According to a character profile on Facebook, Xander’s father (played by Casey Sander) is depicted as a bitter, alcoholic man whose presence at the wedding highlights the toxic environment Xander grew up in. The appearance of Stewart Burns—a man claiming to be Xander from the future—exploits this trauma by showing Xander a fabricated life of domestic misery and resentment. The Self-Fulfilling Prophecy
By trying to avoid becoming his father, Xander inadvertently inflicts a different kind of trauma on Anya, abandoning her at the altar. Anya’s Reversion [S6E16] Hell's Bells
"Hell's Bells" is often remembered as one of the most painful episodes of the series, primarily because it dismantles the long-standing hope for a "normal" life within the Scooby Gang. The wedding of Xander Harris and Anya Jenkins serves as a crucible for Xander’s deepest fear: becoming his father. According to a character profile on Facebook, Xander’s