Netflix's The Madness ending explained including Muncie's fate (2024)

Netflix's latest thriller series follows the story of a media pundit who is framed for murder and is forced to clear his name

*Warning: this story contains spoilers for The Madness*

New Netflix series The Madness sees a murder mystery develop into a complicated conspiracy involving powerful figures in the shadows. Colman Domingo plays the role of media pundit Muncie Daniels who gets framed for murder and is forced to clear his name.

There's a lot to unpack in the final episode's first five minutes, never mind the entire runtime which clocks in at just under one hour. So what actually happens during the ending of The Madness? What is the fate of Muncie Daniels and his family? What questions if any remain? Here's everything you need to know, although a reminder that below contains major spoilers.

The final episode opens in the most dramatic of fashions, with a deadly shootout. Julia Jayne, already revealed to be the one who hired an ex-soldier to kill Mark Simon, killed Stu Magnusson and his bodyguard herself along with Laura Jennings, while also put into action the framing of Muncie, has tracked down the location of Muncie's family.

She shoots Isiah and sends him tumbling down the stairs into the basement. However, Muncie's wife appears and hits Jayne over the head but not before getting shot herself. It feels like a cliff-hanger moment but this is just the episode's opening section.

While his wife recovers in the hospital, the police have found enough evidence to clear Muncie of the murder of Mark Simon, realising it was Jayne all along. Muncie hands them an audio recording with Jayne where she names her boss, the owner of Revitalise, Rodney Kraintz, as the man behind everything.

After his meeting with police, Kraintz's personal attorney just happens to be waiting in the corridor for Muncie. He offers him $5 million to sign an NDA and say nothing. Muncie takes the one page contract but delivers a blunt two-word response, with no intent to sign. He discusses the dirty money offer with his agent who reveals CNN wants him back in front of the camera for a tell-all story.

Muncie then meets with Mark's ex-wife Lucie again and tells her Kraintz is the main man responsible. He asks her to tell the other members in The Forge, the white supremacist group Mark was a part of, just so more people know Kraintz's name and what he's done. She does so, telling them she is sharing the information so they don't believe she was involved while also dropping some breadcrumbs for revenge. Muncie attends a wake for FBI agent Franco and his old partner hands over a notebook that mentions a cobalt mine and Revitalise.

Muncie returns to CNN to deliver his story but not before his boss tells him to make sure he shows some emotion. Muncie delivers his piece, where he exposes Kraintz on air and the conspiracy in play. Kraintz's company owns a cobalt mine that will become deregulated ahead of a new bill passing and Jayne was hired to eliminate anyone that got in the way of that goal.

Muncie also denounces the media world he was a part of and quits his job. We do get a brief glimpse of his family and friends watching at home where we see Isiah survived.

The media circus continues without him though as Muncie watches media pundits analyse his work on TV. He then argues with his son Demetrious about justice and his failing marriage. Suddenly, we're with Franco's old partner and Lucie as they share evidence about The Forge, and their plans of domestic terror. She admits she wants the group taken down to make amends.

Kraintz is shown on TV denying the recent claims. Conveniently, while Muncie is out on a run, a note is pushed under his apartment door. It's from Lucie and lists Kraintz's office address . Demetrius reads it and suddenly decides to go there with his father's gun. However, he is defeated by a chain link fence and Muncie is able to talk down his son. Despite convincing his son against murder, Muncie considers it himself and breaks into the office.

We know Kraintz is up to no good as his office contains a large bank of servers but just one desk where he sits at a lonely laptop. Muncie imagines shooting Kraintz who tells him he framed him for murder simply because 'he was there' at the time of the killing and says they're both cogs in a machine.

Muncie walks away while a Forge meeting is raided by the FBI. One member manages to jump over the balcony and escape the heavily armed squad of officers.

Kraintz is on the news again as he is cleared of involvement with Mark Simon's murder. However the solitary Forge member that escaped guns him down in an alleyway. Meanwhile, Lucie moves away with her sons.

As for the fate of Munice, he has now decided to become a teacher and the final moments see him in the park with both of his children as he grills meat. His ex-wife arrives and joins them, despite having told him she wanted space from him after she recovered from her injuries. There is no moment that suggests a second season could be on the way as all the mysteries are solved even if not neatly.

The Madness is now streaming on Netflix