| R.J. Nichols | |
|---|---|
 | |
| R.J. Nichols | |
| Aliases: | RJ Nichols |
| Franchise: | X film series |
| Notability: | Supporting character |
| Type: | Director |
| Gender: | Male |
| Location: | Houston, Texas |
| Status: | Deceased |
| Born: | 1956 |
| Died: | July, 1979 |
| Introduction: | X |
| Actor: | Owen Campbell |
R.J. Nichols is a fictional pornographer and a supporting character featured in the X film series. Played by actor Owen Campbell, he appeared in the 2022 independent feature film X, produced by A24.
Biography[]
R.J. Nichols was born in 1956 and lived in Houston, Texas. As an adult, he became a director of pornographic films, but he held an avant garde approach to the craft, believing in artistry over smut, claiming "It is possible to make a good dirty movie". R.J. hooked up with strip club owner Wayne Gilroy, who agreed to finance his work as an executive producer. Wayne brought in three actors, including Bobby-Lynne Parker, her "sometimes" lover Jackson Hole and his own future fiancé Maxine Minx. R.J.'s girlfriend, Lorraine Day worked as a boom mike operator. Lorraine didn't quite approve of the type of work she was involved in, to which R.J. responded "When did you become such a prude?"
Wayne arranged to rent out a guest house from the elderly Howard and Pearl Douglas with which to shoot their film. Howard was unaware of the exact nature of what was going on, and didn't approve of Wayne or his guests, concerned that they might end up "enticing" his wife, who was unwell.
After shooting a scene for their film The Farmer's Daughters, Lorraine Day expressed interest in performing in a scene. R.J. was aghast and adamant against her doing it. When asked why, he failed to express how much filming his girlfriend having sex with another man would devastate him, and played it off as if it would ruin the integrity of his art. Lorraine did not care for this response, and this only spurned her onward to have sex with Jackson Hole on film.
This incident emotionally destroyed R.J. and he cried out his sorrows in the shower. After washing away the initial pain, he was then overcome with great anger. R.J. got dressed in the middle of the night, and went out to the group's van with the intent of leaving the farm and abandoning them. As he prepared to pull out, he saw 80-something Pearl Douglas standing before him in the headlights of the vehicle. R.J. got out and went to her, concerned that she might be confused and wandering about the property. Pearl was desperate for the feeling of youth and intimacy and embraced R.J. in a caring manner. R.J. politely rebuffed her awkward advances and Pearl promised to show him what she was capable of. She produced a knife that was hidden behind her back and repeatedly stabbed R.J. in the throat until his head came completely off.
Later that evening, Maxine Minx came upon R.J.'s headless corpse, which was still in the driveway as she tried to procure a handgun from the glove compartment of their van.
Notes & Trivia[]
- The character of R.J. Nichols was created by writer, director and producer Ti West.
- In the film's credits, the character is identified only as R.J., but his full name is shown on the film director's slate that Jackson uses while shooting a scene at a gas station.
- R.J. is the first on-screen murder victim in X. He is chronologically, the second kill in the 1979 timeline and the first confirmed victim of Pearl Douglas from this film. This is the fifth confirmed murder victim of Pearl Douglas in total, and possibly her sixth victim.
- R.J. is likely 23-years-old in the film. This is supplied by a line of dialogue spoken by Wayne Gilroy when he has a heart-to-heart with R.J. and says "You need to listen to me, okay? Because you ain't been 42, and I have been 23."
- Most of the characters who are killed in X have their deaths foreshadowed in some way. R.J.'s foreshadowing is a little less tongue-in-cheek than the others and is exemplified by Lorraine Day who takes note of his love for the film Psycho. Director Ti West drew upon Psycho as well as several other films as inspiration for X.
- The cover sheet to a police report seen in MaXXXine is dated July 30th, 1979, indicating that the events of this film take place shortly before that.
See also[]
External Links[]
References[]
Decapitation | Director | Knife | Male rear nudity | Stabbings | Victim