The British series Fool Me Once landed on Netflix on January 1st, 2024. Adapted from Harlan Coben’s 2016 novel by Danny Brocklehurst, the show boasts a stellar cast, including Michelle Keegan, Richard Armitage, Adeel Akhtar, Emmett J. Scanlan, and Joanna Lumley.
In this eight-part thriller, audiences witness a family grappling with two murders. Keegan’s character, Maya Stern, discovers unsettling footage that blurs the lines between her husband Joe’s death and an unexpected intrusion.
Maya finds herself entangled in a mysterious web of murder, deception, and family secrets. As she seeks to uncover the truth behind her husband’s death, the story takes the audience on a gripping journey filled with many twists and turns.
But, if you need to understand what exactly happened at the end of the murder mystery Fool Me Once, read on.
What happens at the end of Fool Me Once?
In the final episode, Fool Me Once takes an unexpected turn. The penultimate episode’s cliffhanger reveals that Maya, contrary to initial beliefs, was the one who pulled the trigger, ending her husband’s life. The subsequent episodes explain Maya’s actions and the buried secrets within the Burkett family.
Flashback scenes reveal that Maya was always suspicious about her husband’s involvement in her sister Claire’s murder. Testing a bullet from their secret handgun, Maya confirmed her fears. She arranged a meeting with Joe, carrying a deactivated gun with her to trick Joe initially. As Joe used the non-functional weapon on her, Maya confronted him about her sister’s death, leading to a fatal confrontation where Maya had to use the real gun to defend herself.
The series also explored Maya’s sister, Claire Walker’s backstory. She had uncovered the Burkett family’s corrupt pharmaceutical practices. Along with an anonymous internet whistleblower, Corey the Whistle, Claire wanted to expose the family’s dirty secrets. However, her quest for justice ultimately led to her death at the hands of Joe Burkett.
Maya’s investigation went beyond her husband’s murder, which led her to uncover a series of dark secrets within the Burkett family. The revelation of the truth behind Andrew Burkett’s death, connected to an initiation ritual gone wrong in 1996, and the manipulation and cover-ups orchestrated by the matriarch, Judith Burkett, were other layers to the family’s sordid history.
Maya decided to expose their crimes in a desperate attempt to seek justice for her sister. In a shocking turn of events, Maya is shot by Neil Burkett. However, the real twist involves Maya broadcasting the entire confrontation, confessions, and secrets to the world through a live stream with the help of Corey the Whistle and DS Sami Kierce.
The series concludes with a time jump. We find out that DS Sami Kierce survives, and Maya’s daughter Lily is taken in by Maya’s sister Claire’s husband Eddie. Lily, now a mother herself, names her daughter Maya as a tribute to her mom.
You can watch Fool Me Once on Netflix and catch the trailer here:
