Not the "real" William Tell but a lifesize homunculus that turns on his creator. Melies's genius here is that he treats one of the largest and growing horrors of the next century in a light, comic way: how the hell do we keep our tech under control? For the last 65 years, it's been nukes. Tomorrow it could be nanotech, Von Neumann machines, and Flying Spaghetti Monster knows what other sort of Frankenstein-like creations we decide to make for profit or whim