Buckle your seat belts, and hang on, there’s a hot Twister take incoming. I think Bill Paxton’s leading man, Bill, is the villain of this movie. Yep, you read that right. He might be positioned as a protagonist, but I don’t think he’s that. In fact, I think both women he’s involved with in the movie would be better off without him, and he caused both more harm than good.
Now, before you come for me, I have some big reasons. Also, this has nothing to do with Bill Paxton’s fantastic performance. He did great, seeing him in action chasing tornadoes was epic, and I adored the film as a whole. In fact, it made me even more excited for the release of Twisters on the 2024 movie schedule.
So, with that weather warning out of the way, let’s get into why Bill is the villain of the famous blockbuster film.
Not Only Did He Take His Girlfriend On This Trip, But He Dragged Her Along Through Tornadoes And Ignored Her
My biggest qualm about Bill (the character) is how he treated his girlfriend Melissa. This alone would make him the villain of most movies.
This poor woman was dragged out to the middle of nowhere to interact with her boyfriend’s ex-wife. That alone is not ideal. Then, she ended up being dragged along on this storm-chasing journey with Bill and Jo that she did not ask to go on!
Twister: 10 Behind The Scenes Facts About The 90s Tornado Thriller
Yes, that cow scene is legendary and hilarious, and a highlight was watching her try and talk to her clients on the phone while a cow flew by them. However, on second thought, that poor woman was terrified, and rightfully so. Plus, both Bill and Jo didn’t seem to notice how scared she was.
Bill never really asked if she was comfortable with this. Melissa was expected to hop in the truck and be along for the ride. Did he forget how dangerous storm chasing is? His girlfriend, as far as I know, had never done this before, and she ended up stuck in multiple tornadoes. That's not something casual you do with your partner.
On top of that, her boyfriend kept ditching her to hang out with Jo, his ex-wife. Ouch!
Yes, I loved the Jo and Bill scenes as much as the next person. However, once you stop and think about all this for a second, it’s kind of messed up that Bill didn’t account for Melissa’s feelings. Honestly, it shocks me that he didn’t.
Eventually, she had enough and straight-up left, and Bill didn’t seem to have many emotions about that. In fact, he barely seemed to notice. That bothered me, and it made me see him in a harsher light.
Overall, it was how he treated Melissa that made me view him as the villain of the movie. However, there are a few other bones I need to pick to fully prove my point.
Bill Was Even Kinda Mean To Jo (However She Held Her Own)
There are two scenes in this movie that feature Bill and Jo arguing over who gets to drive. In both, they are in a heated disagreement over who gets to take the wheel, and Bill can’t seem to accept the notion that his former partner is fully capable of doing this job herself.
At one point, his anger gets so out of hand that he almost drives them off the road.
This aggression he feels toward Jo (which is reciprocated by her) mixed with his moments of cowardice is what makes him bad guy No. 1 in my mind.
At one point, after playing the big manly man, Bill got scared and tried to run away, to quote my friend who I watched this movie with: "This is why he left, he’s such a punk bitch. Have some courage, my guy!” If he is going to walk in and try to do Jo’s job for her, he needs to do it kindly, with her consent and with courage.
Storm chasing clearly takes courage, quick thinking under pressure and teamwork. Bill displayed none of those qualities for most of the movie, and that was clearly shown by how he treated his ex-wife.
I Get They Just Survived A Life-Threatening Situation, But He Should Not Have Made Out With His Ex-Wife Like That
As Philip Sledge pointed out in his story about things in Twister that don’t make sense, I don’t buy for one second that Jo and Bill can survive as a couple.
The movie famously ends with them passionately kissing after surviving an F-5 tornado, implying that they’d rekindled their marriage and would live happily ever after. Well, I call B.S. on that.
First of all, Bill and Melissa never technically broke up, she just finally left. So, there’s still that to deal with. Also, as discussed in the last section, Jo and Bill treated each other terribly. They don’t get along, and they have a real enemies-to-lovers thing going on.
Now, I get that there was a lot of adrenaline flowing, and the two survived a situation that they probably shouldn’t have. So, in the heat of the moment, they shared a kiss. However, Bill’s lack of awareness of Melissa’s feelings and his overall anger toward Jo makes me believe that he shouldn’t have made the move.
The guy could have had a few complex thoughts about the women in his life, and all would have been well. However, that didn’t happen. While he clearly cares for Jo – and I guess Melissa – and even saved everyone on a few occasions, he mostly made his decisions based on his own interests and impulses. When you are chasing tornadoes and facing death-defying situations on the regular with a team of people, and specifically two people you have romantic feelings for, that shouldn’t be happening.
Therefore, Bill put everyone, including himself, in danger, and he is the villain of this movie.
To watch the amazing flick again with this argument in mind, you can stream Twister with a Max subscription. Then, to see a new generation of storm chasers following tornadoes, you can catch the critically acclaimed Twisters in theaters starting July 19.
