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Xavier's Past Is Haunting Him On 'AHS: 1984'

by Megan Walsh
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In the first episode of American Horror Story: 1984, Xavier Plympton (Cody Fern) decided to check his answering machine while on the way to his new camp counselor job. Totally normal, right? Well, the strange message awaiting Xavier was far from innocuous. In fact, it was downright threatening. But who was calling Xavier on AHS: 1984?

The voice on the machine sounded like a man, but it wasn't easy to identify the low whisper much beyond that. "You can't just take your dick and walk away," the caller hissed. "There's nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. I know exactly where you're going." They didn't leave their name or number, but Xavier seemed to know exactly who they were. He was unnerved, but didn't share what happened with his friends — and in Episode 2, it became clear why.

In "Mr. Jingles," Xavier's mysterious caller arrived at camp to threaten him in person. It was a man named Blake (Todd Stashwick) who had apparently discovered Xavier when he was at a low point with his addiction and cleaned him up. But helping Xavier wasn't an altruistic act. Blake did it so that he could pressure Xavier into appearing in porn. Xavier wanted to transition into mainstream acting, but Blake blackmailed him by threatening to tell his friends and family about his past.

Surprisingly, this was a plot twist that at least one viewer predicted ahead of time. Reddit user bluebonnettex theorized that Xavier worked in porn and the phone message from Episode 1 referred to an "adult film he bailed on." That ended up being almost completely accurate. Xavier wanted to leave porn behind because he was concerned about how it would impact his future acting career. Blake was unwilling to let him go, so much so that he stalked Xavier all the way to Camp Redwood.

Initially, fans suspected that the caller was Xavier's ex, or even Xavier himself. He stated that he was a method actor, so it was possible that he was trying to get into character for an upcoming role by haunting himself with creepy calls that no one else was around to hear. But the real story ended up being simpler and yet more convoluted than that. It was also resolved somewhat quickly, at least for the moment.

Kurt Iswarienko/FX

Xavier offered to find a replacement so that he could be let out of his agreement with Blake. He suggested Trevor (Matthew Morrison) as Blake's new star player because he's particularly well-endowed, and took Blake around to the showers so that he could get a look at Trevor himself. (Gross, because Blake is gross.) Xavier seemed to be using Trevor as more of a distraction than anything else, because he ran for the hills as soon as Blake was looking elsewhere. He didn't have to worry about Blake for much longer, though, because Mr. Jingles (John Carroll Lynch) dispatched him with a spike to the head.

The mystery of Xavier's strange calls has been solved, but this might not be the last time his past interrupts the present. He appeared to be consumed with guilt over Blake's death in Episode 2, so he may continue to come to terms with what happened in future episodes.

AHS: 1984 airs Wednesdays on FX.

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