Bill Hudley

Bill Hudley is a fictional character and one of four primary victims targeted by the Firefly clan of Ruggsville in the movie House of 1000 Corpses. Played by actor Rainn Wilson, he was the first of the four to be killed in the film.

Biography
In 1977, Bill Hudley, the nerdy one of the group, his girlfriend Mary Knowles, his best friend Jerry Goldsmith and Jerry's girlfriend Denise Willis went on a cross-country road trip, exploring various local oddities and roadside attractions. Their journey eventually brought them to a gas station/eatery which doubled as a tourist trap known as Captain Spaulding's Museum of Monsters and Madmen. Entering the establishment, Bill met the museum's proprietor, Captain Spaulding who, unbeknownst to Hudley, was in the process of mopping up the blood of a gunman he had just killed. Bill immediately began asking Spaulding questions about the museum, but the older man didn't care for Bill's demeanor and did everything he could to make his friends an he feel uncomfortable. Regardless of his brusque demeanor, Spaulding invited them all to his "Murder Ride" attraction; a traveling car that ran underground showcasing famous serial killers as well as local urban legends. Although Jerry Goldsmith was enamored with the attraction, Bill and the others were greatly unsettled by the experience. One of the local legends featured on the ride was a man known as Doctor Satan. Bill asked Spaulding more about the man and Spaulding gave him directions to where the real Doctor Satan was allegedly buried.

Bill and the others began driving through the night in a torrential rainstorm. Along the way, they picked up a hitchhiker named Baby Firefly. As they began driving Baby towards her home, the car tire blew out. Baby and Bill walked through the rain back to her family's farmhouse where she promised to get her brother Rufus to come out with his tow truck. At the Firefly residence, Baby began flirting with Bill, making him extremely uncomfortable. Rufus eventually brought the other three back to the house whereupon Bill and the others met the rest of Baby's "family"; Mother Firefly, Grandpa Hugo, Tiny and Otis. Mary Knowles immediately took note of Baby's persistent flirtations with Bill and a rift quickly began to develop between the two. At the insistence of Mother Firefly, Bill and the others became guests at a large, candlelit dinner in which they were all required to wear masks. After the meal, they attended a special family "Showtime" spectacle, in which Baby performed a vaudeville act on stage. Once again, she made a showy display of interest in Bill and Mary and she came to blows. The group decided that it was time to leave.

As Bill and the others drove away, Otis, Rufus and Tiny assaulted them on the road. Otis attacked Jerry, bashing him across the head until he was unconscious. He took him back to a special room in the Firefly house where he was tied to a table. As Bill watched in horror, Otis began slowly dismembering him while Baby danced in the background. In the spirit of P.T. Barnum, Otis removed Bill's hands and legs, replacing them with an over-sized fish tail and mutilated appendage. Dubbing him "Fish Boy", Otis presented the now-dead Bill Hudley to Mary Knowles who had likewise been captured by the Firefly clan.

Notes & Trivia

 * Actor Rainn Wilson is widely known for playing the role of Dwight Schrute on the American version of the television comedy The Office.


 * Was an admitted sci-fi nerd.


 * Bill's transformation into the "Fish Boy" is reminiscent of the Fiji Mermaid showcased in carnival curiosity attractions.


 * Director Rob Zombie felt that Bill may have harbored latent homosexual tendencies and may have been flirting with Captain Spaulding during their initial encounter.