| Lionel Starkweather | |
| |
| Game | Manhunt |
| AKA | The Director |
| Location | Starkweather’s Estate, |
| Business | Valiant Video Enterprises |
| Weapons | Revolver |
| Allies | James Earl Cash (puppet, formerly) The Cerberus Leader Cerberus Ramirez Gary Schaffer The White Rabbit Mr. Nasty |
| Enemies | James Earl Cash The Journalist Monkeys (possibly) |
| Status | Deceased (Killed by James Earl Cash) |
| Voiced by | Brian Cox |
- "They're going to be screaming your name, boy. Mark my words!"
- — Starkweather, to Cash.
Lionel Starkweather, also known as "The Director", is a major character and the main antagonist of Manhunt.
Description[]
The twisted criminal mastermind behind the whole scheme of Manhunt, Lionel Starkweather is the middle-aged, somewhat obese man responsible for James Earl Cash's execution being a hoax and sends him to his deadly quest for producing a snuff film for him by murdering increasingly more dangerous gangs called Hunters (whom he hired to kill Cash for his film) under his orders in exchange for his freedom from death row, though this soon turned out to be a lie and was using him as a puppet. He watches Cash through many security cameras set throughout Carcer City, controls many doors along the way, and communicates to him through an earpiece early on in the game until he kills the White Rabbit, which wasn't in the Director's script and the tables begin to turn against him. Up to that point, he tells Cash where to go and sometimes gives instructions on performing certain special tasks, though Starkweather secretly plots to have him ultimately killed via the Rabbit to tie up any loose ends that could link him to his illicit activities. Afterwards, he still stops at nothing to get Cash killed by the remaining Hunters until Cash eventually reaches and confronts Starkweather himself at the end of the game, where his plan ultimately fails by the death row inmate's hand.
Personality[]
Starkweather's personality is ultimately that of a perverted and immature sociopath who is utterly devoid of any form of moral compass, empathy, or remorse. He is very impatient and shows absolutely no regard towards anyone's death, although he showed some annoyance of Cash killing the White Rabbit and Ramirez. However, this was only because it ruined his plans to have Cash ultimately killed so he would not be caught in his dodgy criminal activities. He gets very excited, possibly even sexually aroused, after Cash kills a Hunter, and becomes irritated to the point of throwing childish tantrums if Cash waits around too long or is seen by enemies more than a few times.
He is also shown to be manipulative and dishonest, as Starkweather promised to release Cash if he participated in his snuff films. However, in reality, he was simply using him as a puppet and planning to have Cash murdered by the Smileys (as hinted by his dialogue during Kill the Rabbit). Another example is after Cash rescues his family members, Starkweather heartlessly orders the Innocentz to execute the last surviving family member regardless and even sadistically claims that he is "all the family" Cash needs now, which this itself is why the death row inmate reasonably vows revenge.
Starkweather is motivated not only by his sadistic and hedonistic impulses, but his own psychotic beliefs as well. Although he is producing snuff films for the black market, Starkweather still views himself as a great director and artist who is never wrong. Many of his quotes praising Cash's executions revolve around a delusional belief that he will make him "a star" and bragging that Cash will "turn the slasher world on its head". Despite this, he still planned on having Cash eventually killed, showing he doesn't care about any of his stars at all. He had previously used the notorious Piggsy in his snuff films before Cash, but also shares the same fate with the Director.
Despite all the countless indirect murders he has technically committed, Starkweather ultimately proves himself to be a coward. He relies on Ramirez and the Cerberus for doing his dirty work for him, while hiding away in his secure, heavily guarded mansion. When Starkweather is finally confronted by Cash at the end of Manhunt, he attempts to kill him with a Revolver. However, Starkweather resorts to running away and futilely attempts to negotiate with Cash into sparing his life after he runs out of ammo. It is heavily implied this is only to save his own skin as he never cared about Cash in the first place.
Starkweather is strongly implied to be a sexual sadist (whether he's a masochist as well is unknown), as he takes great pleasure in both violence and death, with dialogue at certain points indicating that he's probably jerking off to Cash's murder spree (thus adding a bit of comic relief). However, as the game progresses, stealth-based executions begin losing their effectiveness as Starkweather stops directing Cash after his betrayal. This itself explains why all the scenes starting with Kill the Rabbit no longer necessarily require the player to repeatedly perform Gruesome executions for maximum score.
Manhunt All Starkweather Quotes
Although the Director seems to be in full control of all the Hunters, he employs almost no regard and regularly insults them. Starkweather also especially seems to reserve a particular disdain for the Skinz. He appears to be disgusted with their overt racism, referring to them as "dumbass supremacist bastards", stating they are "always blaming others for their inadequacies". Before directing Cash in the scenes they feature in, Starkweather encourages him to quickly and brutally kill the Skinz, telling Cash to "butcher 'em... Cut 'em up, beat 'em down, and choke the fucking life outta them!". Starkweather also refers to the Innocentz as "Mexican assholes", probably assuming he holds some prejudice views himself.
Biography[]
Life until 2003[]
Starkweather in a picture seen in his mansion, showing his former life.
Lionel Starkweather was once a successful Vinewood film director, until his movies started to flop badly and his professional career was finished. Later, he moved to Carcer City and developed an obsession towards morbid acts of violence. Soon, Starkweather began producing underground pornography and snuff films, which he sold to certain Japanese businessmen.
His newfound success made Starkweather very rich, allowing him to open an illegal film company named Valiant Video Enterprises. Eventually, Starkweather began working with various criminals, like Mr. Nasty, and hired local psychopaths (including Ramirez) to serve him. Starkweather also employed a group of lethal mercenaries, known as the Cerberus, to serve as his personal bodyguards.
At one point, Starkweather exacted his revenge on those who ruined his career by filming their murders in a video collection he entitled Director's Cut.
Starkweather begun paying off the CCPD police chief Gary Schaffer, allowing him absolute control over Carcer City and all the gangs participating in his snuff films. At one point, he purchased a four-story mansion, which was designed by the Las Venturas Planning Department and built in Wapona Hills. With all this power, Starkweather remained isolated in his mansion, watching everything through security cameras located throughout the city and paying people to do all his evil work.
Events of Manhunt[]
Starkweather startled by Cash entering his office in Deliverance.
"Cash, I made you!" - Lionel Starkweather's last words before James Earl Cash executes him.
At some point, a woman Journalist discovered Starkweather's powerful snuff film ring and begun gathering evidence against him. Meanwhile, Starkweather discovered James Earl Cash's criminal history and decided to direct a movie starring him. In doing so, during the death row inmate's execution in the Darkwoods Penitentiary, he bribes the police and prison officials into giving Cash a sedative rather than lethal injection, therefore sparing his life. Being given a "second chance", Cash himself then wakes up in an abandoned shop in the city.
Cash is given an earpiece so Starkweather can talk to and instruct him in performing various tasks, while Starkweather watches and films it through many security cameras. He also has many sections of the city blocked-off by electric fences, which he can open once Cash has completed a task. He additionally has the Cerberus transport Cash to each location within Carcer City, while Ramirez organizes various gangs called Hunters, who are patrolling the mean streets, all hired by Starkweather to participate in his snuff film as well as having the strict order of murdering Cash.
The Director soon has Cash's Family kidnapped for him to rescue. Regardless of doing so, Starkweather still has at least one of Cash's family members murdered anyway by the Innocentz, and heartlessly shows the footage to Cash, enraging him. He then even sends Cash the rescue and protect the Tramp, whom he claims him his "new friend". Nearing the end of his film, Cash is set to die by the Smileys and the White Rabbit, but the death row inmate, thanks to his expertise as a killer, manages to fight back and escape. Starkweather then orders Ramirez to stop Cash, but Ramirez himself is ultimately killed. He then almost completely loses sight of Cash, but has the corrupt police chief, Gary Schaffer, send his police forces after Cash and the Journalist to murder them (despite the opening cutscene of Press Coverage says he want them being sent to him), as well as the Cerberus. After being captured by the Cerberus before the S.W.A.T. could apprehend/kill him, Cash soon breaks into Starkweather’s Estate, and, in a fierce battle, kills all the trained mercenaries guarding the compound. After an intense duel with Piggsy, Cash grabs his Chainsaw and enters Starkweather's office at the very top of the mansion's derelict attic (not before sending the last remaining Cerberus) as he attempts to defend himself with a Revolver, but fails. After being sliced on the stomach by Cash, Starkweather, fatally wounded, then pleas for his life and tells Cash that "I made you!". Cash, not buying his futile words, finishes him off once and for all by driving the chainsaw directly into his face, exploding his skull, before lodging it onto his back, finally ending Starkweather's wicked scheme and emerges victorious at last.
Gallery[]
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Trivia[]
- Rockstar Games likely named Lionel Starkweather after two infamous real life serial killers, Jeffery Lionel Dahmer and Charles Starkweather.
- Starkweather is likely based after Sergio Leone, a film director who, like Starkweather himself, was overweight, wore glasses, smoked cigars, was balding, had a grey beard, and was known for mistreating or being difficult with his actors. Interestingly, his gravesite shows a lion, where Starkweather's first name, Lionel, is similar to.
- Starkweather being a very rich man disliked to the general public, in nearly absolute control of all the Hunters in the storyline as well as ordering Cash to murder them for his dirty work alongside betraying him, have a private army (Cerberus) as his main protection, able to avoid being prosecuted for the many deaths he is indirectly responsible, and can watch all of Carcer City through many cameras parallels notorious real life bosses of criminal organizations such as Al Capone and other Mafia-like kingpins, as well as some major antagonists of the Grand Theft Auto games.
- Coincidentally, Devin Weston in Grand Theft Auto V, the main villain of the game, like Starkweather, is an arrogant and sadistic billionaire who believes he has full control of Los Santos but is also a coward and uses antagonistic mercenaries called Merryweather Security, as his personal bodyguards, much like the Cerberus. He too does not actually care about his own associates, uses Merryweather to do his dirty work of murdering anyone who causes problems as revenge, and is also heavily disliked to the public. As with Starkweather, Devin is confronted at his own residence - a villa, at the climax.
- Despite being the main antagonist of Manhunt and is heard throughout much of the game, Starkweather is only seen in person at the very end of the final mission, Deliverance.
- Starkweather's first name, Lionel, is said only once in the entire game, specifically at the ending cutscene of Deliverance where the Journalist is giving a news speech. None of the Hunters ever refer to him in his first name as well, so it is possible he was given his first name late during the game's development or he just dislikes it for some reason.
- Starkweather's art panel states "Throughout the game, he constantly rants against the movie industry and the people who crossed him". This does not occur in the final release. Perhaps he has already let go of those grudges, but it is more plausible this was beta content that wasn't removed from the art panel.
- Starkweather's ultimate plan of betraying Cash for dead, at least its first sign, is revealed as early as in the opening cutscene of Born Again; As soon as Cash wakes up from the sedate of his "execution", after Starkweather tells him he is not dead, he mutters "Well, not yet, anyway".
- During the mission "Architectural Espionage" in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, blueprints of Starkweather's Estate can be found as an Easter Egg.
- While it appears that Starkweather stops talking to Cash in the earpiece entirely after his snuff film has ended in Kill the Rabbit, in Wrong Side of the Tracks, while in static, he can still be briefly heard threatening him one last time that he will never get out of the subway alive before losing connection altogether. Some fans have mistaken this as the CCPD, specifically the S.W.A.T., arguing each other on radio.
- Starkweather is a depraved, misanthropic, and violence-loving man sitting in a dark room in front of a screen from which he commands James Earl Cash, the playable character, to commit horrifying acts of violence for his own pleasure and entertainment. These aspects of his character could possibly mean that Starkweather is meant to be a satirical metaphor for people who enjoy violent video games like Manhunt itself.
- Starkweather has several lines of dialogue which are rarely heard, such as "Look, I can supply you with a day glow jumpsuit if you want one." whenever Cash is spotted.
- Interesting unused lines are found for Deliverance, which have him yelling as he falls to his death. It is currently unknown what these served a purpose for, maybe as a scrapped alternative death once planned by the developers (such as Cash making Starkweather fall into the hole in the staircase where Piggsy fell to his death) or it was for other reasons.
- There are also a few lines that were not used in the final game where Starkweather would confront Cash for surviving his snuff film in Kill the Rabbit.
- Starkweather might be married, as one of the Smileys mentions a "Mrs. Starkweather". However, this reference is questionable due to the Smileys' insanity, as it could be speculated that their delusions include having Starkweather for a house party with an assumed wife. On the other hand, the Smiley could be making a mistake.
- His first name, Lionel, is similar to the name of Leo Kasper (who's first name is actually Leonardo), as part of his first name is Lionel, and Leo shares his name with the Zodiac sign Leo, which is usually represented by a lion.
- Starkweather's Estate has a similar interior to the Vercetti Estate from Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (which itself is based on Tony Montana's mansion from the 1983 film Scarface) as well as Griffon's mansion from Red Dead Revolver, complete with the shrugs in the courtyard.
- Starkweather is the only character to speak during his execution. All other Hunters and antagonists only make grunts and screams to show their agony.
- During the mission Key Personnel, a small picture of a cat can be seen on the wall in front of Cash once he leaves the basement, along with another near the main stairs. These cats could once belong to Starkweather, but they are never seen or mentioned in game, so it is possible that Starkweather no longer has the cats if they were his.
- Interestingly, Starkweather’s voice actor, Brian Cox, stars in a 1986 film ironically named Manhunter, directed by Michael Mann, who also directed Heat, a 1995 action film, which heavily inspired Rockstar Games for Grand Theft Auto with Easter Eggs and references throughout its series.
- Starkweather's model shares the same body shape as the Babyface members of the Innocentz gang.
- Despite showing he doesn't care at all about any of his stars and the Hunters, including Ramirez, he seems to favor the White Rabbit over others. To note, White Rabbit is allegedly the only star to start in two films and since Cash was suppose to die in the mission Kill the Rabbit, the Rabbit would technically be the main star of three films.
- The picture of Starkweather's former movie directing can be seen three times inside his mansion. This implies he took pride from his career.
- When finally confronted as the final Hunter of the game, Starkweather, alongside Piggsy, is the only character to be automatically executed upon defeating him under normal circumstances. Although difficult to perform as he always retreats from Cash, it is possible to sneak up and execute Starkweather the same way as regular Hunters with the Chainsaw, but the cutscene of his death still plays the same.
- Ironically, if Piggsy were to be prematurely executed with the Chainsaw via trainers, the game will strangely play the animation used for killing Starkweather. However, Cash performs it from behind instead of the front, Piggsy's stomach won't be slashed open but will still lose his head, the sound will be buggy and Piggsy himself is silent, and the game will immediately end once the execution is over. This is because the final level is scripted to finish as soon as this specific animation has occurred. It also plays on Piggsy because he most likely shares the same special body type as Starkweather, as both are the final bosses of Manhunt.
- There are three crucified beta Cash corpses on cross-like grass sculptures in the outskirts of Starkweather's Estate as well as six heads on spikes near the entrance and two more at the courtyard close to the garage. This technically means Starkweather had already killed James Earl Cash as many as eleven times, but wanted to do it once again for sick pleasure. This is however, questionable, as two additional bodies of the beta Cash are found in the Darkwoods Penitentiary on an electric chair and hospital bed. Despite this, the corpses and heads of the beta Cash, are more likely than not mere level decorations intended as an in-game Easter Egg.
- Ironically, the tagline in the back cover of the game's box says "They just killed Cash. Now they want to kill him again." This too is doubtful, as Cash's execution in the opening cutscene of Born Again was a ruse set up by Starkweather.
- Dr. Pickman and Leo Kasper in Manhunt 2 share much in common with Lionel Starkweather in their roles. Pickman is the head of the Project scheme who cares little about his subjects much like how Starkweather doesn't care about his stars and is the mastermind behind the snuff film, while Leo watches Daniel Lamb's every move and talks to him through his mind as well as making him kill Project members before ultimately betraying him into a final confrontation, just like how he monitors Cash and speaking through an earpiece into murdering Hunters before tricking him entirely, causing Cash to vow revenge for him. Kasper and Starkweather are also both the main antagonists (despite Leo was initially a protagonist).
- Steve Scott from Grand Theft Auto: Vice City is very similar to Starkweather; they both wear glasses, have a beard, are overweight, have a lot of body hair, and are even the same height. They also both directed films. It is likely Rockstar Games was inspired by this game's minor villain to create Manhunt's main antagonist, or it could be pure coincidence.