The Midnight Mass cast breaks down the Netflix horror series’ shocking final moments
The stars of Mike Flanagan's latest Netflix series unpacks its fiery final episode
TV Features Netflix
This post discusses major spoilers and plot points from all seven episodes of Midnight Mass.
For a spooky slow-burn, Midnight Mass sure wrapped things up in a blaze of glory. After Father Paul (Hamish Linklater)—a de-aged Monsignor Pruitt, as he confesses—introduces his parish to the supposed “Angel Of God” and asks them to literally give up their mortal lives in communion, things get bloody fast, and the priest acknowledges he’s made a huge mistake. The finale sees the pious Bev Keane (Samantha Sloyan) leading the vampiric converted as they plan to spread “the good word” off-island and leave the unfaithful for dead. Meanwhile, Erin Greene (Kate Siegel) and the rest of the survivors attempt to stop the contagion from reaching the mainland, burning the boats except for the canoe on which teens Warren (Igby Rigney) and Leeza (Annarrah Cymone) can paddle out to safety. In her last moments, Erin slashes the Angel’s wings, and the residents of Crockett Island realize they must accept their fate as the sun begins to rise.
It’s a climax fraught with emotion, but one that brings Midnight Mass to a closing grace note of quiet sanguinity. To help unpack it all, The A.V. Club spoke with series stars Siegel, Linklater, Sloyan, and Zach Gilford, who first takes us back to episode five, when “prodigal son” Riley Flynn makes a shocking sacrifice.
Riley and Erin’s final sacrifices
“When I got the job and signed on, I knew I was only in six of seven episodes,” Gilford shares, “so I’m like, ‘Okay, I’m assuming I die.’” While his assumption was correct, Gilford admits he was still completely blown away by Riley’s final act of redemption, in which he takes Erin out to sea and shares what happened to him at the community center—and then forces her to witness his own fiery death, knowing it was the only way to convince her of the danger threatening the rest of Crockett Island.
“[Riley] walks through much of his life, much of the show, thinking he’s a piece of shit. And then [Erin] gives him a little light in his life where it’s like, ‘Oh, maybe I deserve some morsel of happiness,’ Gilford says. ” When Riley realizes what he’s become after the Angel’s attack, he decides to sacrifice himself to save “the one person he truly cares about.”
“It is one of my favorite moments of the whole show,” Gilford says. “Within this supernatural show—with all this crazy weirdness—it’s the most real moment. If you saw someone burning alive in front of you, that’s what it would be: You, screaming… with no music, no nothing. And it’s so terrifying.”
Siegel agrees, and reveals that the rowboat conversations were shot on her first day working with Gilford. Despite being newly acquainted, the actors committed to the emotional intensity of the scene: “There was safety in the sense that we knew that we were going to go there with each other.” Siegel was so wowed by Gilford’s delivery of Riley’s goodbye that it was easy for her to access that combination of grief and terror. “All of the the bullshit fell away,” she says, “and there was an instinct to me like, ‘I don’t want this guy to die!’”
Riley’s death might make for a devastating cliffhanger, but it also sets the stage for the final act of Midnight Mass—one where the story’s true heroes and villains come into focus. “What I always felt about that moment, is that it’s a brilliant bait-and-switch,” Siegel says. As soon as she returns to the island, Erin is our de facto protagonist, and she gradually finds a small group of allies in Dr. Sarah Gunning (Annabeth Gish), the doctor’s miraculously younger mother (Alex Essoe), and Sheriff Hassan (Rahul Kohli).
“[Flanagan] makes you think that the show is about two white male leads, and then it ends up being Bev and Erin versus each other—in the end, you’re left with [these] women, your Muslim sheriff, your lesbian doctor, and the old woman,” Siegel says.
While Erin, too, falls victim to a gruesome attack from the Angel, a sense of peace washes over her in her final moments as she reflects on one of her last conversations with Riley. “What I loved about [that flashback] is that it sort of marries her two earlier monologues about clipping the wings of the dove with her mom, and what happened to her baby,” reflects Siegel. “And it was a sense that Erin—because she is, and continues to be throughout, a moderate Catholic—doesn’t turn on her religion. She doesn’t give up on God. Religion saved her life, and supported her through the darkest times, so she comes out it with clear eyes and a full heart.” Joking reference to Gilford’s Friday Night Lights tenure aside, Siegel was floored by the way Erin’s story came full circle, all while underscoring Midnight Mass’s ultimately optimistic take on the affirming power of spirituality.
Bev and Father Paul’s diverging paths
Former allies in their utter devotion to God, the finale drives a wedge between Paul/Pruitt and Bev when the former sees the error of his ways and seeks forgiveness while the latter decides to dig her heels in. It’s in their diverging paths that Midnight Mass makes its point clear: There’s a fine line between having strong convictions and unchecked fanaticism. Differences aside, both Linklater and Sloyan find their characters at their most relatably human in the final seconds before the sun rises on Crockett Island.
“I think Father Paul realizes he made a mistake,” Linklater says. Despite asking his community to poison themselves as the ultimate test of their faith, “he truly believed that he was doing what he was supposed to be doing, what he had been put on this island to do.” However, seeing Bev play gatekeeper—literally turning people away from the church at a time when they needed it most—became his moment of reckoning.
“It turns out he was terribly mistaken. And, you know, I feel like that in my daily life all the time. ‘Oh dear, I’ve really made a horrible error. Do you know what I need? Forgiveness.’ And that’s where he gets to, too. No acting required,” Linklater jokes. As he points out, Paul doesn’t ask God, or even his parish for forgiveness; instead, he turns to the woman he loves.
On the other hand, Bev’s final moments are spent alone, filled with pain: “What brought those moments to life for Beverly was the fact that, unlike Paul, she never fully comes to the understanding that she was mistaken,” Sloyan says. What Bev sees at the end—finally witnessing the destruction she laid to a community she’s been a part of her whole life—sinks in just a little too late.
“There’s the spark that she may have been wrong, and I think that nothing terrifies her more than the fact that she may have been wrong,” Sloyan says. That horror is apparent on Bev’s face as she digs into the sand, intent to avoid the sun and avoid the consequences of her actions, clinging to the bitter end. “It really did make sense to me. I’d dig [too]! I’d be looking for an overturned boat or something.”
And though Midnight Mass ends conclusively, Sloyan and Linklater joke that Mike Flanagan could’ve found a way to save Bev for a part two—if she only dug deep enough: “I really tried to get in deep,” Sloyan says. “My goal was: Maybe she can! Maybe there’s a sequel, and it’s all about that!”
“Yeah, if you tapped into your inner ostrich and stuck your head in there!,” Linklater adds. “You could have just saved the head!”
For more from our conversations with Zach Gilford, Kate Siegel, Hamish Linklater, and Samantha Sloyan, check out the full video interviews embedded above. All of Midnight Mass is available to stream now, exclusively on Netflix.
51 Comments
Well, I just finished the series and… I liked it! And that makes it the first Flanagan thing I’ve liked since Gerald’s Game. I thought it was a good yarn with some intriguing ideas, had several solid performances (Sloyan and Linklater both absolutely killed it) and I really liked the setting.Whoever scouted locations for this show deserves some kind of a creative credit, because they really made this show a homerun. The island feels both eerie and gorgeous at the same time. And I don’t know if all the buildings were production design or part of the location, but they too were to die for.The writing is certainly flawed. Flanagan still can’t resist making his actors memorize and perform long-winded, overly sentimental monologues that are not as meaningful as they think they are and desperately need some editing. One scene in particular where two characters did just that at each other for what felt like 10-15 minutes had me rolling my eyes pretty hard.Still, the story was very neat. In spite of all the solemnity, there was a subtle wry humor to it that resonated with me. And to my surprise, they actually stuck the landing!
Yeah if you take away the monologues you would’ve been able to make this a much better and concise six episode mini-series. I still enjoyed it and got through it in the weekend but by the time that two in a row “what happens when you die” scene hit I was nodding off pretty hard.
Yeah, I actually started playing a game on my phone while that was happening. I payed half-attention and a couple of times I was going like “how is this scene not over yet?!”It’s like Flanagan pops a molly sometimes, writes and then doesn’t edit it afterwards.
When Riley was telling Erin what he thinks happens for some reason I got a little freaked out, so I turned it off. So the Angel was killing the cats and throwing them in the ocean?
I actually liked the monologues. I felt like it was a reference to stories of the Bible that answered questions. I think it was purposely done.
Linklater is really the MVP of the series, I never once looked at the shot clock at any point during his monologues. Henry Thomas is also pretty good. But everyone else… It’s a lot to sell.
True, Linklater really rose beyond the occasion. He really made it seem like he was going through it while saying it, instead of just reciting. I’m not sure I’ve seen him in anything before this. But I was really enamored by his work here. Can anybody recommend something else he did for me?
Legion!
Thank you! I will check that out without knowing anything about it. I mean I’ve heard good things about it but i have no idea what it is about. I needed a new show and at this point in my life I am tired of making informed decisions all the time. I’ll just watch it!
Yeah! Legion isn’t perfect but there’s a ton of really crazy shit in it and I loved it overall
That should suit me just fine. Too much perfection will drive you insane, that’s what I believe!
Have you watched The Sinner? It’s pretty good. First 3 seasons are on Netflix and the 4th just started on USA.
He was in Legion, the recent remake of The Stand, and Lola Versus. I also saw him in the Amazon Prime series Tell Me Your Secrets, which was so-so but he was fantastic, as was his real-life wife, Lily Rabe. He plays a paroled predator who is seeking redemption and is hired by the mother of a presumed murdered girl, to track down some people peripherally connected to the case, and he finds his old habits are coming back up as he pursues this job. He’s really good at playing characters who are monstrous human beings in deep denial about their actions, and is very successful at getting the audience to feel empathy for him even though we know he’s a huge creep. He taps into the creepiness a little too smoothly.
Tell Me Your Secrets on Prime is god-awful, but he’s very good in it. Also the third season of Fargo. (He used to be in a regular in some very middling sitcoms, not really where to find his best work — which at that time was on stage.)
Agree re Tell Me Your Secrets. I like him but there was no one to root for. It was a hot mess.
Legion definitely. Plus, The New Adventures of Old Christine, which is a sit com. Loved him in both. But Legion is truly special.
Legion.
I think it’s also the character. We expect priests to give long-winded monologues full of rhetorical flourishes. A bunch of random people on a dying fishing island? Not so much.
His first sermon was amazing. He was really selling it. I was like “yeah I can get behind this”. I’ve always liked him, he was the best thing about New Adventures of Old Christine. Matthew had his issues but he wasn’t an asshole like Christine or Richard.
That scene was brutally long. I loved the show as a whole but I really couldn’t believe how fucking long it was.
Hamish Linklater did so very well. Somehow, despite everything he did, I could never hate him. I don’t think a lesser actor could have made him so tragic and compelling, and those monologues could be such a big ask, but he really nailed it.There are definitely some other strong performances, but his is the standout for me.
Yes, him and like I said, Samantha Sloyan equally (for my money). Her character was thoroughly unlikable, which is why it’s a bit harder to appreciate her performance the same way you could with Hamish Linklater, who played someone charismatic whose intentions, at least, were good.But Sloyan absolutely nailed every nuance of that character. Her performance was like (really creepy) music. She made my blood boil with anger at Bev.
Not to minimize her performance! I think it was more subtle, and it hits differently to make a really unlikeable character unlikeable. That said she absolutely feels like she stole the role of real villain of the show from the winging demon.Especially the way she handled the little details when Bev is called out on being awful was well done. I love her reaction when Annie tells her she’s not a good person.
Yup, and I’ve had people like her in my life and that is exactly how they would react! The way she played it rang absolutely true.
Agree. He was fantastic. My only complaint, not really a complaint with him, but the writing, was that, and probably because I watch way too much tv, it was pretty easy to figure out that Father Paul was Monsignor Pruitt, before the reveal. But his confession in flashback was really good. Wouldn’t he have taken the newspaper clipping down? I want to reiterate how much I hate Bev.
Anyone else notice the heavy nod to the Saint Maud in the scene where Riley sacrificed himself?
Damn, that parallel didn’t even enter my mind in the many instances where it could have in this show. I’d have to rewatch both again, were there similar shots and cuts?I mean, the timeline is a little tight but checks out, the official release of Saint Maud was a month into production of Midnight Mass, but that scene might have been shot months later.
SPOILERS FOR SAINT MAUDAt the end of St Maud, it shows her setting herself on fire but from her perspective, she’s ascending to heaven until that smash cut to her screaming because she just set herself on fire. Same thing here. It’s all serene from his perspective and then smash cut to reality where he’s on fire and Erin is screaming. Maybe it was just a coincidence!
Hard to say. I mean, setting up that contrast of course just lends itself to certain images. But yeah, now that you mention I remember it. It is quite similar. Even thematically, they’re both about a sacrifice that sort of results in two very different points of view.Very curious. Thanks for pointing it out anyway, I enjoy these kinds of comparisons very much! I’ll definitely be thinking about this one.
No, but I did notice a Nosferatu parallel as Erin was a Mina/Lucy character luring a vampire to feed off her as she tried to seal his doom.
That actor who played Bev drove me crazy. She represents everything wrong religion. She did a great job.
Is it the actor who drove you crazy or the character? Because Bev the character certainly represents everything wrong with religion. I feel the actor played that villain great, she was so easy to hate.
The character was a terrible person. The actor did a great job!
I feel like the most distilled point of the show is when the Muslim Sheriff explains to his son that the girl miraculously cured of her spinal injury is “not how Allah works.” Modern day Christianity is obsessed with magic, miracles, prophesies and revelations, losing sight of the actual theology of Jesus. I think Bev represented that aspect of religious fervor the best, constantly cherry picking Bible quotes to justify “God’s plan.”The most dramatic thesis Flanagan I think is making here is that the entire point of Christianity is there is no plan, no divine intervention (other than Jesus himself), and no end game. It is up to us as individuals to bring about good in the world. Anything derived from magic and superstition is always rooted in the unholy, even if packaged in a fancy big building with a cross.
I knew Sloyan from her brief run on Grey’s Anatomy, where she was much more likeable; seeing her absolutely nail the horrible self-righteous church lady was both great and uncomfortable. (I grew up the opposite of Catholic, but self-righteous church ladies exist across denominations and religions.)
Some actors can handle playing terrible people, or good people.Evil is so much better played when it’s subtle, tinged with “Oh, I didn’t mean that to sound rude, how could you think that of me?” bullshit.
I don’t think Jesus is down with poisoning dogs, Bev. The dog never hurt anyone, it didn’t kill your cat, or bite you. I hope you burn in Hell.
I will not forget the end of episode 5 in a hurry. one of the most genuinely surprising twists I’ve seen in horror for a while, and a beautiful character moment to bootthis had some problems, it’s no Doctor Sleep but definitely among Flanagan’s best work
Leeza’s final line was a real kick in the dick. Good show, great finish.
Funny because I asked myself…”so, once the vampire blood wears off, she won’t be able to feel her legs, right?” And then she said that line. I am assuming all the vampires died, even the angel, for her to go back to her normal state so fast.
Funny, I was thinking that she might not be able to walk again once the vampire blood wore off…then she said that line.
Like the interviews for the most part, but can’t watch the vids because all I see is the dopey quirkfest of the interviewer, as embodied in that ridiculous wave de coiffure.
lol, well THAT seems pointed. Thanks for reading I guess.
Father Paul/Pruitt’s passivity in the final episode was very frustrating, as was the late-in-the-game reveal that he did it all to try to “reset” his own life and missed opportunity for not being a dad.And the fact that he only slowly, barely acknowledges his horrible mistake only after Bev decides to disallow one single person from entering the church was also pretty weak.Paul needed to kill Bev, end of story.
Yeah, I fill like the reckoning was kind of half-ass and never really happened. “Passive” is definitely the word.
For a second, I thought Erin was going to tell Riley it was all a dream and be in the room with him in reality.
I volunteer. I wanted her to die the minute I knew she killed the dog.
Yes, definitely.
Well, his daughter, who he never got to know, just died. I suppose he wasn’t a leader anymore either. He just wanted to hold his dead daughter on a bridge and look into the eyes of the woman he loved as the sun came up one last time. Plus, if he killed Bev…what would Erin and the sheriff be doing?
Do you think I remember the details of a show from a year and a half ago? Come on, man! Stay current!
I’m not thru with the series, I’m at “Lamentations”, I’ll watch even tho I know how it ends.I do wish Bev would have met a gruesome death after what she did to Pike. I understand it was to illustrate how awful she was, but poisoning a dog? What’s the money laundering stuff she supposedly involved in? I love equating Holy Communion with vampirism. And all the discussion of how cruel the ultra religious can be in their faux piety.