Characters / Nightcrawler

Lou

Louis "Lou" Bloom

Played By: Jake Gyllenhaal

"My motto is, if you want to win the lottery, you have to make the money to buy the ticket."

• Ambition Is Evil: His lust for wealth leads him to alter crime scenes and eventually start causing them so he can get paid.
• Animal Motifs: His actor, Jake Gyllenhaal, deliberately lost weight to invoke the image of a coyote for Lou's character and both Gyllenhaal and the director of Nightcrawler compared Lou to a coyote. Like the animal, Lou is a predator who cares for nothing but what he can gain and he films tragic events to profit off of them, like how a coyote would scavenge and feed off of corpses. With the comparison to a coyote in mind, Lou's social skills make him look like a coyote who's trying to fit into human society but hasn't quite got the element of human interactions right, so he has to analyse what they're saying so he can do better next time. Symbolism-wise, coyotes are said to be tricksters, something that sums up Lou's character as he always manipulates others to get what he wants.
• Ax-Crazy: Lou is of the more calm and stoic variety, but the dude isn’t afraid to get dozens of innocent people hurt or killed, and seems to enjoy the chaos he starts.
• Bad Boss: Zigzagged. While he does get Rick killed on purpose at the end, he did at least try to be patient with him and keep him on a similar level (a MAJOR thing for him). He's also very jovial and accommodating to the newscast and is very hands-on with his new employees when he starts branching out into his own business and promises to show them the way to success, but it's clear he'll use them just like he used Rick and literally everyone else in the movie.
• Badass Bookworm: He mentions that he spends most of his time researching various topics on his laptop, but he can handle himself in a fight, as evidenced by the opening scene in which he beats up a security guard.
• The Bad Guy Wins: By the end of the movie, Lou has become incredibly successful, started up his own company, and caused the deaths of everyone that got in his way. The only person who could see through his lies were the detectives that investigated him, and they don't have enough concrete evidence to put the smiling scumbag behind bars.
• Batman Gambit: He can set in motion some pretty complicated plans for a good shot.
• Big Bad: Spends the entire film manipulating everything and screwing everybody over to improve his business.
• Companion Cube: He has two, a potted plant and later on a red car. He shows more consideration towards them than any human character.
• Cool Car: Longs for a fancy sports car and buys one as soon as he makes enough selling footage.
• Desperately Looking for a Purpose in Life: At the start of the movie, he's just a down-on-his-luck guy trying to find a job. When he does find his job, well... it all goes downhill from there.
  • Although he'd probably get the job he wants if he wasn't such a slimy piece of shit.
    Scrapyard Boss: I'm not hiring a fucking thief.
• Determinator: A villainous example. Nothing and nobody gets between Lou and what he wants - woe betide any and all who would dare stand in the way.
• Drives Like Crazy: Speeds like a maniac when he's trying to get to a scene, often freaking out Rick and making him mess up on the directions.
• Evil Is Petty:
  • At the end of the day, the only reason he cut Joe Loder's brakes was to take out a bit of competition.
  • He also causes Rick's death because he doesn't feel like paying him.
• Exact Words: As an example, he tells his new interns at the end of the movie: "I would never ask you to do anything I myself wouldn't do." Considering that he is willing to do literally anything...
• Faux Affably Evil: With his odd, permanent smile that never reaches his eyes, gaunt build, unblinking wide stare and practiced, overly formal manner of speaking, Lou calls to mind someone who can mimic humanity well but not perfectly.
• From Nobody to Nightmare: He begins the film as a destitute petty thief and ends as an up-and-coming media entreperneur who's gotten away with murder.
• Greed: Lou will do anything to make money, even resorting to murder.
• Hypocrite: When looking for a job at the scrapyard early in the movie, he claims his motto is, "In order to win the lottery, you have to have the money to buy a ticket." Basically, don't expect the world on a silver platter. However, he expects to be given the job on the spot, with no resume or interview of any sort, and is surprised when the foreman turns him down.
• Immoral Journalist: He's a petty criminal who learns he can film gruesome violence, disaster, and death and sell it to the local news. Things take an even darker turn when he realizes he doesn't need to wait for the disasters to happen naturally.
• It's All About Me: Lou is superficially charming despite having no empathy for anyone but himself and an inability to express remorse for his actions. He blames his failings on other people and is ridiculously entitled, believing the world owes him everything he desires. He also demands recognition and for his phony company to be mentioned on the news, purely to stroke his massive ego.
• Insistent Terminology:
  • Lou apparently wants to establish a formal relationship with Rick and insists on being called "Louis" in spite of Rick repeatedly calling him "Lou." By the same token, Lou calls Rick "Richard," but Rick only refers to himself as "Rick."
  • Lou insists that Video Production News be spoken of using a very specific tagline.
  • Lou also isn't threatening you, he's negotiating with you.
• Jerkass: Lou is a slimy, weasely prick who cares for no one but his own ambitions, willing to throw anyone under the bus just so he can succeed.
• Jerkass Has a Point: After proving himself a success, Joe offers Lou the chance to work for him, to which Lou bluntly refuses, much Joe’s anger. Considering that Lou ‘‘did’’ offer to work for Joe earlier, only to get curtly turned down without a second thought, Lou has every right to decline Joe’s offer, especially when the latter was so transparently interested in him, only ‘’after’’ Lou proved himself.
• Jumping Off the Slippery Slope: Lou starts with fairly small offenses (for him), like theft, assault, entering houses uninvited or tampering with crime scenes, but what firmly establishes him as the Villain Protagonist is tampering with Joe Loder's brakes.
• Karma Houdini: He gets away with (in)directly killing several people to further his career.
• Kick the Dog: Intentionally getting poor Rick killed by a criminal... then filming his death.
• Kick The Son Of A Bitch: Killing Joe was definitely horrifying, but he was such an asshole that it’s impossible to sympathize when Lou cuts the breaks of his car.
• Lack of Empathy: Doesn't display a single ounce of sympathy for the people whose misery he films to get paid. Lou never changes his blank, emotionless expression, even as he watches death and mayhem that sometimes he causes.
• Lean and Mean: Lou is a rather skinny person and the Villain Protagonist of the film.
• Louis Cypher: Ok, it might be a stretch to say that "Lou" stands for Lucifer, and he's almost certainly not intended to literally be the Devil-but given that both Nina and Rick are in a Deal with the Devil with him, that he essentially feeds on the suffering of others, and that there seems to be almost nothing human within him... it wouldn't be unfitting.
• Manipulative Bastard: Lou is a master of convincing people to do what he wants. This is best exemplified with how he interacts with Rick and Nina.
• Motor Mouth: He's a really fast talker. Especially when he's selling himself.
• Neat Freak: His house is very organized and clean. He also threatens Rick if he dirties his car.
• No Social Skills: Rick calls him out on this, saying he "doesn't understand people". Lou retorts that he just doesn't like them.
• Obviously Evil: His first fucking scene is him beating up a security guard to steal his watch. He only goes downhill from there. And even when feigning friendliness, he is so creepy and sadistic that his mask slips off in an instant.
• Rage Against the Reflection: After Joe Loder beats him to the punch, Lou has one of his most human (and yet most terrifying) moments when he screams in impotent rage against his mirror.
• Sadist: There are hints throughout the movie that Lou enjoys witnessing the suffering he profits off, as he responds with glee whenever something terrible happens to another person.
• Sexual Extortion: Lou, aware of Nina's tenuous position and many failed contracts, proposes this to her; exchanging sex for exclusive first rights to his footage.
• Sleeping with the Boss: He begins a sexual relationship with Nina via Sexual Extortion.
• Slime Ball: Of the most despicable kind. Lou is willing to hurt/kill others and commit all sorts of atrocities to get what he wants and become rich.
• Smug Smiler: Lou is seen thinking he can get people to believe his ridiculous lies with a smile and enough confidence in his words.
• Spock Speak: Lou seems to have learned how to speak primarily from online business courses.
• The Sociopath: Lou is utterly devoid of remorse, affection or shame. He sees people as tools and objects to be used and then discarded without a second thought.
• Stepford Smiler: He's always smiling in a vacant, creepy way to try and mask the repulsive sociopath he truly is.
• Tranquil Fury: When Lou threatens Rick, he's deliberately cold and calm.
• The Unfettered: Lou is willing to cross any lines necessary to ensure he gets the best footage and allows his business to take off.
• Villain Protagonist: Lou is a grotesque, subhuman creature...and he's our protagonist.
• Villain Respect: Downplayed as he still extorts her for sex, but it's clear he does have some degree of respect for Nina and not just a sexual attraction. That she carries a few sociopathic traits herself (i.e. very callous, good at lying, lack of empathy and constantly pushing the boundaries of the law) probably contributes to this.
• Villainous Breakdown: He screams and breaks his mirror because he didn't get in time to cover the plane crash unlike his competition Joe.
• Villainous Valor: For all of his flaws, Lou is an extremely hard worker. The fact that he starts out with nothing and ends up running his own business is admirable in its own way.
• You Are What You Hate: As much as Lou dislikes Joe Loder, he's not above stealing his ideas and acting even worse than him.

Nina

Nina Romina

Played By: Rene Russo

• All Girls Want Bad Boys: Lou is a sociopathic and opportunistic bastard, but while she may have disliked him initially, she does seem to warm up to him as things progress.
• Corrupt Corporate Executive: She's the news director and becomes Lou's boss. She's also a callous, ruthless and opportunistic woman who does everything she can to get the most gruesome and newest scoop and enjoys the coverage she gains from being the only newscast to show it. She later goes as far as to purposefully omit crucial details of a story they covered so that the story will continue to run with the narrative they began with. One of her employees says she's becoming just like Lou. She takes it as a compliment.
• Deal with the Devil: With Lou being the Devil. Nina is forced to cave in to his increasingly insane demands, since his footage is the main thing keeping her career afloat.
• Lack of Empathy: Encourages Lou to film gruesome crimes, showing no interest in the victims' suffering and only being concerned about her career and ratings.
• Moral Sociopathy: Carries a number of sociopathic traits in regards to how she operates her newscast, viewing Lou's breaking the law for the sake of exclusive footage and the cultural taboos of what they cover therein as shock value to use to boost ratings with no regard for anyone's feelings. While it does work, it's clear the majority of her team (except for Lou) aren't happy about it. She's also very willing to lie to the police and cover Lou's tracks (which in itself is a crime) to keep Lou working for her.
• Mrs. Robinson: Nina is an attractive older woman who has sex with the younger protagonist, though she is not the aggressor in their relationship. That being said, her attraction to him does grow over the course of the film, especially when the exclusive footage starts coming in.
• Unwitting Instigator of Doom: Her encouraging Lou to get her network exclusive shots leads to the deaths of multiple people and her being sexually abused by Lou.

Rick

Rick Carey

Played By: Riz Ahmed

• Anti-Villain: Compared to Lou, he's a saint. Despite getting himself involved in Lou's criminal activities, he doesn't want to cause anyone to die and is disturbed by Lou's apathy to the suffering he profits off.
• Butt-Monkey: Much of his screen time is devoted to him screwing up while working for Lou and getting chewed out.
• Deal with the Devil: With Lou playing the role of the Devil. It eventually ends poorly for him.
• Everyone Has Standards: Zigzagged. When Rick learns Lou withheld information from the police regarding the identities of several murderers, he is incredibly disturbed. Lou slightly eases his conscience with a raise, but it isn't enough to fully calm Rick. After Rick later learns of Lou's master plot to orchestrate a destructive shootout with the police and the murderers, he is mortified but doesn't go to the police. Instead, he blackmails Louis about what he now knows for half the profits.
• Genre Blind: Lou is Obviously Evil enough to give off hints to avoid him. Despite seeing how ruthless Lou is when collecting footage, he continues working for him. This was a fatal error.
• Nice Guy: Rick is a little slow, but he is a well-intentioned and friendly man. Unfortunately, his employer is none of those things.
• Punch-Clock Villain: Rick isn't a bad person, just a rather impressionable man who was desperate for a job and was lured into being Lou's partner in crime.
• Too Dumb to Live: Rick follows Lou's orders up until his inevitable death by Lou's actions, despite there being glaringly obvious hints that Lou wants him dead.

Joe

Joe Loder

Played By: Bill Paxton

• Asshole Victim: He’s an absolute prick in every scene he appears in. While Lou is far worse, it’s hard to feel any sympathy for him as he gets severely injured (or possibly killed) as a result of Lou tampering with his brakes.
• Dies Wide Open: While it is ambiguous as to whether he died or not, his final shot in the movie shows him lying all bloodied on a stretcher while being carried into the ambulance, staring nightmarishly into Lou and his camera filming him.
• Everyone Has Standards: While he's just as obnoxious and greedy as Lou, he's never shown to stoop as low as him in order to get his footage, such as posing a crash victim or orchestrating a shootout.
• Hate Sink: He is more openly obnoxious in comparison to Lou and is also a sleazy cretin who makes money off the misfortune of other people, while lacking Lou's superficial charm.
• Jerkass: He's smug and arrogant, unlike Lou's Faux Affably Evil. At one point he tries to convince Lou to join his filming team and throws a temper tantrum when he refuses.
• The Rival: Lou's most frequent competition for filming the "stories" he looks for.
• We Can Rule Together: Tries to talk Lou into working for him and manning a new van he just bought. Lou vehemently tells him to fuck off.
• What Happened to the Mouse?: After Lou cuts the brakes on his car and he is involved in a collision, he's never seen again after being wheeled into an ambulance.