williams then whipped towards Keith, demanding to know who he was, also telling him that he was capable of detonating his explosives right then and there, beginning to break down as he cried that he had no choice and had nothing left, expressing his belief that the airlines needed to both be more careful and pay for what they cost him. Keith tried to protest that the people on this flight had no part in what happened, but Mr. Williams only responded that it was the only way the airlines were going to learn, ordering Keith to stay put while he takes immediate action.
Despite Keith trying to stop him, Mr. Williams promptly stood up and got in front of the passengers, ripping open his shirt to reveal the explosives while taking the detonator in hand, ordering everyone to stay back. However, as his back was turned to Keith, Keith was able to sneak up behind him and put the headphones on Mr. Williams, immediately making Mr. Williams hear the thoughts of the frightened passengers as he looked over them, hearing them mentally crying and pleading for their lives, fixating on a doctor whose thoughts manifested strongly enough to become visible to Mr. Williams, showing that the doctor also had a daughter, one who strongly resembled Mr. Williams' own daughter, who would be left fatherless if he pushed the detonator. Struck with remorse and realization over what he was about to do, Mr. Williams cried out in horror and relented, allowing the airline crew to take the detonator and take him away. The plane landed safely, and Mr. Williams was presumably incarcerated for his actions.
