**Warning: contains full spoilers for The Night Manager season 2 episode 6.**
The Night Manager season 2 finale is a truly brutal watch that will change Jonathan Pine (Tom Hiddleston) forever.
The suave spy has, up to now, seemed slick enough to worm his way out of anything, albeit not without some nasty cuts and bruises, but it would be an understatement to say that his luck has run out.
When he left behind his quiet life in London, Pine was blissfully unaware that fallen nemesis Richard Roper (Hugh Laurie) was still at large. But now, the worst man in the world has restored his position in the cruellest fashion imaginable.
Screenwriter David Farr summarised: “Pine ends in a very dark place, because he genuinely thought ‘I can get everything’, which is the classic Pine.
“You can call it arrogance, ambition, brilliance, but it is his flaw – and it can cause scorched earth. And it’s happened again here.”
If you’re feeling as sore as we are after that gut-wrenching hour of television, we hope you can find some solace in this exclusive chat with Farr and The Night Manager season 2 director Georgi Banks-Davies.
The dynamic duo behind Pine’s comeback delve into the key moments from the harrowing finale, including those jaw-dropping deaths, a surprising love story and a few hints at what’s to come in The Night Manager season 3.
The Night Manager season 2 ending explained: David Farr and Georgi Banks-Davies speak outTeddy’s death will break hearts – but there’s an upside
Diego Calva plays Teddy Dos Santos in The Night Manager season 2 BBC/Ink Factory/Des Willie
Admirers of Diego Calva’s sultry villain-turned-antihero Teddy Dos Santos will have been bracing themselves for this inevitability, but it still hits you like a ton of bricks.
Despite all his wrongdoing, including some grisly murders, there remained a starkly visible soul to Teddy that desperately yearned to be rescued – and for a moment, it seemed that Pine might just manage it (more on that below).
But alas, while he was able to turn Teddy against a father who never truly valued him, he couldn’t protect him as their devious scheme went catastrophically wrong.
In one final showdown in a Colombian forest, Roper somewhat sombrely announced that Teddy had committed a cardinal sin by plotting against him, and proceeded to put a bullet in his brain.
“Unfortunately, for the big architecture of the piece, he has to suffer that terrible fate,” lamented Farr. “For the satisfying nature of what’s going to happen next, it was essential. And it was the one thing, weirdly, that I knew from very early on.”
Diego Calva stars in The Night Manager season 2. BBC/Ink Factory/Des Willie
To Farr, season 2 is tale of “fathers and sons” that casts Roper as the aloof patriarch to heir-in-waiting Danny (Noah Jupe), challenging “surrogate” Pine and, tragically, a kicked runt of the litter in Teddy.
If there’s a silver lining to the horrid turn of events, it would be that Teddy goes on a “journey” that neither Pine nor Roxana (Camila Morrone) are able to complete, according to Banks-Davies.
“He understands who he is, what he’s done, and he’s ready for whatever the consequence of that is,” she said. “As terrible as it is to lose him, there is a sort of peace within him. He’s probably not as sad about it as we all are.”
Farr added: “He’s lived a lie around this father figure, and to be freed of that lie – painful though it is – is the liberating thing. He dies for that, but he dies a freer person than he was when he was alive.”
It’s a comforting thought (kind of), but I’ll still be wearing black for the foreseeable future.
Were Teddy and Pine really in love?
Tom Hiddleston and Diego Calva star in The Night Manager season 2 BBC / Ink Factory / Des Willie
Far be it from us to make a sad ending even sadder, but yes.
From early in the season, Pine had shared intense interactions with Teddy that went beyond his usual tricks, from being cradled in a pool of water (while whispering “make me clean”) to a steamy dance where Roxana swiftly became a third wheel.
It’s an unexpected turn for the character, although quite in keeping with the works of le Carré, who Farr describes as having “a very strong tradition of homoeroticism” in his works, including Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy.
The screenwriter made clear that he aimed to convey a “deep, deep attraction” between Pine and Teddy, which was destined to never be acted upon due to the perilous situation in which they find themselves.
“The story necessitates a shift,” explained Farr, addressing the point of no return when Pine’s ‘Matthew Ellis’ persona is dropped. “Suddenly, what Pine needs from him is very operational and also very emotional.
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“He realises that this guy is really in trouble and he can, actually, maybe turn him and therefore rescue him – and that shifts it away from the erotic in such a simple way.”
Banks-Davies concurred: “There is no doubt that they love each other. And what we were trying to do, in terms of the performance as well, is create this feeling that neither expects it.
“It’s that great magic of life when you can suddenly be sideswiped by somebody, and you had no idea it was coming.”
Getting out ahead of my questioning, she clarified: “There could be the question: ‘Is he acting?’ Is it a bit The Day of the Jackal in that he’s pretending to be queer to seduce this man? No, he isn’t, actually – he falls for him, and I really strongly believe that.
“And I think that, in the performance, Tom and Diego believe that.”
Who killed Angela Burr? And more importantly, why?
Olivia Colman stars in The Night Manager season 2. BBC/Ink Factory/Des Willie
As if we hadn’t suffered enough, The Night Manager season 2 struck another player off the board in its final moments, which see Angela Burr (Olivia Colman) gunned down in her home.
Moments before the killing, she is frantically recording a voice message for somebody (see above), presumably consisting of everything she knows about the Roper conspiracy.
When her body is discovered by her young daughter, the scene resembles the beginning of a whodunnit as the culprit has already fled. But Farr explained that the important question is not who killed Angela, but why was she targeted?
“Who literally pulled the trigger, I think, is irrelevant,” he said. “We’re in a world of hired killers here. Nobody goes and does the job themselves, let’s be completely clear about that. That’s not interesting.
“But the choices behind it and the reasons behind it… Those absolutely count. So her death will absolutely figure very strongly as an ignition point for the next season, because we’re going to follow on quicker this time. There will be consequences.”
Of course, in the decade since the first season, Colman has become a global superstar, with an Academy Award win (and two further nominations) to her name. Could that real-world context have had something to do with Angela’s death?
Olivia Colman and Tom Hiddleston star in The Night Manager season 2 BBC / Ink Factory / Des Willie
“It’s a show about Pine and Roper,” said Farr. “It’s about these two iconic figures going head-to-head in a tragic battle for supremacy. Burr’s role, in season 1, was to be the good angel in Pine’s ear.
“Burr’s smaller role in season 2 was compromised by her very problematic decision to lie [about Roper’s ‘death’], and then a redemptive arc for her, which [Colman] really enjoyed playing.”
He continued: “It felt like, and this is where life and art meld in all sorts of complicated ways, that both for Olivia and for the role, that could only sustain for so long in a way that was really interesting.
“I didn’t want to try to persuade her to play a jolly, enjoyable supporting role in season 3, being the head of a nice support team. It’s much better to give her a seismic moment, which reads really meaningful from a narrative point of view.”
Farr added: “Her legacy will continue, in terms of what she’s been up to in those final days, so it just felt much richer… In the end, I think everyone understands that those bold moments are what make this show special.”
Why does Roper send a rose?
Hugh Laurie stars in The Night Manager season 2. BBC/Ink Factory/Des Willie
The twist that seals the fate of so many is Roper’s detection of an attempt to divert an electromagnetic pulse device away from him and his Colombian co-conspirators.
The devious counter, which sees him revive his ‘watch the cups’ taunt from season 1, dooms Angela, Teddy and very nearly Jonathan too, plus hundreds of innocent civilians in the resulting coup.
As if that wasn’t enough, Roper twists the knife by placing a single red rose inside the decoy package, which lands in front of Pine’s ally Sally (Hayley Squires) and embattled attorney general Consuelo Arbenz (Cristina Umaña Rojas).
“It relates back, I suppose, to the rose that Teddy leaves at the grave of his mother,” said Farr. “At that point, of course, Roper knows the truth. He realises the betrayal. I think he’s done it instinctively, which is kind of how I did it, to be really honest.”
Banks-Davies added: “A rose is so contradictory, because it’s actually saying, ‘I love you all – well done, touché, that was a good game of chess. I’ll shake your hand’.”
David Farr on those startling real-life parallels
Tom Hiddleston as Jonathan Pine in The Night Manager season 2 BBC / Ink Factory / Des Willie
Of course, the similarities between The Night Manager season 2’s plot and the recent news cycle have been tough to miss.
As Pine and his allies fought to prevent regime change in Colombia, we saw that very situation play out in the fellow South American nation of Venezuela, with the United States as the instigating party.
A key difference is that Colombia is a democratic country, whereas Venezuela under Nicolás Maduro was an authoritarian regime, but some commentators have suggested that the Trump administration didn’t act solely out of altruism.
It hasn’t gone unnoticed that Venezuela boasts vast oil reserves that US companies now stand to gain from. In the words of Adam Holywell (Kerr Logan) to Basil (Paul Chahidi) in episode 4, it could represent a “golden goose” to some private entities.
Although The Night Manager season 2 might seem oddly prescient, Farr is quick to point out that South America has been a “colonial playground” for hundreds of years, brutally shaped by various international forces.
“I spent quite a long time in Colombia researching and talking to a lot of Colombians, and it did become clear that they are constantly expecting this sort of thing,” he stated.
Hugh Laurie stars in The Night Manager season 2 BBC/Ink Factory/Des Willie
“It’s not something that, for them, would be as unexpected as it might have been for us, because that’s been the history for a long time, whether it be Venezuela or Chile. This has happened a lot.”
Despite the USA controversially taking this latest action, and the UK’s global influence often perceived as waning, Farr is “absolutely certain” that Roper would remain British if The Night Manager novel were written today.
“Partly because le Carré’s theme has always been Britain’s attempt to play bigger on the world stage than it now, naturally, is,” he explained.
“Roper is not, of course, a representative of the British government. Roper plays global. He plays with people fast and loose. He’ll use the British, but he can easily use someone else. He’s not someone who’s partisan, necessarily, to Britain,” continued Farr.
“I think he sees himself as patriotic at one level, but he’s also utterly ruthless, so he’s a distinct creature. But even in terms of the British government and its role… they’re trying to make sure Britain gets to play at the top table.”
What is Mayra’s deal?
Indira Varma in The Night Manager season 2. The Ink Factory/BBC/Amazon/Des Willie
A menacing figure looming over The Night Manager season 2 is MI6 boss Mayra Cavendish (played by Indira Varma), who ordered Basil’s tragic execution and quite plausibly had a hand in Angela’s murder too.
But for a figure with such enormous impact, Mayra remains something of a mystery to viewers.
She was parachuted into her senior position in the period between seasons 1 and 2, where she proceeded to stonewall Burr’s final investigation into Roper following his fake death. But what drives her to his defence?
“We’ve kept her a little in reserve,” admits Farr. “The show was absolutely packed [but] there’s more to come. And I think you will, in season 3, discover what really drives her.
“I think you’ve got some indications – ambition and patriotism, I think, are both clearly present in what she’s about. But I think there’s much more to come from her.”
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Farr also points out an icy exchange between Roper and Mayra, in which he boldly describes his MI6 accomplice as a frog in water who doesn’t realise she’s boiling alive. It doesn’t go down well.
“I think we see the potential there for something that’s really interesting between those two characters,” the writer teased.
Banks-Davies suggests that the ambiguity surrounding Mayra is also a result of wanting to avoid the kind of “two-dimensional baddie that often you see in the thriller genre”.
She said: “There’s this archetypal baddie [where] we don’t really need to know their motivation. They’re just serving a purpose. And what’s great about Indira and the character of Mayra is you lean in and you want to know more.
“There’s a fully rounded human there. There’s a fully rounded woman who’s clearly got a very specific thought process and very specific sense of who she is and her morals, and you just want to know them… I think that’s really exciting.”
Will Roxana return in The Night Manager season 3?
Camila Morrone in The Night Manager season 2. The Ink Factory/BBC/Amazon/Des Willie
One character largely absent from the discussion above is Roxana, who sold out Teddy and Pine, but saved her own skin by doing so. Is that as close as she’ll get to a ‘happy ending’?
“I absolutely love her final scene with [Roper], where he realises that he’s sort of met his match; that she is as tough and as ruthless in her view of the world as he is, and he sort of lets her go,” shared Farr.
“Nothing’s for certain, of course, but it feels like she’s reached a very interesting point… She is a survivor, and that’s a very satisfying resolution for her. I can’t say at the moment whether it feels that there’s more to come out of that.”
Roxana does, however, have an influential fan in Banks-Davies, who said: “As a character in this genre, I think she’s fascinating and brilliant because she’s self-serving and only looks after number one.
“She doesn’t need to be saved by a man. She’s one of the very few characters, except for Pine, who really stands up to Roper… You don’t see women like that on screen.
“I think we’re so conditioned to seeing the female sidekick or the love interest or the ‘save me’ [archetype] – and she’s just none of those. She’s actually like, ‘I can manipulate you into thinking you’re saving me, but I’m saving myself,’ which is badass.”
The Night Manager season 2 is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
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