The following contains spoilers for Final Destination BloodlinesFinal Destination Bloodlines reveals the true backstory of William Bludworth and justifies all of his previous appearances. Played by horror icon Tony Todd, William Bludworth has been a fixture of the series since the very first film. In Final Destination, he appears as a mortician whose experience with death has given him a clear knowledge about the rules that govern the movie’s universe. Bludworth has been a consistent supporting character in the series, appearing in four of the six films (and having a voice-over cameo in Final Destination 3) to guide the new characters.

Bludworth fills a largely similar role in the latest film, giving the main characters of Final Destination Bloodlines tips on how to avoid Death. In the process, the film also reveals the origins of the character, why he’s so focused on investigating death’s design, and how he fits into the overall story. The film even gives Bludworth a perfectly fitting send-off that reflects the real-life pᴀssing of his actor, Tony Todd. Here’s how the story and ending of Final Destination Bloodlines finally reveals the true story behind William Bludworth.

William Bludworth’s Role As JB In Final Destination Bloodlines, Explained

William Bludworth Has Been Researching Death All Along

William Bludworth makes one final appearance in Final Destination Bloodlines as a guide to the rules of Death, which fully explains his origins, his true role in the franchise, and teases his eventual fate. William Bludworth is one of the only two remaining survivors of the Skyview Tower event. In her vision of the potentially fatal turn of events, Iris and a young William were the last two people to die. As a result, as Death steadily picked off the survivors and their subsequent descendants in appropriate order, Iris and William were relatively protected from Death’s designs.

William eventually found Iris and became an invaluable ᴀsset to her research into Death and their plans, similarly looking into all the ways that Death has been unexpectedly dispatching victims. Referenced as JB in Iris’ research, William also provides as much medical care as he can to Iris after she develops cancer. However, after the death of Iris, Bludworth also develops an inoperable disease. Instead of fighting Death’s design, though, William has accepted the reality of his situation. Tired of fighting, he gives the surviving Reyes and Campbells advice before departing to spend his last days happy.

Final Destination Bloodlines Justifies Every Previous William Bludworth Appearance

William Bludworth Has Been Actively Trying To Help Defeat Death For Decades

William “JB” Bludworth has been a consistent factor for much of the Final Destination series. Bludworth appears in four of the six films, serving as a coroner (and occasionally a mortician) who gives advice to the teenagers hunted by Death. The character had been previously left decidedly ambiguous, leaving some fans to theorize that he was supernatural in some way or even potentially an avatar of Death itself. This made his frequent appearances especially foreboding, as his knowledge about Death and the potential ways of avoiding it made him darkly compelling.

In Final Destination Bloodlines, it turns out that Bludworth’s willingness to be involved in the attempts to counter death springs from his own experience and an apparent sense of altruism. Each of his appearances is now retroactively another attempt by Bludworth and Iris to find a means of charting and potentially disrupting Death’s plans. Although they steadily learned how to adjust to Death’s machinations while Iris figured out how to predict the dangers awaiting to be used by Death, they only found a single person who successfully cheated Death and lengthened their own lives by extending Death’s plans.

This also means Bludworth has a greater importance in the franchise as a whole, as his efforts to help others cheat Death might explain why so many of the fatalities in the series are so brutal. As JB explains to Stefani, Death can take attempts to “cheat” death personally and respond with far harsher demises. If it wasn’t for Bludworth offering suggestions and tips, then the deaths might have been more mundane or even potentially peaceful. Instead, by inspiring home in other victims, JB might have inadvertently caused their deaths to be far more brutal.

This makes every appearance of Bludworth in the previous films all the more tragic. Despite offering advice where he could and helping research all the previous efforts to escape Death, almost every person Bludworth spoke with about Death was subsequently killed in some gruesome way. The death of his friend Iris seems to have been the final straw, as Bludworth decides he’s done fighting Death. While all of his previous appearances are now connected, they build to a quietly heartbreaking sense of bittersweet defeat that Bludworth accepts with honesty and humility.

What Happens To William Bludworth After Final Destination Bloodlines

William Bludworth Gets A Perfect Send Off

Going by the rules of Death as codified in Final Destination Bloodlines, William Bludworth at least survived until the ending of the film. Death specifically targets the survivors of the Skyview and then their descendants before moving on to their next target. As such, after killing Iris, Death needed to target her children and then their descendants before moving to the next person in the list. However, given the brutal demise of Stefani and Charlie, it seems that Death will now turn its attention to Bludworth to finish off the last of the Skyview Survivors.

However, the fact that JB doesn’t seem to be running from Death could imply that the character won’t suffer the same brutal fate that befell people who tried to figure out a way to avoid their demise. His willingness to accept his fate without running and hiding could mean Death has a peaceful pᴀssing in mind for him. Of course, Death could also see Bludworth as the ultimate cheater for all of his previous efforts to help people, which could set up a far more painful and horrifying end for the character off-screen.

This is a natural ending for Bludworth given his age and his illness. The real-life pᴀssing of Tony Todd adds another layer to this ending, as Death will soon claim Bludworth just as it took Todd in the real world. Todd’s self-awareness that Final Destination Bloodlines would be one of his final projects makes his final scene all the more meaningful, as he expresses a belief that life is worth living, even if death could be waiting around any corner. Final Destination Bloodlines offers a compelling and interesting explanation of JB and gives him a perfectly fitting send-off.