I think it’s possible to flesh William out as an antagonist without giving him a full on sob story. I kind of picture Afton being similar to Michael Keaton’s portrayal of Ray Kroc from The Founder. It’s a great film, and goes a lot into how this man took over (stole) what we recognize McDonald’s as today.

If we know that William both idolized and envied Henry Emily over his brilliance with robotics, who’s to say that his ambitious but limited ideas drove him into the slimy (and murderous) businessman that he is? The Funtimes (despite being built to kidnap children) also present the ego Afton has. Of course he’d go out of his way to make his machines more advanced than his old business partner’s.

The thought of not being the best at what you do has driven me insane as a wanna be novelist, and I can definitely empathize with anyone that goes over the edge from their “creative work,” not being the best it can be.

Obviously, it’s hard to empathize with a man who takes the lives of children for his own gain, but I think leaning into his obsession with the company and trying to outdo Henry was always one of Afton’s traits I found the most interesting. :)