Exploitative antagonism: a case study of Oliver Trask (The O.C.)

Dec 16

TL;DR

One way to craft a powerful antagonist is to let them exploit the protagonist’s strengths and weaknesses with a clear long-term plan. This creates unforgettable power dynamics because the antagonist uses the hero’s own traits against them, often pushing the protagonist toward the exact downfall they fear most.

Check out the writing drill at the bottom of the page to design your own exploitative antagonist ⬇️

Fix a flat antagonist

Sometimes an antagonist causes trouble but doesn’t actually matter; like their presence disrupts the plot without shaping the protagonist’s journey. An effective way to solve this is to design the antagonist so they understand the hero deeply enough to use the hero’s own traits against them.

This creates a more intimate form of conflict. The antagonist observes the protagonist’s emotional patterns and sets up situations that twist their strengths into weaknesses. The tension that results feels personal, targeted, and psychologically charged.

Oliver Trask from The O.C. is an example of this approach executed to perfection. He creates enormous impact because his antagonism is tied directly to Ryan Atwood’s unresolved flaws and deepest insecurities.

What follows is a detailed breakdown of how Oliver functions as an exploitative antagonist and why the method works so effectively in character-driven storytelling.

How to exploit the protagonist’s strength and leverage their weakness

Unlike the villain who poses a physical threat, Oliver Trask’s antagonism is rooted in psychological warfare.

His primary mode of antagonism is to exploit Ryan’s strength (his protective instincts) and leverage his weakness (impulsive violence).

His strategy is to trigger Ryan’s protectiveness again and again until it boils over into violence. This would expose Ryan as “trash” (his biggest insecurity) in front of Ryan’s girlfriend Marissa, thus driving her away and right into Oliver’s arms.

Meanwhile, Oliver figures he will just keep building trust with Marissa, using his made-up girlfriend Natalie as plausible deniability that he just wants to be friends. Until Ryan has exploded, Oliver won’t officially swoop in.

To achieve his ultimate goal, Oliver uses generosity, charm, and social leverage. He showers the group with VIP tickets, invitations to ski trips, penthouse parties, and luxury weekends. He creates an atmosphere of fun and abundance that wins over Ryan’s friends and softens their suspicions.

So when Ryan voices his concerns with loose allegations that Oliver has ulterior motives, he comes off as petty and jealous (the best way to repel women).

Oliver also plays a sophisticated double game to recruit Ryan's friends to his (Oliver's) cause.

He pretends to agree with Ryan’s criticism, victimizing himself so the friends come to his defense and blame Ryan.

This creates an impossible “heads, you win; tails I lose” for Ryan. If he speaks up, he keeps looking jealous. If he stays silent, Oliver gets closer to Marissa. This internal pressure, Oliver knows, is what will bring out Ryan’s fists. And it does.

And the best part? This plan means Ryan destroys himself, so Oliver would walk away clean.

In a twisted sense, Oliver is not wrong. His strategy is completely aligned with Ryan’s entire character arc. All he does is demonstrate that if Ryan does not give up his violent side, he will destroy everything he’s built and ruin his future. He literally forces the protagonist to face his flaws. In this sense, his narrative function is to reflect Ryan back to himself.

Therefore, exploitative antagonism is a highly effective narrative technique because it has a direct relationship to the protagonist’s internal journey.

KEY LESSON: to craft an exploitative antagonist, they must understand the protagonist’s strengths and weaknesses with the same clarity the writer does. In other words, a stupid antagonist is a bad antagonist. Oliver, as awful as he may be, is anything but. He can only execute this plan because he understands Ryan deeply, perhaps more deeply than any of Ryan’s friends.

Writing drill: design your own exploitative antagonist

This exercise helps you design an antagonist who weaponizes the protagonist’s strengths, exploits their weaknesses and push them toward the outcome they fear most.

Step 1. Define the protagonist’s strength

Write:
“My protagonist’s strength is ___.”

Examples: loyalty, empathy, intelligence, charm, persistence, honesty

Step 2. Define the protagonist’s weakness

Write:
“My protagonist’s weakness is ___.”

Examples: pride, need for approval, emotional avoidance, jealousy, rigidity, impulsiveness

Step 3. Define the condition that flips the strength into the weakness

Write:
“My protagonist’s [strength] becomes [weakness] when ___.”

Examples:

Honesty becomes cruelty when the protagonist’s ego is threatened.
Empathy becomes self-neglect when the protagonist takes responsibility for other people’s emotions.
Intelligence becomes manipulation when the protagonist believes the ends justify the means.
Loyalty becomes blindness when the protagonist refuses to question someone they care about.
(Ryan Atwood) Protectiveness becomes violence when he believes someone he loves is in danger.

Step 4. Define their mutually exclusive goals

Write:
“My protagonist’s goal is ___.”

“My antagonist’s goal is ___.”

Example:

Protagonist wants to remain Jack’s best friend
Antagonist wants to be Jack’s new best friend

Step 5. Trigger the condition

List 5–8 ways the antagonist triggers the condition you identified in Step 3. These should be strategic actions the antagonist employs throughout the story to further their goal while sabotaging the protagonist’s chances.

Write:
“The antagonist triggers [the condition] by ___, ___, ___, ___, ___.”

Example:
Strength: Honesty
Weakness: Cruelty
Condition: Honesty becomes cruelty when the protagonist’s ego is threatened.
Mutually exclusive goals: Antagonist wants to be Jack’s new best friend. Protagonist wants to remain Jack’s best friend.

Triggers:

The antagonist threatens the protagonist’s ego by constantly making his girlfriend laugh
The antagonist threatens the protagonist’s ego by outperforming him in front of coworkers.
The antagonist threatens the protagonist’s ego by hinting that others find him insecure.
The antagonist threatens the protagonist’s ego by giving selective compliments to people around him.
The antagonist threatens the protagonist’s ego by showing more emotional maturity

Step 6. Pair triggers to consequences

Connect each trigger from Step 5 to a specific consequence that hurts the protagonist’s chances of achieving their goal while advancing the antagonist’s.

Trigger 1: The antagonist threatens the protagonist’s ego by constantly making his girlfriend laugh.

Consquence 1: The protagonist snaps and insults the antagonist’s oddly shaped nose (honest but cruel), which makes Jack sympathize with the antagonist.

Trigger 2: The antagonist threatens the protagonist’s ego by outperforming him in front of coworkers.

Consequence 2: The protagonist shares with the boss that the antagonist was rude to a customer (honest but cruel), making Jack defend the antagonist by revealing that the customer provoked the conflict.

Good luck building your exploitative antagonist!

If you’re stuck with your story in any way, check out our Writer’s Block Fixer tool. You’ll get (short), practical drills to address plot, character, dialogue, scenes, and more.

Max Arlestig