Purple Guy, later known as William Afton, is the central villain of Five Nights at Freddy's, created by Scott Cawthon in 2014. Markiplier's playthroughs helped make the series a YouTube phenomenon, and short clips of his panicked reactions were widely reposted as memes. This what the hell line became a reusable reaction sound on soundboards and in fan edits, detached from its original moment but still instantly linked to spotting Afton in the games.