The Devil All the Time (2020) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

Willard sacrifices his dog in a desperate attempt to save his wife Charlotte from cancer. After witnessing the horrors of war and being haunted by the death of Gunnery Sergeant Miller Jones, Willard turns to extreme religious devotion. Believing that God will heal Charlotte if he offers a sufficient sacrifice, he kills their dog at a makeshift cross in the woods. Despite his fervent prayers and sacrifice, Charlotte dies anyway, which is what drives Willard to take his own life.

Foreshadowing: Willard's traumatic wartime experience of mercy-killing Miller Jones sets the precedent for his willingness to end suffering through violent sacrifice.

• willard russell
• charlotte
• cancer
• prayer
• sacrifice
• dog
• religious devotion

Roy kills Helen because he believes he can resurrect her. After being bitten by a spider (having an extreme allergic reaction from his earlier spider-handling sermons), Roy enters a delusional state. In his delusion, he stabs Helen to death thinking that God will bring her back, just as Jesus resurrected the dead. When Helen does not revive, Roy flees in panic, leaving their daughter Lenora alone.

Foreshadowing: Roy's bizarre sermons involving venomous spiders foreshadow his eventual fatal reaction to a spider bite and his subsequent break from reality.

• roy laferty
• helen
• spider bite
• delusion
• resurrection
• lenora

Roy Laferty is killed by Carl Henderson after fleeing from his home. On the run and still delusional, Roy hitches a ride with Carl and Sandy Henderson, the serial killing couple. When Sandy tries to seduce Roy as part of their usual trap, Roy refuses to engage with her. This angers Carl, who shoots Roy dead without hesitation, adding another victim to their murderous spree.

Foreshadowing: Roy's escape from the scene of Helen's death directly leads him to encounter the very evil he would have condemned.

• roy laferty
• carl henderson
• sandy
• hitchhiker
• serial killer

Lenora commits suicide because she is pregnant after being sexually exploited by Reverend Teagarden and cannot bear the shame. After being manipulated by Teagarden, Lenora becomes pregnant. Overwhelmed by the stigma and unable to cope with the traumatic experience, she takes her own life in a bathtub, leaving Arvin devastated when he discovers what happened.

Foreshadowing: Teagarden's predatory behavior toward vulnerable women is hinted at early in his arrival at the church, where he singles out impressionable congregants.

• lenora
• teagarden
• pregnancy
• suicide
• shame
• exploitation

Arvin kills Reverend Teagarden in revenge for what Teagarden did to his stepsister Lenora. After learning that Lenora was pregnant and had committed suicide, Arvin confronts Teagarden. Using his father's Luger pistol, Arvin shoots the preacher dead, holding him directly responsible for Lenora's suffering and death. This act marks Arvin's descent into violence and sets him on a darker path.

Foreshadowing: Arvin's violent reaction to protecting Lenora from school bullies foreshadows his willingness to use deadly force against those who harm his family.

• arvin russell
• teagarden
• lenora
• revenge
• luger
• vengeance

Arvin meets Carl and Sandy after killing Teagarden and fleeing town. Like many characters in the film, Arvin becomes a hitchhiker. Carl and Sandy pick him up, not knowing he is the same young man who killed their previous victim Roy Laferty years earlier. When Carl attempts to murder Arvin using their usual method (seducing him with Sandy before killing), Arvin defends himself and kills both of them.

Foreshadowing: The film's circular nature is established early through parallel hitchhiking scenes, showing how the same road claims different victims.

• arvin
• carl henderson
• sandy
• hitchhiker
• serial killers
• car ride

Arvin discovers a stash of photographs in the glove compartment of Carl and Sandy's car. These photographs document the couple's previous murders and rituals, serving as evidence of their extensive serial killing spree. This grim discovery connects Arvin to the dark legacy of violence that has haunted multiple characters throughout the film.

Foreshadowing: The photographs reveal the true extent of evil that has been operating in the background of the story all along.

• photographs
• evidence
• murders
• carl
• sandy
• rituals
• glove compartment

Arvin kills Sheriff Lee Bodecker in self-defense during a confrontation in the woods. After Arvin returns to town, Bodecker, who has been corrupt throughout the film and was trying to destroy evidence related to Sandy's murder, finds Arvin. During their encounter, Bodecker shoots at Arvin, and Arvin kills him in the exchange. Before leaving, Arvin deliberately leaves Bodecker's incriminating evidence at the scene to ensure the truth comes out.

Foreshadowing: Bodecker's earlier protection of the serial killers and his corruption have built toward this inevitable confrontation.

• sheriff
• bodecker
• arvin
• self-defense
• woods
• confrontation

The characters are connected through a web of cause and effect spanning decades. Arvin Russell is the central figure, being the son of Willard Russell and Charlotte. Lenora is Arvin's stepsister, daughter of Roy Laferty and Helen. Roy is killed by Carl and Sandy, the same couple Arvin later kills. Sheriff Bodecker pursues Arvin while being complicit in the Hendersons' crimes. These interconnections create a cycle of violence where characters from different storylines constantly intersect.

Foreshadowing: The film establishes early on that all roads in this world lead to the same dark destination.

• connections
• characters
• cycle of violence
• interconnected
• arvin
• roy
• bodecker

At the end, Arvin kills Sheriff Bodecker in self-defense, leaves incriminating evidence at the scene, and escapes in a VW van with a hippie. The film ends with Arvin contemplating his future, wondering whether he will become a devoted husband or go to Vietnam as a soldier. The ending is deliberately ambiguous, leaving his ultimate fate uncertain while suggesting he may continue the cycle of violence or break free from it.

Foreshadowing: The recurring motif of hitchhiking suggests Arvin's journey is far from over.

• ending
• future
• arvin
• vietnam
• husband
• hippie
• uncertainty

Willard Russell commits suicide because he cannot cope with the loss of his wife Charlotte to cancer. After sacrificing their dog in a desperate prayer for her healing and still losing her, Willard becomes overwhelmed by grief and despair. Haunted by his wartime trauma and now completely shattered by Charlotte's death, he hangs himself, leaving their young son Arvin orphaned.

Foreshadowing: Willard's wartime experience of mercy-killing Jones foreshadows his own willingness to end his own suffering through death.

• willard russell
• suicide
• charlotte
• grief
• hang
• orphan

Reverend Teagarden is a villain because he exploits his position as a preacher to sexually manipulate vulnerable women, specifically targeting Lenora Laferty. He manipulates Lenora's religious devotion and emotional vulnerability to seduce her, resulting in her pregnancy. This act of exploitation directly leads to Lenora's shame and subsequent suicide, making him one of the film's most morally corrupt characters despite not being a murderer himself.

Foreshadowing: Teagarden's extreme, performative sermons signal his capacity for deception and manipulation.

• teagarden
• preacher
• corrupt
• exploitation
• lenora
• manipulation
• pregnancy