You season 4 part 2 ending explained: Your biggest questions answered

You season 4 part 2 has finally arrived on Netflix after a month-long wait since part 1 exploded onto our screens. A lot goes down for Jonathan Moore (AKA Joe Goldberg) and co. in these five new episodes and the season finale is as dramatic as you'd expect from the twist-and-turns-packed thriller. The twist in question this season is a lot to wrap your head around, so you'd be forgiven for missing a few details here and there in the mile-a-minute concluding episodes of season 4. That's why we've gone long on the new season's ending, breaking down what happened to who and hopefully answering any lingering questions you had after the final credits had finished rolling. 

As you might expect, there are major spoilers ahead for You season 4 part 2, so turn back now if you haven't caught up with the new episodes yet and don't want to know what happens. 

Don't forget to check out our guide to You season 5 too.

You season 4 part 2 ending explained: A recap

After the reveal that Joe (Penn Badgley) has been hallucinating the murderous incarnation of Rhys (Ed Speleers), the final episode of You season 4 part 2 opens with him planning to die by suicide as he believes that's the only way to rid himself of 'Rhys' once and for all (even Joe's seen Fight Club, after all). Plus, the real Rhys' body is found after Joe murdered him at his home in episode 7.

Meanwhile, Nadia (Amy-Leigh Hickman) tells her boyfriend Eddie (Brad Alexander) about Professor Jonathan Moore's real identity and they go to see Joe's glass box where Marienne is being kept in a disused Tube tunnel. However, when they arrive, both Marienne and the box have gone.

Kate (Charlotte Ritchie), meanwhile, is upset as her father, Tom Lockwood (Greg Kinnear), has revealed that he has been controlling every aspect of her adult life. Joe wants to kill him and teams up with 'Rhys' to do so. He lures Lockwood to his workshop in a remote aircraft hangar by pretending to be Kate and drugs him and ties him up. Lockwood says he can get Joe back to his old life, but Joe refuses his offer and suffocates Lockwood with a plastic bag and some duct tape. He doctors the scene to make it look like Lockwood's bodyguard robbed and killed his employer. 

Afterward, Joe pushes 'Rhys' off a bridge into the River Thames and jumps in after him in an attempt to kill them both. Joe wakes up in hospital and tells Kate that he's killed people. She knows that he killed the real Rhys Montrose, as his DNA was found on his body, but she has used her wealth and power to cover it up. Joe tells her his real name and, presumably, all his other dirty little secrets.

Meanwhile, it's revealed that Marienne isn't actually dead, and she and Nadia masterminded her escape from Joe's box by faking her death. Later, Nadia breaks into Joe's flat and obtains evidence that he stalked and killed Rhys. Eddie is keeping guard outside but, when she leaves the apartment, he's nowhere to be found. We learn that Joe killed Eddie after framing him for Rhys' murder, and pinned Eddie's death on Nadia. 

With Kate's help, Joe begins to rehabilitate his image – the beard has gone, as has the Jonathan Moore alias, and he's back in New York City to start a new life. A combination of bribery, hacking, and other definitely-above-board activities courtesy of his powerful and wealthy girlfriend means that Joe can live a normal life, despite everything he's done. 

Who dies in You season 4 part 2?

Rhys is the first person to die in You season 4 part 2, in episode 7. Joe tortures and kills him, believing him to be the version of Rhys that turns out to be a figment of his imagination. Adam (Lukas Gage) is the next to be killed in episode 9, but this time it's Kate's father, Tom Lockwood, who's responsible. Lockwood is murdered in episode 10, after Joe suffocates him with a plastic bag in his own workshop, and then Nadia's boyfriend Eddie also bites the dust in episode 10. 

Who was actually the Eat the Rich killer?

It turns out Joe was actually the Eat the Rich killer the whole time. Although it was said to be Rhys at the end of part 1, it's revealed that this version of Rhys is actually a figment of Joe's imagination, and he was the one who murdered Malcolm, Simon, and Gemma in part 1. 

Who was the real Rhys Montrose?

The real Rhys Montrose is a candidate for Mayor of London who grew up working class before becoming the poster child for social mobility after getting a place at Oxford University. He's friends with Kate, Phoebe, and co.  Joe becomes obsessed with him after reading his memoir and consequently begins to hallucinate a darker, murderous version of him. 

What was wrong with Joe?

Joe has a psychotic break after the events of season 3. This is never fully explained, but it results in hallucinations and paranoia that result in the darkest parts of his personality manifesting as another person – in this case, Rhys Montrose. 

What happened to Marienne?

Marienne escaped from Joe's glass box with Nadia's help. The pair hatched a plan to make it look like Marienne had died – Nadia texted her pretending to be her friend who was looking after her daughter back in Paris. In the guise of the friend, Nadia said she believed Marienne had relapsed and she would lose custody of Juliette. Nadia then swapped the painkillers that Joe had given to Marienne for beta blockers. Marienne pretended to overdose, and the beta blockers slowed down her heart rate enough that it appeared she had died.

Joe then removed her body from the glass box and left her on a park bench under the cover of darkness. Nadia followed him and, after Joe had left, injected her with adrenaline to revive her. Marienne then returned home to Paris to reunite with her daughter. The season ends with her reading a news report about Joe and Kate – is she plotting to finally bring Joe to justice? 

What happened to Nadia?

After helping Marienne to escape from Joe's box, Nadia is determined for him to be brought to justice. Breaking into Joe's apartment, she finds a box of stuff belonging to Rhys that proves Joe has been stalking him, and she photographs the evidence. As she leaves the flat, however, Joe corners her and takes her phone, deleting the pictures, and offers her money in exchange for silence. It's later revealed that Nadia is now in jail, as Joe killed Eddie after pinning Rhys' murder on him, planting the box of evidence in his room. Joe then framed Eddie's murder on Nadia. Joe's voiceover reveals that she is still in prison and refuses to speak in her own defense. 

What happened to Phoebe, Adam, and the rest of the group?

Kate may be in New York with Joe helping to rehabilitate his image and running her art school foundation, but what is the rest of the group up to at the end of season 4? Well, Adam, Malcolm, Simon, and Gemma are dead. Phoebe moves to Thailand to teach English to kids, Blessing is the new owner of Adam's members' club, Sundry House, and we're told that Sophie, Roald, and Connie are still the same as they ever were.

You season 4 part 2 is out now on Netflix. For more viewing inspiration, fill out your watch list with our picks of the best new TV shows on the way in 2023 and beyond.