You Season 5 Ending Explained: Does Joe get away one last time?

For one last time, Hello, You! The series that has been running for so long is finally coming to an end. While it wasn’t perfect, the journey led to this ending, and now it’s time to finally ask—will Joe pay for what he has done? The finale of You season 5 on Netflix does answer that question. 

The season picks up three years after season 4, when Joe and Kate left London to return to New York and begin a new life. At the beginning of season 5, Joe has it all. He has his son Henry’s custody back, his loving wife, Kate, and Mooney’s after a negotiation with the ex-owner. 

But none of this is enough for Joe. He falls for Bronte, a woman who visits his bookstore and catches his attention immediately. From then on, things spiral into madness. So, what happens next? In this article, we will discuss it all. 

What Happens to Joe in Season 5 of You?

Over the course of the season, Kate gets a moral reckoning and locks Joe in his cage. She gets Nadia out and calls Marianne. All three of them confront Joe, and after getting locked in a burning basement, Joe confesses to killing Love Quinn. Kate sends his recording to Nadia for the police. But Joe? He gets saved by Bronte at the very last minute. 

Both of them get out of Mooney’s safely, and Joe proposes to her, which she accepts. However, she vows internally to destroy him. Both of them flee to Canada so that Joe can cross the border. They decide to squat in a massive house in the woods where the action happens. 

After dinner, Joe and Bronte go out in a rowboat where he serenades her. This makes Bronte ask why she feels “this good” when she knows who he is. She answers it herself when she thinks that- “Who doesn’t love to be loved? More than Justice, more than reality, love is just stronger. And you weaponize it.” 

When they move to their bedroom, Bronte pulls out a gun and holds it to Joe’s head. She asks him to confess to killing Guinevere Beck. She then gets Beck’s book and asks him to take out every word so that only Beck’s voice will remain. He does as asked but still tries to manipulate her by saying that she is more scared of his absence than of him. 

He also adds, “No one will ever love you like I do again, I embraced all of you. And I still do.” She reaches for the phone to call 911, but he lunges at her and the two fight for their lives. However, Joe grabs a hold of the gun and shoots Bronte in her stomach. 

Bleeding and in pain, she hides and tries to call 911 again, but the cracked phone makes it difficult for her to dial. When she does manage to call, Joe tackles her and begins strangling her while saying that he will show her how he killed Beck. However, Bronte stabs him with the self-defense cat ears she had bought when they had stopped at a gas station.

He tries to drown her in the lake, but has to leave as he hears police sirens in the distance. Bronte couldn’t say anything to the 911 operator when she called, but they heard Joe’s confession and sent in the forces. Joe kills one cop and then tries to find out a way to get out of this mess, but then he hears a gun cock behind him and turns to find Bronte/ Louise is standing. 

She says, “I’ve been asking myself over and over why? And finally, I see it clearly. The fantasy of a man like you is how we cope with the reality of a man like you.” Then she shoots him right in his private part. 

Does Joe go to jail in You Season 5?

Yes, Louise explains through a voiceover that Joe Goldberg’s trial was messy, but the truth was revealed entirely. He was convicted of the murders of Love Quinn and Guinevere, and there were other allegations of murders, including of Peach and Benji. Also, thanks to Louise, Joe’s survivors, Phoenix, and Dominique, Dr. Nicky’s conviction was stopped as well. 

Joe gets sent to prison, where he says that his punishment is worse than he had imagined. He says, “The loneliness. Oh my god. The loneliness. No hope of being held.” He also says that he was just a product of his environment, “Hurt people hurt people. I never stood a chance.”

A fan letter then gets slipped into his cell. As he reads it, the final narration from him is, “Why am I in a cage when these crazies write me all the depraved things they want me to do to them? Maybe we have a problem with society. We should fix what’s wrong with us. Maybe the problem isn’t me. Maybe the problem is you.” 

With this, the show ends as Radiohead’s Creep plays. His monologue means that Joe hasn’t changed at all. He is still as delusional as ever and refuses to take any accountability for his actions. In doing so, the show also ensures that he never gets a last-minute redemption. 

What happens to Kate in You Season 5?

Kate returns to art once Teddy makes Lockwood Corp a non-profit. She also champions Marianne’s work. As for Henry, Charlotte survives Mooney’s fire and cares for him. Henry now has to decide what kind of man he wants to become. Also, he called Joe when he was in the middle of his confrontation with Bronte, all to tell him that he was the monster in his and his mother’s lives. 

What Happens to the Other Characters in You Season 5?

After Joe’s conviction, Nadia goes back to writing and teaches women how to process their trauma. As for Harrison, the charges get dropped, and he gets a happily ever after with Maddie, who is expecting twins. Beck’s book also gets republished by Louise without the additions of Joe. 

Is You Season 6 Coming out?

No, Netflix has confirmed that season 5 of You will be the last one. So, this is the end of Joe’s story. You can watch all the seasons of You on Netflix.