What is the character called that is only there so we can have information from the main characters?
If I have a character, typically it is a bad guy, but not always, and you see this in movies a lot, but there is always another character with one of the main characters, so we can have some dialog to let us know what's happening.
Maybe it's mostly in movies, but the bad guy always has this guy with them they talk to that you know is there just for us, the viewers or readers, so we can know what's "really" going on, whether it is the reason why the they are a protagonist, or sometimes just to be funny.
I hope that makes sense. Is it just "character," no special name.
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Although a sidekick is good, some such characters are called a "foil", meaning one character that is in some sense the opposite of another, and thus highlights a trait of the MC.
In your example, the "opposite" trait may be knowledge of what is going on, or ignorance vs. insight. The villain explains his plot to the beginner, or assistant, or dim-witted muscle, or know-nothing girlfriend, or clueless but wealthy financier.
A sidekick is usually with the protagonist (or antagonist) for most of the story; a foil can be used for just one or two scenes (like a girlfriend, or the financier considering funding the antagonist).
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