Barry Goes Old Testament In Season 4 Episode 6
This piece contains spoilers for season 4, episode 6 of "Barry."
The titular hitman of HBO's "Barry" has finally reformed. After shooting his way out of prison, Barry (Bill Hader) washed the blood off his hands and became a full-blooded Christian. Out in the middle of nowhere with Sally and their son, Barry is finally safe. But when his little slice of heaven comes under threat, Barry has to bend some pretty big religious rules to protect his family. The ex-hitman goes full Old Testament in the latest episode, "the wizard," when his old acting teacher re-surfaces.
He might listen to evangelical sermons, but Barry's faith isn't really about religion. Barry has always found justification for murder, whether it be a war, a job, or a means of protection. Now that Barry has his son to look after, he has a whole new reason to kill. The ex-assassin will do anything to shelter his son from the world, keeping him away from every potential risk, from baseball to video games to other children.
In this secluded corner of the world, Barry is not a serial killer beyond redemption, but a hero reborn. "He's in heaven," series creator and star Bill Hader told TVLine. "It's a very safe place for him." Barry has been trying to escape his violent past since the first season when he tried to quit the game and become an actor. In his new life on the run, he has finally accomplished a sort of rebirth.
Barry doesn't really understand religion
If Barry was willing to kill to preserve his double life before, imagine what he would do to maintain his innocence in the eyes of his son. Hader admits that his character wants his son to see him as a hero, which means never discovering the truth of his past — an ignorance that a true crime blockbuster would definitely threaten, even as isolated as his parents have kept him.
"He's very much trying to paint the version of himself that he wants to be to his son," the actor explained. "How his son sees him is how he's always wanted to be seen by everybody."
Barry wants his son to see him differently than the rest of the world sees him, but his son isn't the only one that Barry is interested in pleasing. The reformed hitman has also taken an interest in God. It might seem like a big change, but upon reflection, it's no surprise that Barry looks to the heavens to wash away his old sins.
"He can't really find redemption with anybody else, so he's turned to God for redemption," Hader said, "but again, I don't think he really understands religion."
He wants to kill Cousineau without violating his newfound faith
The fugitive-turned-father has mostly crafted the religious practice of his household himself — like a cult leader might. Barry has strung together different bits of scripture, sermon, and his own personal morality to create a hodge-podge understanding of God for himself, Sally, and their son.
Hader imagines that his character developed his faith by "watching YouTube clips and going, "'Oh I like the feeling of this, I like the feeling that these people are giving me, and oh I want some of that guy's mojo,'" the actor-director explained to The Ringer. Barry isn't one to pour over scripture, Hader clarified, and instead "he kind of just reacts to whatever is in front of him."
But there's trouble in Barry's paradise when he is forced to sin again to protect his little slice of heaven. When he gets news that his old acting teacher Gene Cousineau is consulting on a documentary about him, Barry decides to come out of retirement.
The escaped convict's loose understanding of religion helps him justify this sudden pivot back to his old ways. Even still, it was important to Barry that his faith allowed for this killing. Cousineau's murder would not be a return to a life of sin — it would be an act of God.
So he turns to the Old Testament for guidance
When Barry starts looking for loopholes in his faith, he is able to find them rather quickly. There is a bit of religious precedent for holy murder — as Barry's podcast says, "the Old Testament tells us that there are sanctioned killings in the eyes of God." God directly instructs his followers to carry out a massacre of the Canaanites. "There's also an eye for an eye," the podcast host adds, which resonates with Barry — Cousineau is threatening his livelihood once again, therefore he is justified in killing him. But Barry still has to dig a little deeper to find a spiritual leader that will sanction this murder.
The fact that God sanctions any killing at all leaves some leeway for Barry and other violent Christians to feel that they are acting "within their faith" when they commit murder — a blatant and enormous violation of the commandments. Barry listens to another podcast host with a poor handle on religion, who says that he need only look for a sign from God to justify his violence. This sign could come in any form, even just an "intense feeling." For Barry, this sign is a door left ajar.
Barry might be referencing the Old Testament when justifying his return to killing, but he has definitely crafted his own definition of religion. The serial killer's understanding of Christianity is incredibly loose and can clearly be re-shaped to accommodate whatever he feels compelled to do, regardless of how big a sin it might be. He might be listening to Evangelical sermons, but Barry's religion is a school of its own.
"Barry" airs new episodes on HBO and Max on Sundays at 10 p.m. ET.