1) Is William The Man In Black?
The most prevalent fan theory surrounding Westworld is the idea that good guy William is really the evil Man in Black. The idea goes that what we’ve been watching is really taking place in different time zones – the Man in Black stuff is in the present and the William/Dolores storyline is in the past.
There were several clues in earlier installments to this being the case – such as an older Westworld logo being seen when William arrives and hosts in different roles from when the MiB meets them. After the revelations of episode nine, this theory seems all but confirmed. Yet, there is still room for the show to pull the rug from underneath us yet again.
In the last episode, William snaps when Logan stabs Dolores and sends her running away. He hacks Logan’s men into bits and then holds a knife to his real-life boss and prospective brother-in-law’s throat. Apart from showing that William has a dark side, it also makes clear that these hosts are the cruder, more robotic ancestors to the very lifelike versions we’ve seen in the present. Likewise, the reveal that the scenes between Bernard and Dolores seen earlier in the season actually featured Arnold confirms that the show has been operating on differing timelines all along.
Such overwhelming evidence does suggest Billy boy will turn out to Ed Harris’ cold-hearted cowboy after all, then. But who knows? Maybe Westworld will have another trick up its sleeve? Either way, we can’t wait to find out.