| “ | You're giving me my best numbers. | „ |
| ~ Owen Reilly |
| “ | Hello. You know... I'm only doing to you what they're going to do to me. Only... they'll use potassium chloride, and they won't let very many people watch. But not for long. You see, soon... executions will be delivered live to our TVs ... our computers, our phones, our handhelds... and it won't cost much. Maybe ten bucks. Millions of eyes... all watching the same thing at the same time. One big, happy family. And all of it brought to you by... it doesn't matter. They'll have no trouble finding sponsors. | „ |
| ~ Owen Reilly |
Owen Reilly is the main antagonist of the crime thriller Untraceable. He is a serial killer and snuff filmer responsible for several tortures and murders, all for revenge over the suicide of his father, which was devoured by public consumerism it was when caught on camera.
He was portrayed by Joseph Cross.
His Evil Ranking[]
What Makes Him Heinous?[]
- Broadcasted all of his torture and murder victims on his website, "KillWithMe.com," turning their deaths into public spectacles. This act mirrors the very public exploitation of his father's suicide that traumatized him and contradicts his stated goal of avenging his father's "shame."
- His website, "KillWithMe.com," featured his father's skeleton's X-ray and autopsy details, demonstrating a macabre fascination with his father's death and a desire to taunt both the authorities and the public.
- Monitored and was motivated by the rising viewership during his live-streamed murders, revealing a narcissistic need for an audience and demonstrating that his motives extended beyond avenging his father.
- Prior to the events of the movie, he murdered Kilburn, a student who had posted the video of his father's suicide online, by inducing diabetic ketoacidosis, making it appear to be a suicide.
- Murdered a kitten, belonging to Scotty Hillman, into a trap and tortured it to death on a live stream despite having nothing to do at all with his father's death.
- Lured Herbert Miller, the helicopter traffic reporter who filmed his father's suicide, with the promise of hockey tickets, then tortured and murdered him by cutting the "KillWithMe.com" URL into his chest and administering anticoagulants.
- He then left his corpse into the trunk in the parking lot of congressman Joseph A. Rotman, a substantial donor to Channel 12.
- After luring David Williams, the news reporter who interviewed the businessman whose car Reilly's father fell on, to a house, encased him in concrete and then incinerated him alive using heat lamps while streaming it live. Williams was involved in the exploitative coverage, but the method was excessively cruel.
- Stalked Marsh and live streamed her house, in a move designed to further terrorize and manipulate the investigators, placed the decaying body of David Williams in the trunk of her car. This was a psychological attack, a way of taunting her and demonstrating his proximity.
- After a brief encounter with Agent Dowd, lured him with a fake date and then dissolved his head in sulfuric acid, broadcasting the event live. Dowd was an investigator, not involved in the original exploitation of the suicide video but he only killed him because he was hot on his trail.
- After hacking Marsh's car and disabling her communication, he kidnapped Marsh and took her to his basement and tied her over a cultivator, a piece of farm machinery with rotating blades. He intended to kill her live on his website, "KillWithMe.com," just as he had done with his other victims.
- Before his death, he tried to kill Marsh when she managed to free herself from her restraints.
What Makes Him Inconsistent?[]
- His actions, however twisted, stem from a place of love for his father and a desire to avenge what he perceives as the desecration of his father's memory.
- While his methods are extreme, his initial targets were those directly involved in the public exploitation of his father's suicide video. This focus, though flawed, suggests a desire for justice, however misguided.
- Despite the horrific nature of his crimes, he explicitly states he would not harm children. While his actions with the kitten contradict this, the stated principle, even if broken, adds a layer of complexity to his moral code.
External Links[]
- Owen Reilly on the Villains Wiki