The Diplomat, a smash hit political thriller on Netflix, strikes a delicate balance between its just-accessible-enough diplomatic intrigue and the riveting marriage turned love triangle at its core. The destinies of U.S. Ambassador to the U.K. Kate Wyler (Keri Russell), her previous ambassador husband Hal Wyler (Rufus Sewell), and the rest of the globe facing a potential globe War III are all in jeopardy by the end of the season due to a major cliffhanger.
Continue reading for our analysis of the series’ climax and potential future directions. Season 2 of “The Diplomat”
‘The Diplomat’ Ending Explained
In conclusion, we know that the attack on the British aircraft carrier ship HMS Courageous was carried out by a squad of Russian mercenaries commanded by Roman Lenkov. Despite the fact that it first appeared as though Russia intended to blame their partner Iran for the assault on the United Kingdom, a Russian agent eventually gets in touch with Kate and offers up Lenkov, telling her where he will be spending a family holiday in France. The U.S. and the U.K. have various strategies by the beginning of the finale: President Rayburn (Michael McKean) has decided against attacking the Russian Lenkov Group in Libya as reprisal, which Prime Minister Nicol Trowbridge (Rory Kinnear) wants to do.
Things start to shift in Episode 8 when Trowbridge unexpectedly agrees to the new strategy, which he had previously deemed cowardly, in which British Special Forces capture Roman Lenkov personally in France. To obtain approval from Brielle Fournier (Micky Sébastian), France’s interior minister, Kate and Dennison travel to France to request that she utilise British Special Forces to capture Lenkov. At first, Fournier declines, but the French minister eventually agrees at a chic engagement at the Louvre (see Kate’s stunning red dress above). Fournier does, however, feign astonishment that the United States would “so strongly lobby for an extrajudicial assassination.” The objective of the mission is to assassinate Lenkov; Trowbridge won’t merely make an arrest.
Even though they worked well together (and flirted with each other during the entire season), Kate is immediately stunned and thinks that David Gyasi’s character, UK Foreign Secretary Austin Dennison, tricked her. Since they need Lenkov alive to determine who hired him, he is just as startled as he is when he finally catches up to her on a Parisian street. However, Kate has already come up with a solution: Lenkov’s employer would be the only one to profit from his passing. Trowbridge made up an attack on his own nation.
But why would the British prime minister accuse Iran of attacking the United Kingdom? as a vote. Trowbridge is fervently hoping to win the next vote since Scotland is voting for independence, and if Wales and Northern Ireland do the same, he will be the prime minister who failed to keep the United Kingdom together. Trowbridge might, however, bring the nation together, win over a large number of nationalist supporters, and maintain himself and his party in power if he took on the role of the PM who valiantly exacted revenge on Iran after they instigated a conflict. With that twist, Trowbridge is transformed from a just but occasionally overbearing leader to the desperate antagonist of the series, and Kate will have her work cut out for her in stopping him from igniting World War III.
Hal is back in London vying for the soon-to-be-vacant Secretary of State position while Kate is away in Paris uncovering Trowbridge’s scheme. The husband and wife’s relationship has been tense throughout the season because Hal keeps engaging in covert diplomatic plotting, leaving Kate to pick up the pieces and question if she has been acting morally or merely succumbing to his schemes. At the start of episode 8, the couple is having a difficult time, and the tension is increased when Hal finds out that Kate will be attending the formal event with Dennison. Hal declines Kate’s invitation to join her in Paris. She then presents him with the chance to speak in her place.
Hal’s discussion on how to communicate with everyone in diplomatic endeavours, including terrorists and other negative actors, is a resounding success. Public speaking is one of Hal’s specialties. Hal indicates that he wishes to be given credit for his views by requesting a waiver of the Chatham House Rule, which specifies that all remarks made there may be mentioned but not attributed to anyone. Merritt Grove, a Tory member of Parliament (Simon Chandler), responds well to his speech and seeks a supper with him right away. Hal makes an effort to gently reject and offers to put Grove in touch with Billie Appiah, the White House chief of staff (Nana Mensah), instead.
We are left in the dark regarding who set the bomb and why they would target a random Tory MP because the conclusion stops thirty seconds after the blast. However, given that the explosion occurs right after Kate and Dennison discover that the prime minister was responsible for the attack on the Courageous, we may infer that Grove was aware of Trowbridge’s scheme. When Kate first learned about the meeting, she called Meg Roylin, a former assistant to Trowbridge, to make sure that Grove wouldn’t be seriously hurt by the postponement. Through that call, Roylin and Trowbridge may have been alerted to Grove’s knowledge and impending disclosure. Grove said he didn’t want to speak with the president’s chief of staff or any representatives from the American embassy,
Hal, is he dead? Are Merritt Grove, Ronnie, and Stuart deceased? In addition to the Trowbridge storyline surprise, this major cliffhanger ushers in season 2(opens in new tab), and Kate’s emotions when she hears of the explosions are not encouraging. Let’s set the scene: Ronnie was directly close to Grove when he opened his car door and detonated the bomb, thus it’s probable that neither she nor Grove will survive the explosion. Because Hal and Stuart were a few doors apart and coming from different directions, they may sustain minor injuries but not serious ones.
However, even Ronnie’s passing and Hal and Stuart’s peril are sufficient to personalise the approaching Kate vs. Trowbridge battle. Additionally, it will make Kate reevaluate her relationship with Hal on a different level, much like it did when he was abducted from the picture session for the premiere. What will the next phase of their tumultuous relationship look like, where Kate needs Hal but yet isn’t completely able to trust him?