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Hello, you. Or maybe I should be saying goodbye, you, because Netflix's hit show You just came to a close after its fifth season premiered on April 24. It was full of twists and turns just like the seasons that came before, but I don't think anything could have prepared me for the ending. Let's get into it.
Here's a full breakdown of that crazy You season 5 ending on Netflix.
What happens in the ending of You?
Clifton Prescod/Netflix
In the You finale, after realizing that Kate has a recorded confession of Joe's (many) crimes, Joe and Bronte go on the run. But Bronte's got a secret: she only accepted Joe's proposal to stop him and now she's trying to figure out her next step.
Meanwhile Joe's survival is his own top priority, and he's making plans to cross the border into Canada with a fake ID Will Bettleheim gave him. While they're waiting for the documents, Joe and Bronte take a boat ride, and things get pretty steamy. Naturally, Bronte decides this is the perfect opportunity to pull a gun on Joe. You know what they say, all's fair n love and war.
But even with a weapon pointed at him, Joe still won't reveal how he killed her friend Beck (Joe's girlfriend and victim in season 1). And when he attempts to kill Bronte too, she manages to get away and call 911 before he attacks her. Right when it looks like he'll get away with another crime, the police show up.
Clifton Prescod/Netflix
But the action's far from over because Joe ends up killing a cop while making his escape, and when Bronte does finally corner Joe, she shoots him in the penis. Yep, you read that right. Without his freedom, and without his genitals, Joe is arrested and sentenced to life in prison.
The You ending definitely makes you wonder if all's well that ends well because some of these characters do have a nice future. Bronte rewrites Beck's book (and erases Joe's contributions), while Kate raises Joe's son Henry, and Nadia gets out of prison to become a writing teacher. Meanwhile, Joe sits in prison reading fan mail people have sent him, convinced that society's the real problem — not him.
“Why am I in a cage when these crazies write me all the depraved things they want me to do to them?” Joe says in an iconic final voice over. “Maybe we have a problem as a society. Maybe we should fix what’s broken in us. Maybe the problem isn’t me. Maybe it’s…you.” That sent shivers down my spine.
Clifton Prescod/Netflix
While this is a satisfying ending for some fans, there was actually another version of the story that took a spookier turn with Joe realizing he's a ghost in the final episode. “We went through many different options, one of which being that he did die at the hands of Bronte,” showrunner Justin Lo told the New York Post. “I was even remembering a version where he was shot. And [the audience] didn’t realize that he [got] shot until the very last episode, and then he realizes he’s a ghost.”
However, death felt like too easy of an escape for this character. “We liked putting him in a veritable cage [in prison]. We liked him not knowing the touch of a lover,” Michael Foley added.
"What is best, not just for Joe, but the person who then has to do it?" Penn Badgley told Deadline. "If somebody was to kill him — and it would be a woman, right — well then actually now what you’ve burdened her with is having committed murder, like that’s not just, I don’t think. Torture? Uh OK, same thing. Prison? Eh, feels a bit not enough. So what do you do? Take. His. Balls.”
Where can I watch You season 5?
Jocelyn Prescod/Netflix
All episodes of You are available to stream on Netflix now. Here's the full season 5 episode list:
- Season 5, Episode 1 "The Luckiest Guy in NY" premiered on April 24, 2025
- Season 5, Episode 2 "Blood Will Have Blood" premiered on April 24, 2025
- Season 5, Episode 3 "Impostor Syndrome" premiered on April 24, 2025
- Season 5, Episode 4 "My Fair Maddie" premiered on April 24, 2025
- Season 5, Episode 5 "Last Dance" premiered on April 24, 2025
- Season 5, Episode 6 "The Dark Face of Love" premiered on April 24, 2025
- Season 5, Episode 7 "#JoeGoldberg" premiered on April 24, 2025
- Season 5, Episode 8 "Folie a Deux" premiered on April 24, 2025
- Season 5, Episode 9 "Trial of the Furies" premiered on April 24, 2025
- Season 5, Episode 10 "Finale" premiered on April 24, 2025
Who's in the You season 5 cast?
Clifton Prescod/Netflix
You season 5 sees some familiar faces and brand new additions to the cast!
- Penn Badgley as Joe Goldberg: a serial killer who returns home to New York.
- Charlotte Ritchie as Kate Lockwood-Goldberg: Joe's wife from England and the T.R. Lockwood Corporation's CEO.
- Griffin Matthews as Teddy Lockwood: Kate's brother.
- Anna Camp as Reagan Lockwood: T.R. Lockwood Corporation's CFO
- Anna Camp as Maddie Lockwood: a socialite who's much more than she seems.
- Madeline Brewer as Bronte/Louise Flannery: a playwright who works for Joe in You season 5.
- Frankie DeMaio as Henry Goldberg: Joe's son with Love Quinn.
Where was You season 5 filmed?
Clifton Prescod/Netflix
You season 5 filmed in New York City from March to August 2024.
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