From Evil Season 4, is Timothy the Antichrist? The Proof For and Against Expained
On the Paramount+ show, Evil, baby Timothy is supposed to be the antichrist. Is he indeed? While Kristen and Ben are not so sure, Leland thinks he is.
The nature of evil
With the show's thematic focus embodied via the character of baby Timothy, the nature of Evil is a major issue throughout Evil. The Paramount+ series has asked what it is that drives someone evil ever since season 2. By means of several subplots, the show has investigated whether a person's DNA, or some missing chromosome or combination of DNA strands, could lead someone to do unspeakable horrible deeds, or whether it is their environment, upbringing, and a world that conspires against them through hardship or specific events and moments fostering evil. It might even be something totally more enigmatic and supernatural.
Timothy's Beginning
No more clear-cut illustration of how Evil wrestles with these philosophical concerns than baby Timothy. Using a surrogate mother, Leland (Michael Emerson) mixed his DNA with Kristen's (Katja Herbs) stolen egg to create the child with intention of being the antichrist. Whether Leland's idea has worked as intended, though, is still unknown; Evil season 4 investigates whether Timothy is indeed the antichrist or merely an innocent baby yet to have a life imprinted on him. This is the central concern of what Evil is really all about.
Leland's Opinion on Timothy's Destiny
Leland firmly believes that his designer baby is meant to be the antichrist. Believing Kristen's daughter, Lexis (Maddy Crocco, to be someone with dark potential), Leland is consumed in Evil season 3 with manipulating her. Sheryl (Christine Lahti) was dubious; upon Lexis's visit to The Manager, she observed him in his human two-eyed form rather than in his actual demonic five-eyed form. Leland dismissed this, stating Lexis would still be a "Ambassadors" even if she wasn't "the one". He believes that genes are most crucial and that the right surroundings will help to release the bad influences.
Leland also applies this theory to Timothy, and in Evil season 4 the so-called antichrist baby visits the Bouchard family. First, Sheryl brings him to see his half-sisters under covert visits. Then, in episode 10—with Timothy's father and surrogate mother arrested and under police custody—Kristen, the biological mother, must decide whether to bring Timothy in or leave him to foster care.
Leland's great plan seems to also incorporate this. Leland still thinks that the baby's evil nature will be nurtured under Kristen's care even though Sheryl is subtly getting Timothy baptized. And should Kristen welcome Timothy into her house, he will have "Ambassadors" Lexis at his side; Leland seems sure his scheme is under way.
The Nurture Focus of Kristen and Ben
In Team Science, Kristen and Ben (Aasif Mandvi) give nurture far more weight. Though the team has conducted numerous demonic investigations pointing back to children born via the evil RSM Fertility Clinic, they are more convinced that a child's surroundings have more impact. When Kristen finds out her missing egg has been implanted in another couple in Evil season 3, the husband believes the fetus is demonic since he hears growling from his wife's stomach. Turning to Ben for encouragement, Kristen finds he would "bet on nurture every time."
Regarding Timothy, Kristen will have to adopt this same attitude. Between Timothy and Lexis, Kristen finds a similar situation; she is rather sure Lexis is not bad. Grace (Li Jun Li) tells her in Evil season 3 that Lexis is good, but Lexis will need Kristen's assistance to guard her from the darker forces seeking to have her daughter engage in evil deeds. Regarding Timothy, Kristen might still need more comfort; but, based on Lexis's growth into a normal-ish human, she has an opportunity to create a loving home for him and prevent any antichrist impulses.
The Probable Result
The most likely situation is that Timothy might turn evil in the last episodes of Evil. He might even possess the DNA required for an antichrist. Lexis might even be central to this revelation since her actions—intentional or not—could start a series of events that releases something in Timothy.
But over its five-year existence, Evil has always offered a more nuanced view of what constitutes evil or not. The show falls somewhere in the middle of the nature / nurture argument even while it explores supernatural themes as imagined through the vivid iconography of the Catholic Church. While characters like serial killer Orson LeRoux (Darren Pettie) might be evil, Kristen could also be evil for killing. She battled those demons, and maybe still does, but her actions were driven more by need than by a will to damage and wipe out life. It's debatable whether these qualify as the same sorts of evil.
Timothy most certainly will be technically the antichrist. But those inclinations will be neutralized in the Bouchard house under a loving and caring atmosphere. The last episodes of Evil will expose Timothy's actual nature, so resolving its own inner conflict about what counts more: DNA, environment, or a hostile cabal of evil entities affining themselves to weak people.
