When David Tennant and Stanley Tucci came on board to star in a murder mystery thriller, people naturally expected fireworks. But Steven Moffat’s Inside Man left people underwhelmed and somewhat confused about how things ended. While such an ending can have a head-scratching effect on it audience, it can also promote the necessity of a follow-up season.
Premiering in 2022 on BBC One, Inside Man later gained second wind on Netflix in the US later in the year. This four-episode series takes viewers on a journey through the unexpected connections between seemingly disparate characters.
Led by stellar performances from David Tennant as Harry Watling, a conflicted British vicar, and Stanley Tucci as Jefferson Grieff, a convicted murderer, the series delves into the complexities of morality and the human psyche. Supported by a talented ensemble cast including Dolly Wells, Lydia West, and Dylan Baker, Inside Man may not have a very satisfying story. But the performances and mystery itself can keep anyone hooked.
The pivotal moment of the third episode culminates in a whirlwind of confusion and near tragedy. Read on to understand what happened at the end.
But how does Inside Man end?
Harry tries to kill Janice with carbon monoxide after she threatens to report Harry’s teenage son Ben for possession of child pornography—which it turned out belonged to a parishioner, Edgar. Unbeknownst to Harry, Ben is trapped in the cellar with Janice. The gas leak causes Janice and Ben to hallucinate, and he ends up attacking her.
Meanwhile, Mary, Harry’s wife, gets caught by Beth while trying to get her laptop from Janice’s apartment. As a verbal argument escalates into a physical altercation, Mary accidentally walks in front of an oncoming truck and is fatally injured.
In a race against time, Harry tries to rescue Ben from the cellar. Meanwhile, Beth arrives at his house to rescue Janice. It turns out Grieff informed Beth about Janice’s location from a deduction he made. Tension escalates as a contingent of armed police arrives and arrests Harry.
Despite Janice’s near-death experience in the cellar, she survives and, in a surprising post-credits scene, seeks Grieff’s advice in plotting her husband’s murder. Even though Janice’s husband is not seen before on the show, it is implied that she was in an abusive relationship.
How Grieff’s fate sets up season two of Inside Man
In the last episode, Grieff calls up his father-in-law to tell him he will reveal his wife’s head’s location if he can pull some strings and delay his execution. But it turns out Grieff had no intention to give up the location of his wife’s head—whom he killed before beheading her. It was just a ruse to send the cops to Harry’s house instead before he could end up killing Janice.
Grieff never explains why he killed his wife so brutally. But in the last scene, he gets on a video call with Harry and tells him that one day, he may reveal to the vicar why he killed his wife. This sets the series up for a second season. However, so far, there hasn’t been any confirmation of a season two, but the show has not been officially cancelled by BBC.
You can watch Inside Man on Netflix and watch the trailer here:
