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| NOTE: This article is about the incarnation of William Afton from the film series. The mainstream version can be found here. |
| “ | You couldn't just leave it alone, could you?! Lucky me! This is perfect. First I killed your brother, now I kill you. Symmetry, my friend! Wake up, children! I have something for you to play with! This is gonna be so much fun. The little ones tell me you have a sister. She will love it here! You, however, are finished! Farewell, Michael Schmidt. | „ |
| ~ William Afton taunting Mike Schmidt. |
| “ | Look at you... look at the nasty things that you have become! Look at how small you are! How worthless you are! You are wretched, rotten little beasts! I MADE YOU! | „ |
| ~ William Afton's furious breakdown as the animatronics turn on him before being springlocked. |
| “ | I always come back! | „ |
| ~ William Afton's last words and most famous quote in the first film before succumbing to his fatal injuries from the springlock malfunction, foreshadowing his return as Springtrap in the future. |
William Afton, also known as the Yellow Rabbit and under his false identity, Steve Raglan, is the main antagonist of Universal Pictures' Five Nights at Freddy's film series, based on the video game franchise of the same name.
He is a serial killer associated with Fazbear Entertainment responsible for the murders of several children at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza Place during the 1980s and hid their bodies inside the establishment's animatronic characters. The children's spirits possessed the animatronics and Afton controlled them using a drawing to make them think he was their friend and make them kill anyone who entered the pizzeria, including the security guards. He is also the disowned and abusive father of Vanessa Shelly and the arch-nemesis of Mike Schmidt and Abby Schmidt, as he is responsible for kidnapping and murder their brother, Garrett Schmidt. Several years later, he took up the identity of career counselor Steve Raglan so he could hire security guards for the animatronics to kill. This caused him to meet Mike, who needed a new job. Upon reading his file, Afton discovered that Mike was Garrett's brother and decided to hire him as a security guard at Freddy's to kill him and ordered Vanessa to kill Mike if he discovered anything about his plans.
He is portrayed by Matthew Lillard, who also played Stu Macher in Scream, Chet Sulloway in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, David Roy Turner in Criminal Minds, the Lizard King in Axel: The Biggest Little Hero, and Vinnie Wells in Archie's Weird Mysteries.
Quick Answers
Who portrays the character of William Afton in the 2023 Five Nights at Freddy's movie?
What is the relationship between William Afton and Michael Schmidt in the FNAF movie?
How does William Afton's character differ in the 2023 movie compared to the mainstream version?
What is the significance of the yellow rabbit in relation to William Afton in the FNAF movie?
What is the age of William Afton in the 2023 Five Nights at Freddy's movie?
Appearance[]
| “ | 50ish with graying dark hair, Raglan studied Mike with narrowed eyes magnified and contorted by thick, round, black-rimmed glasses. The eyewear dominated a thinnish face topped by a high forehead | „ |
| ~ William Afton's physical appearance being described in the novelization of the Five Nights at Freddy's movie |
William Afton is a middle-aged man with a light skin complexion, grayish blue eyes, and a gray/dark brown combed side-parted hair, mustache and goatee. When he is first introduced in the film, he wears a pair of golden vintage aviator glasses, which he takes off later in the film, as well as what is most likely a Madras-patterned cream shirt with rolled up sleeves, a wine-like purple tie with dark blue oblique stripes and gray pants with a black belt fastened to his hips. Later in the film he's briefly seen wearing a grayish-yellow long-sleeved shirt with a blue-striped-vertical pattern with a dark blue tie with small light blue polka dots. During the film's climax, William is shown wearing a dark-greyish yellow jumpsuit while wearing the Yellow Rabbit suit; however this jumpsuit isn't visible due to the springlock suit covering it completely.
As the Yellow Rabbit, Afton is shown wearing a withered and decomposed golden rabbit mascot suit with heavy damages, gaping holes exposing wires on its right side, a big purple bowtie and two black buttons on its chest. It also lacks a huge part of its right ear. Afton's beard is slightly visible due to the costume's jaw being slightly open. The springlock mechanisms of the costume make Afton seem bulkier, intimidating, muscular and taller. When Afton wears the head of the Yellow Rabbit suit, the eyes glow a ghostly grey. At the end of the film, Mr. Cupcake rips off a large chunk of the stomach, revealing the springlocks mechanism underneath the suit and causing the springlocks to begin to fail and dig into Afton's body, leaving blood on the jumpsuit underneath the springlock suit.
Personality[]
| “ | The man who took them, he was a... he was a very bad man. A very cruel man. Also a very clever man. | „ |
| ~ Vanessa describing her father's twisted yet precocious personality to Mike |
Just like his video game counterpart, William Afton is depicted as a black-hearted, intimidating, sadistic, ruthless, sociopathic, remorseless, cruel and heartless person who is the embodiment of pure evil. He calculates and plots his atrocious murders and perpetuates them as efficiently and stealthily as he can while remaining uncaught by the authorities, a serial killer with a high level of intelligence who is willing to do whatever it takes to continue causing pain and suffering to anyone who gets in his way. According to Matthew Lillard, he is described as a horrible monster who is living in plain sight in the world and who at the end of the day gets his comeuppance and is thrown into the horror realm that he created. He is very cautious about his murders; he tricks his victims into following him under fake promises and seems to recall details about them such as the last names of his victims.
Vanessa accurately describes her father as an extremely wicked though intelligent man. Afton is aware that his actions are reprehensible yet that doesn't stop him from causing pain to those around him. He also exhibits extreme selfishness and is shown as someone who has no qualms with using others for his own needs as well as having little to no empathy towards others, as his atrocious acts are shown to have had a negative impact on his pawns and his victims, such as emotionally manipulating his daughter Vanessa for years, forcing her to assist him and cover up his murders, as well as brainwashing the souls of his victims and make them murder anyone who sets foot on the pizzeria, even if said someone is innocent. According to Vanessa, the children don't want to hurt anyone but are forced to do so due to the influence that Afton inflicted on them, further implying that Afton manipulated the children to kill numerous innocent people.
Not only that, but Afton's actions also caused great pain and loss among the families of his victims, knowing that they would suffer and mourn the loss of their younger relatives. The most evident case of this was the Schmidt family, a once perfect family that slowly fragmented after Garrett's kidnapping, causing a severe depression among both Mr. and Mrs. Schmidt. But the most affected by this unfortunate loss was Mike, who witnessed how his brother was kidnapped in front of his face, which left him scarred and caused him to develop a severe post-traumatic stress disorder that would stay with him throughout adulthood.
Afton is shown to have complete control over Vanessa, as he kept her manipulated for nearly 20 years and used her for his own selfish gains, without any regard to her safety or emotional wellbeing, as shown when he ordered her to keep an eye on Mike and kill him if he eventually found out the truth. The type of manipulation that Afton inflicted on Vanessa was one so severe yet at the same time one so obvious and easy to see, as shown when Mike manages to empathize with Vanessa after hearing her side of the story and points out that Afton "really messed her up". Once Mike tells Vanessa to come with him to the pizzeria, Vanessa backs away nervous and tells him she wouldn't be of help against Afton in case he showed up in the restaurant, further implying that Vanessa heavily fears her father's wrath, but still shows loyalty and affection towards him nonetheless.
He is also shown to be quite strategic and skilled when confronting and attacking his enemies, acting violent and aggressive while making quick movements to disarm them in case they're equipping any weapon that could easily harm him as shown when he snatched the taser from Mike's hands to later brutalize him into submission and when he snatched the gun from Vanessa's hands through a sudden and violent movement. He is also shown to be sadistic as shown when he joyfully mocks and laughs at Mike as he overpowers and beats him up easily with his suit.
However, Afton suffers from having too big of an ego as he is extremely arrogant and overconfident with his authority and abilities as he was so sure of his control over Vanessa that when she appeared just in time before he could kill Mike, Afton is seen unintimidated by the threat and rather mocks it, thinking that Vanessa didn't have the courage to shoot him. Once the animatronics break free of his influence and then surround him, the latter flies into a rage and begins insulting and dehumanizing the souls of his victims, an action which only led him to his slow and painful death inside the Yellow Rabbit suit. Even during his final moments, Afton arrogantly assures that he will return someday despite being in immense pain. While not confirmed, it is heavily implied that he played a role in the founding of Fazbear Entertainment just like in the game continuity. If this were to be the case, then that would make Afton more arrogant than he already is due to the speaker referring to the founder of Fazbear Entertainment as a "genius" in the training video, outright telling us that Afton is extremely arrogant with his mechanical abilities. It can be assumed that he may be a bit of a hypocrite as during the final scene of the film, once he notices the presence of Golden Freddy's ghost, he manages to raise his right arm in his last moments of strength, almost as if he's begging the soul to help him out of his painful situation, only to be locked in the safe room.
As Steve Raglan however, Afton acts as a sarcastic yet friendly man who occasionally tells jokes to lighten the mood of the situation while also being rather smug and subtly mocking Mike for his inability to keep a job without being fired. However, when he realizes and recognizes Mike as the brother of one of his earliest victims, his behavior changes for a moment, as he takes a few seconds to inspect and look closely at Mike's face before recomposing himself from being abrasive and dismissing, to being congenial and acts like he actually wants to help Mike get a new job, all while offering Mike some coffee in order to dismiss the conversation. While he does have some comedic moments in the film under the guise of Steve Raglan, these traits were only part of his façade to prevent those from knowing his true identity and make them believe he was a completely different person.
Despite his cruel and atrocious acts, some fans argue that when after stabbing Vanessa, he looked at her with a face of shock, implying that, despite his attempt at her life, he does hold a small but genuine amount of care for his daughter. However, judging off of how Afton and Vanessa's relationship may had been throughout the years, this is likely Afton just being disappointed that he could no longer control Vanessa. This is supported by the fact that Afton was choking her out before getting distracted by Abby running to switch his picture with her own.
Powers and Abilities[]
Abilities[]
- Genius-Level Intellect: According to Vanessa's words, Afton is a very cunning, plotting, and calculating criminal mastermind with high levels of intelligence. This is evident numerous times throughout the film. A few examples of this is his use of the Yellow Rabbit suit to lure children and kill them, allowing him to continue committing and perpetuating his crimes under a new identity from afar without being caught by the authorities, remaining in disguise for years, as well as plotting his murders before enacting them, going with the help of his daughter Vanessa when handling her to cover up the disappearances of the previous security guards.
- Knifesmanship Expertise: Afton is extremely proficient in the use of a knife that he used to kill the missing children during the 1980s. He even stabbed Vanessa with it when she tried to stop him from killing both Mike and Abby.
- Murder Methodology: Afton is strategic and creative when it comes to luring and murdering his victims, as he equips the Yellow Rabbit suit to deceive them by giving them gifts such as balloons in order to gain the children's trust.
- Mechanical Expertise: Afton is a skilled engineer, as he was able to construct deadly murder devices which he uses to kill a previous nightguard with a custom-made contraption that brutally sawed his face. He also was able to construct and house the dead children into animatronics and manipulated them into bloodthirsty killers without their remains showing or being recognized until Abby made them turn on him.
- Manipulation Mastery: Afton is an expert at manipulating people, as he was able to trick and convince his victims into following him, presumably giving them false promises in the process, as well as being manipulative towards his daughter Vanessa for years and presumably threatened her into assisting him.
- Enhanced Strength: While wearing the Yellow Rabbit suit, William uses the momentum of the suit to his advantage, granting him increased strength. This is shown when he pushed, overpowered and kicked Mike across the pizzeria with ease.
- Enhanced Durability: While suited, Afton is almost entirely unaffected by any sort of devices that could easily harm any human, shown when Mike tried to electrocute him via using a taser, only for Afton to easily snatch the device from his hands. When Vanessa shot him in the abdomen, Afton remained unaffected by the firearm due to the springlock suit protecting his body from the bullet. He also was capable of withstanding the pain caused by the springlocks malfunctioning, choosing to die defiant.
Weaknesses[]
- Arrogance: Despite being a serial killer with a high level of intelligence, he's incredibly overconfident and stubborn. Assuming he is the founder of Fazbear Entertainment, the script dictates that the speaker calls him a "genius" in the training video, outright telling us that Afton is extremely arrogant with his mechanical abilities. He was so sure of his control over his daughter Vanessa as he mocked her threat to shoot him, blindly believing that she didn't have the courage to do it. Once being surrounded and confronted by the animatronics, he goes to insult and dehumanize all of them due to them turning against him, which causes one of them to trigger the springlock mechanisms in his suit.
- Unaccountability: Once Vanessa stands up to Afton, the latter berrates and blames her as the source of the situation as he tells her to "help to clean the mess" that she "created," indicating that he refuses to take accountability of his crimes and actions and thinks that the cause of these is his daughter.
- Springlocks Instability: Due to the Yellow Rabbit being a springlock suit; a very unstable and dangerous mechanism, it was very easy for Afton to accidently trigger the springlocks of the suit and cause the endoskeleton to fatally pierce into his body; killing him in the process.
Relationships[]
Family[]
- Vanessa Shelly - Daughter
Allies (All Formerly/Betrayed)[]
- Mike Schmidt – Client/Employee (As "Steve Raglan")
- Vanessa Shelly - Daughter/Right-hand
- Freddy Fazbear †? - Victim/Brainwashed pawn
- Bonnie the Bunny †? - Victim/Brainwashed pawn
- Chica the Chicken †? - Victim/Brainwashed pawn
- Mr. Cupcake †? - Brainwashed pawn/Indirect killer
- Foxy the Pirate †? - Victim/Brainwashed pawn
- Golden Freddy †? - Victim/Brainwashed pawn
Enemies[]
- Mike Schmidt - Arch-nemesis/Former client/Former employee/Attempted victim
- Vanessa Shelly - Daughter/Former right-hand/Attempted victim
- Abby Schmidt - Attempted victim
- Garrett Schmidt † - Hostage/Victim
- Freddy Fazbear †? - Victim/Former pawn
- Bonnie the Bunny †? - Victim/Former pawn
- Chica the Chicken †? - Victim/Former pawn
- Mr. Cupcake †? - Former pawn/Killer
- Foxy the Pirate †? - Victim/Former pawn
- Golden Freddy †? - Victim/Former pawn
Victims[]
| Victims killed directly or indirectly by William Afton: |
|---|
Directly[]
Indirectly[]
|
Quotes[]
Said by William Afton[]
| “ | Mm. What is your deal, Mike? What are you, some kind of... "head case"? You beat up a man in broad daylight; infront of his child. | „ |
| ~ William Afton's first words in the film, mocking Mike Schmidt for attacking a father that he mistook to be a kidnapper. |
| “ | Just look at your employment record: Tire Zone, sales associate, 2 months, terminated. Insubordination. Media World, custodial staff, 1 week. | „ |
| ~ William Afton reading Mike a folder where the latter's past jobs are housed. |
| “ | It's like you're not even trying here, yet you sit before me asking for help. I am just trying to figure out who you are, Mr. Michael Sch- ... Coffee? | „ |
| ~ William Afton realizing the identity and related past of him and Mike Schmidt. |
| “ | Mike Schmidt: Sorry? Steve Raglan: Uh, would you, would you like some... some coffee? I made some coffee. Mike Schmidt: No. Steve Raglan: I'm-I'm gonna be brutally honest with you here, Mike. Given your track record, your options... are gonna be extremely limited. |
„ |
| ~ Trying to shift the conversation, William offers Mike coffee before discussing the constraints of his career choices. |
| “ | Mike Schmidt: I'll take anything, okay? Any-any job you got. Steve Raglan: I get that part. Um, it's just... you know, it's not that easy. Mike Schmidt: Yeah. Thank you. Steve Raglan: I have a job for you. Come on, sit down. Sit, sit, sit, sit, sit. |
„ |
| ~ William Afton informs Mike that he still has a job opportunity for him. |
| “ | Steve Raglan: It's a security gig. Full discloser: it's not great. High turn over, that's what we call it in the business, but you get to be your own boss. Sort of. And you only have to worry about one thing! Keeping people out and- and- You know- and keep the place tidy. Mike Schmidt: That's two things. Steve Raglan: ... You want the job or not? |
„ |
| ~ William Afton offering the night guard job to Mike. |
| “ | Mike Schmidt: How's the pay? Steve Raglan: Not great. But the hours are worse. Mike Schmidt: (quietly) I can't do nights. Steve Raglan: Excuse me? Mike Schmidt: I can't do nights. Steve Raglan: (chuckles) That’s such a shame. Mike Schmidt:Yeah. Thank you. Steve Raglan: Wait, uh… Afton stands up of his chair and gives Mike a card) In case you have a change of heart. |
„ |
| ~ William Afton informing Mike about the compensation for the night shift, prior to handing him a card containing his phone number. |
| “ | Mike Schmidt: Mr. Raglan, this is Mike. Steve Raglan: Mr. "I can't work nights." Mike Schmidt: Right. Uh, yeah, I was just calling to see if that job that you offered was, uh, was still available. Steve Raglan: Oh, it absolutely is. Why? Have you had a change of heart? |
„ |
| ~ William Afton as he talks with Mike on the telephone. |
| “ | Let me give you a little backstory. This place was huge in the 80s with the kids. It's been shut down for years. The only reason they haven't given it the old, 'wrecking ball' treatment, is the owner is a bit of uh, well he's kind of a sentimental guy, I guess. Just can’t bring himself to let it go yet. Yeah. Had some trouble with break-ins over the years, drunks and vagrants, mostly. Not ideal. Security system's dated but fully functional. Floodlights on the outside, cameras inside and outside. Fair warning: the electricity is a bit... iffy. Anything happens, there is a breaker in the main office, just flip it.. Uh, I guess that's about it. You know... the rest is pretty easy. Just keep your eyes on the monitors and... and keep people out, piece of cake. So, I will catch you on the flip side, hopefully.
|
„ |
| ~ William Afton about Freddy's Fazbear's Pizza. |
| “ | (laughing) Little old for tamper tantrums, aren't we, Vanessa? | „ |
| ~ Afton mocking his daughter, Vanessa.
|
| “ | You may have forgotten your loyalties, but I assure you, they have not. Now, put that thing away, and help me clean up the mess that you created! | „ |
| ~ William Afton to Vanessa when she tries to stop him. |
| “ | Come on, We both know you're not gonna use a gu- | „ |
| ~ William Afton just before Vanessa shoots him. |
| “ | You had one job! One! Keep him in the dark and kill him if he got too close! | „ |
| ~ William Afton scolding Vanessa for failing to keep Mike unaware of his identity. |
| “ | LET GO! | „ |
| ~ William Afton yelling at Vanessa to let go of him, causing him to impale her with his knife. |
| “ | Hey... HEY! | „ |
| ~ William Afton raising his voice to Abby upon seeing her enact her plan. |
| “ | William Afton: What have you done? Abby Schmidt: They can see you now. They know what you did. William Afton: (Afton steps towards Abby, but is blocked by Foxy) Move! MOVE! (the lights turn on and cast a spotlight on William) Agh! No! |
„ |
| ~ William Afton realizing Abby revealed the truth to the animatronics, causing them to turn on him. |
| “ | Showtime! | „ |
| ~ William Afton's voice in the teaser trailer of Five Nights at Freddy's 2, his first words after his return. |
Referring to William Afton[]
| “ | The genius who created Fazbear Entertainment opened Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria to indulge in his two greatest passions: family-friendly fun and cutting-edge animatronic technology. | „ |
| ~ Kim talking about Fazbear Entertainment's founder, who is heavily implied to be William. |
| “ | What is this? Who are you? That car. Did you see that car? You see what happened? Did you see who took my brother? | „ |
| ~ Mike asking the spirits of The Missing Children if they know who was the man who took Garrett. |
| “ | Please don't-don't... don't run, okay? I-I just want to know what you saw. Please, I'm begging you. Help me. WHO TOOK GARRETT?! | „ |
| ~ Mike asking once again the spirits of The Missing Children who kidnapped Garrett. |
| “ | So, I used to have a brother. His name was Garrett, and when I was... about 12, he was, uh, he was taken, and I was there when it happened. They never found the guy who did it, and they never found my brother. | „ |
| ~ Mike telling Vanessa the kidnapping of his brother years ago. |
| “ | Mike Schmidt: I won't get angry at you, but I really need you to help me understand, please. Abby Schmidt: That's when Garrett got taken. Mike Schmidt: Abby, who told you about that? W-Was it a-a boy with blonde hair? (Abby nods) Mike Schmidt: Did that boy ever tell you anything about the man driving that car? Anything at all? Okay, just think, think really hard, okay? Abby Schmidt: No. All they talk about is a yellow rabbit. |
„ |
| ~ Abby confessing to Mike that the ghosts of the Missing Children informed her of Garrett's kidnapping and a "Yellow Rabbit". |
| “ | ♪ We love the yellow rabbit ♪♪ We love the yellow rabbit ♪ | „ |
| ~ The lyrics of the song heard when Vanessa is staring at the Yellow Rabbit's drawing. |
| “ | Vanessa Shelly: The man who took them, he was a... He was a very bad man. A very cruel man. Also a very clever man. He knew that parents would cry, and the police would come looking. And he knew there's one place they'd never think to check because... why would they? I mean, why would anyone? It's not just their ghosts that are inside of those machines. It's their bodies. You have to understand, the... the kids, they don't want to hurt anyone. It's-it's him. He influences them somehow. He took everything from them, but they don't remember. Mike Schmidt: Who, Vanessa? Vanessa Shelly: I tried to warn you. I really did try in my own way. But it's too late now. He knows that you're looking for him. He'll be coming. Mike Schmidt: You need to tell me who he is. Vanessa Shelly: His name is William Afton... He's my father. |
„ |
| ~ Vanessa revealing who William Afton is. |
| “ | Mike Schmidt: Come with me. Vanessa Shelly: No. Mike Schmidt: Vanessa, you owe it to me, and you owe it to them. Vanessa Shelly: No, I can't. If he's there, I... I won't be any use to you, believe me. Mike Schmidt: He really messed you up, didn't he? |
„ |
| ~ Vanessa refusing to go to the pizzeria with Mike in fear of William Afton being there. |
| “ | Well, I mean, the most important thing for me from the game was just to represent him in the way that the fans wanted. I mean, it's not very often that when you're associated with a property that you have a responsibility to something higher than your own performance. I mean, for us, we are guided by a need to deliver on behalf of a fan base that is as passionate as any fan base out there. So for me, it was important to represent the game and the lore and the universe that everyone cares so deeply about as best I could. And that's really the only thing that mattered to be frank. | „ |
| ~ Matthew Lillard on his character. |
Other Media[]
Dead by Daylight[]
Matthew Lillard as William Afton in Dead by Daylight.
The movie version of William Afton appears as a Legendary skin for the killer, The Animatronic, in the Five Nights at Freddy's chapter of the asymmetrical survival horror video game Dead by Daylight, wielding a knife as his weapon of choice. He is modelled after and voiced by Matthew Lillard.
Trivia[]
- William Afton is Matthew Lillard's third serial killer role in a film, the first being Stu Macher, one of the original Ghostfaces from Scream, and the second being David Roy Turner from Criminal Minds.
- William Afton's knife wipe while in the Yellow Rabbit suit is a reference to Ghostface's signature and iconic move in Scream.
- There was some foreshadowing that Steve Raglan was William Afton/The Yellow Rabbit all along:
- During the 16-bit opening sequence; Matthew Lillard's and Elizabeth Lail's names are both purple, most likely foreshadowing Afton and Vanessa being related.
- Steve wore a madras-patterned cream shirt, and purple tie are nearly the same colors as the Yellow Rabbit costume.
- The glasses he wears as Steve Raglan are known as "serial killer glasses".
- The name Steve Raglan is one letter off of being an anagram to the word "everlasting". Assuming this isn't a coincidence, it could be a callback to William Afton being infamous for cheating death several times, tied to his quote: "I always come back." This is also theorized to be one of Scott's famous trolls.
- While reading a file about Mike Schmidt, Steve stops mid-sentence while reading Mike's name, only saying his first name and stopping when he is about to say his last name. Afterwards, he leans to take a closer look at Mike, almost like he's trying to identify him as if he saw him before, then he asks "Coffee?" in a nervous tone and stammers his words for a few seconds. At the moment, William was hinting he was the one who kidnapped and killed Mike's brother Garret Schmidt.
- His final call to Mike has him end with "So, I will catch you on the flip side, hopefully" before he stares at the audience with a neutral, but devious expression, this is because he’s plotting to have Mike get killed by the animatronics when he arrives at the place.
- When Mike uses his taser gun on The Yellow Rabbit, he didn’t get affected by electrocution since he isn’t a robot. This reveals he is William since he’s a human.
- The Yellow Rabbit's voice deeply sounded like Steve's voice, which made the scene reveal Steve Raglan was William Afton the entire time of the film.
- Many fans thought this version of William would solely be inspired by his game version; it was stated in a official post that this version is based on the novel version of William. To further prove this point, the movie counterpart of William Afton taking the identity of Steve Raglan is likely a reference to the way Afton's counterpart in the novel trilogy took the identity of Dave Miller to make sure no one finds the bodies of his victims in the animatronics.
- Scott Cawthon said in an interview with Youtuber Dawko, that this version of William Afton is his favorite version. This was because he felt like it was the version of William Afton that was "explored" the most out of all versions.
- Back in December 2022, when it was announced that William Afton would be played by Matthew Lillard, fans began making Internet memes of Shaggy Rogers from the Scooby-Doo franchise committing William Afton's heinous murders while wearing purple clothing. This is due to Matthew portraying Shaggy in the theatrical live-action Scooby-Doo films, as well as voicing him in many animated direct-to-video Scooby-Doo movies and TV shows since 2010 after Casey Kasem retired the role and passed away in 2014.
- Serial killers and infamous criminals such as Edmund Kemper, Robert Berchtold, John Wayne Gacy and Jeffrey Dahmer were inspirations for this version of Afton.
- Afton as Raglan has a role very similar to that of the Phone Guy from the original games, instructing Mike on how to do his job through the phone likely as a reference to the debunked theory where the Phone Guy was actually the killer.
- Director Emma Tammi described casting Matthew Lillard as William Afton as "The number-one role that we really had the fan-base in mind for".
- His behavior before his death seems to hint that he will return as Springtrap in the future, now trapped in the rabbit suit, similar to his other incarnations.
- This was later proven correct by the casting for the sequel which is currently in-development, where Matthew Lillard is credited as "William Afton" and "Springtrap".
- At one point, Mike discovers the vandals are stuffed in animatronic suits, Hank is stuffed in a Sparky Suit which was the coffee shop of the same name where Jane, Max and Jeff were at previously. This could imply William Afton must have been inspired of the Sparky's restaurant and added a proper mascot generic suit.
- The car that William drove to kidnap Garrett is a 1979 Ford Fairmont.
- Mathew Lillard stated that he could not see when wearing the Yellow Rabbit's mask and relied on the cast to help him in the scenes where he was wearing it.
- While it's clearly meant to be the suit, Afton's costume is never called "Spring Bonnie" nor "Springtrap" in the movie, known only as "The Yellow Rabbit".
- This might be a slight reference to how Golden Freddy was ultimately just a fan nickname made canon, and how he was called simply "The Yellow Bear" in the files of the first game, though it may also be because none of the characters knew the name of the animatronic.
- However in Universal Pictures' Video "Afton's Entrapment" they refer to the suit as Springbonnie, however it's now deleted.
- It also referred the dying Afton as Springtrap.
- There are several differences between William Afton in the film and William Afton in the video games such as:
- In the games, Mike Schmidt is an alias used by Afton's son Michael Afton. In the movie, they're unrelated in any way, and instead it's Vanessa who's Afton's child under a false identity.
- On that note, Afton has three children in the games. In the film, Vanessa is his only child as far as we know.
- He is Vanessa's abusive, manipulative father, similar to Bill A. from the games, who is theorized to be Afton or a symbolic parallel.
- On that note, Afton has three children in the games. In the film, Vanessa is his only child as far as we know.
- In the games and novels, Afton speaks in a Southeastern English accent in a tone that's calm, methodical, and poetic. However, in the film, he speaks in with an American accent in a psychotic, deranged, and unhinged voice. However, his sophisticated and witty dialogue appears to be the consistent with previous incarnations.
- In the movie, William Afton uses the fake name Steve Raglan (similarly to how his novel counterpart used the fake name Dave Miller).
- This Afton is not explicitly stated to be one of the owners or founders of Freddy's or related in any capacity with Fazbear Entertainment. He is, however, heavily implied to be.
- In the games, Mike Schmidt is an alias used by Afton's son Michael Afton. In the movie, they're unrelated in any way, and instead it's Vanessa who's Afton's child under a false identity.
- Afton's appearance in the movie bears a striking resemblance to his novel counterpart having the same dark brown hair, grayish/blue eyes and saggy pale skin. However, the main difference is Afton bears aviator glasses in the film in his disguise.
- The scene in which the animatronics drag Afton away is similar to the scene where he's dragged away at the end of The Silver Eyes.
- His last words, "I always come back!" is a reference to his game counterpart's most famous line after he jumpscares the player as Scraptrap in Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria Simulator and Ultimate Custom Night.
- Despite it being stated otherwise, fans theorize that Afton is Mike's father as he is in the games, and that the filmmakers are hiding the connection in the case future films are made. It should be noted that Afton's kidnapping of Garrett was rather uncommon compared to the other killings, due to the picnic taking place in the middle of nowhere in the woods, implying that Afton's kidnapping of Garrett was targeted for specific reasons. Another thing that should be stated is that the car Afton uses to kidnap Garrett in has no license plate meaning the kidnapping had to be planned as to not get himself caught by the authorities. Not to mention that Afton recognized Mike based on his last name, despite the fact that it was never mentioned how Afton knew Mike's last name connected him to Garrett. Due to Scott Cawthon's unusual form of storytelling, fans believe that detail was intentional and will be brought up in future movies.
- Many fans theorize the idea that Mike's mother had divorced of Afton prior to the film's events and she remarried another man, making Garrett Mike's half-brother. This would lead to Afton kidnapping Garrett and killing him as revenge for Mike's mom leaving him and trying to murder Mike and Abby as revenge against his former wife.
- However, fans also theorize that Mike's father, as shown in his dream, could actually be both his step father as well as the film's version of Henry Emily, due to the resemblance between the father and the technician working on the animatronics in the video tape. This led to the idea that Garrett is the film's stand-in for Charlotte, and Afton kidnapped him to take revenge on Henry for leaving his company, taking his wife, or other unknown reasons. The fact that Mike's father is implied to have committed suicide, similar to Henry doing so in the novels, furthers this.
- This would explain why Afton drew out his attempted murder of Mike rather than killing him on the spot, possibly wanting to spite him for being Henry's kid.
- If any or all of the above is true, this may make Garrett's murder a unique case; whereas his murdering of the other victims were out of malice, Garrett's was out of grudge, making this murder personal.
- Ironically, this would mean the Afton and Emily families switched places like in the novels, with Henry having three children, two boys and one girl, while Afton has only one daughter (being in this case Vanessa instead of Charlotte).
- This would also mean that Mike and Garrett are half siblings to Vanessa, Abby is a half sibling to Mike and Garrett, and Vanessa and Abby are step sisters.
- During the end credits, a robotic voice (which is the same voice that is be heard during the death minigames in Five Nights at Freddy's 2) is heard spelling out "C-O-M-E-F-I-N-D-M-E", some fans speculate that this message is being spelled out by William Afton who is after being springlocked, is inviting someone (whether it can be interpreted as the audience or an unknown character) to find him in the safe room where he was locked up. If this were to be the case, then it is heavily implied that William Afton will return in future sequels.
- However, most fans believe that this message isn't being spelled out by Afton but rather The Puppet, this is mainly due to the fact that the animatronic's signature music box is heard just as the message begins to be spelled, as well as the voice being the same one used in all minigames in Five Nights at Freddy's 2 relating to The Puppet, those being Take Cake to the Children (revealing how Charlotte Emily was killed and went on to possess the animatronic), Give Gifts, Give Life (revealing how the Puppet stuffed the Missing Children into the animatronics) and SAVETHEM (who's title is likely said by the Puppet itself).
- Afton's death is noticeably less violent than how a death by springlock failure is described in every other medium of the series. Instead of the victim's entire body being crushed, torn and punctured by the suit's endoskeleton, the victim's torso gets stabbed by large metal spikes and is quicker compared to the others. It was likely toned down to keep the film's PG-13 rating as the original portrayal might give the film an R rating although the death is still undeniably agonizing.
- On a related note to the trivia above, his death in the movie resembles the ones portrayed in most fan-made animations, where the springlocks go off one by one (as opposed to the third game's final end-of-night cutscene where William is springlocked with a loud crunch followed by a blood splatter).
- Some of his lines have become popular Internet memes, most notably when he confronts Mike as the murderer of his younger brother, Garrett ("This is perfect. First, I killed your brother. Now, I kill you. Symmetry, my friend!"). In particular, a parody of this line where several words are replaced with Internet slangs and lingo has become popular.
- Not only that but his breakdown scene where he begins insulting and dehumanizing the animatronics has almost become a meme among the community, where the insults were also changed to Internet slang.
- Lillard, in an interview with Collider, implied that if he was to return to the role would be exploring more of the character's backstory and motivation, stating "We know nothing about his history, about his journey. All those things that the fans have filled in for year after year, I'm excited to, with Scott and Emma, fill in all those pieces that the fans have always wondered about. That's the thing is, how do we fill out expectations and how do we fill out the lore? I'll be excited to be a piece of that story."
- William Afton is a dark parallel of the following characters:
- Mike Schmidt: Both are linked by a shared experience of family tragedy and the desire for justice/closure, but their responses to this trauma are fundamentally opposed. Mike is driven by the trauma of his younger brother Garrett's kidnapping and murder while his goal is to find answers and protect his younger sister, Abby, demonstrating a protective and moral nature. Afton, who is an abusive father, became a serial killer who targeted children, including Garrett. His actions are driven by sadistic impulses and manipulation, ultimately destroying families, including his own daughter Vanessa's life, rather than protecting them. While Mike deeply cares for Abby and fights for custody to keep her safe, prioritizing family above all else, Afton is a heartless, sadistic and manipulative parent who forces his daughter Vanessa to be his accomplice, showing a complete lack of familial care or empathy. Mike uses his intelligence and persistence to uncover the truth through legitimate (if unconventional) means like dream analysis and investigation whereas Afton is a "cunning, plotting, and calculating criminal mastermind" who uses deception, violence, and mechanical expertise to lure and murder his victims, covering up his crimes for decades. While Mike is an "outsider protagonist" who is fundamentally a good person drawn into a dark world, Afton represents the corruption of innocence, having killed children and trapped their spirits within the animatronics, controlling them for his own sinister purposes. In essence, Mike represents a character trying to prevent further harm and seek justice for past wrongs, while Afton embodies a character who perpetuates the cycle of violence and causes suffering. Afton serves as an example of what Mike might become if he chose a path of vengeance and malice.
- Vanessa Shelly: Both are deeply involved in the history of the Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria murders (Afton committed the Missing Children incident, and Vanessa, as an adult, was coerced into helping him maintain the secrecy around those events and the possessed animatronics). Both are connected to the violence at the pizzeria (Afton is the perpetrator, while Vanessa acts as his unwilling accomplice, ensuring night guards meet their demise at the hands of the animatronics). Both have a deep knowledge of the Freddy Fazbear's location, its history, and the animatronics, which stems from their family history and Afton's role as a co-founder and murderer. Unlike her father, who is physically and emotionally abusive and manipulative, Vanessa harbors deep fear and resentment for him. While Afton uses manipulation and violence to control the animatronics (via a drawing of them as friends) and people around him, Vanessa, however, chooses a path of redemption, actively helping Mike and Abby to expose and defeat her father. While Afton shows no genuine remorse for his actions and is even seemingly being disappointed when Vanessa defies his control, Vanessa demonstrates empathy and a desire to stop the cycle of violence, trying to help Mike understand the situation and protect the children's souls. Afton is driven by a desire for control and is furious when he loses it, especially over his daughter and the animatronics whereas Vanessa reclaims her agency by actively working against him, breaking free from his psychological hold. Afton demonstrates what would happen to Vanessa if she hadn't met Mike and Abby and bonded with them, experienced friendship, kindness and empathy and grew up to become a ruthless and abusive person like her father.
External Links[]
- William Afton on the Pure Evil Wiki
- William Afton on the Universal Studios Wiki
- William Afton on the Five Nights at Freddy's Films Wiki
- William Afton on the Five Nights at Freddy's Wiki
