Ending of ‘Sirens,’ Explained: Breaking Down Simone’s Decision
If you’ve mainlined all five episodes of the latest Netflix limited series Sirens and have questions about cults, murderers, and what the hell happened to Simone (Milly Alcock), we’ve got you covered.
Based on creator Molly Smith Metzler’s 2011 play Elemeno Pea, Sirens is an addictive, propulsive game of power plays between the three central women: Simone, her sister Devon (Meghann Fahy), and Simone’s boss Michaela “Kiki” Kell (Julianne Moore). When Devon arrives at the idyllic beach mansion belonging to Kiki and her ultra-wealthy husband Peter (Kevin Bacon), she has one simple plan: bring Simone home to Buffalo to help care for their dementia-ridden father Bruce (Bill Camp). But she doesn’t expect that Simone will not only betray her, but also Kiki—the socialite that Simone works for, reveres, and emulates.
Sirens is ultimately a tale about what rules we’ll break and what morals we’ll compromise for power. It’s not unlike other shows in the rich-people-behaving-badly subgenre—especially the ones set in picture-esque locales (The Perfect Couple, also starring Fahy, Nine Perfect Strangers, The White Lotus, etc.), though there ends up being no murder-mystery or cult at all (for the best), but confounding decisions are still made. By the end of the season, Simone becomes the new Mrs. Kell, and the final shot of the season is of her standing at the edge of the cliff with the sprawling estate behind her, like Simba looking out at his kingdom in The Lion King.
So, how did we get there? Below is a breakdown of the ending of Sirens and everything leading to the final moments in the finale, “Siren Song.”
Simone (Milly Alcock) examining the Kell house staff in Sirens.
(Image credit: Netflix)
Does Simone get the job running Michaela’s foundation in ‘Sirens?’
Kiki was ready to give her protege Simone a huge promotion to run her foundation in New York, complete with a new apartment, but the offer is pulled off the table at the start of “Siren Song” when she finds the photos of Peter and Simone kissing. Feeling threatened, Kiki wordlessly has Simone’s belongings boxed up to be donated to Goodwill, before she simultaneously fires her and kicks her out of the house.
Ethan (Glenn Howerton) proposes to Simone after their summer fling, much to her surprise.
(Image credit: Netflix)
Who does Simone end up with in ‘Sirens?’
Though Simone snuck around with Peter’s best friend, Ethan (Glenn Howerton), for much of the series, she doesn’t marry him after he impulsively got down on one knee for her. Overwhelmed by Ethan’s grand gesture to bring her estranged father to the island for the proposal and the guilt she felt from lying about the relationship to Kiki, Simone doesn’t say yes to Ethan. He later accidentally falls off a cliff (though he claims Simone pushed him), landing him in the hospital and forcing Simone to confront all of the things she’s been running from. But that doesn’t last too long. When everything she has is stripped away when Kiki fires her, she holds onto this picturesque life the only way she knows how: by colluding with Peter to steal Kiki’s spot as his wife.
Yes, you read that previous sentence correctly: Simone steals Kiki’s husband Peter at the end of the series. “Am I not supposed to walk through a door that opens?” Simone asks Devon when her sister is visibly disgusted by her actions. Though Simone’s motivations to do so don’t feel earned, her decision continues the show’s themes of backstabbing in the name of power; Michaela is Peter’s second wife, and their marriage is the product of an affair. Until this point, Simone worshiped the ground that Michaela walked on. But since going back to Buffalo to relive her hellacious childhood with her father is her worst nightmare, Simone chooses the most savage way out of her predicament.
Simone and Peter (Kevin Bacon) make a shocking decision by the end of Sirens.
(Image credit: Netflix)
Why does Peter leave Michaela in ‘Sirens?’
At the gala, Peter pulls Michaela aside to tell her he’s unhappy in their marriage and concludes that he’s never been happy with her. She counters, citing their prenuptial agreement that “only valued her ovaries,” and asks him to take responsibility for the estrangement from his kids, which he blamed on her. After he suggests that he’d like to have another child (with someone else, as Michaela was unable to have children), he says they’ll have the rest of this conversation via their lawyers. Simone arrives at the end of their argument in the dress Michaela had made for her, gliding into her new position at Peter’s side.
Devon (Meghann Fahy) originally travels to the Kells’s island estate in hopes of “saving” her sister.
(Image credit: Netflix)
Who does Devon end up with in ‘Sirens?’
In the penultimate episode, Devon viciously fights with Raymond (Josh Segarra), her hometown friend with whom she has an on-and-off relationship, telling him that he brings out the worst in her and she’d be better off if he drowned. Despite the horrible way her feelings are communicated, it serves as a much-needed breakup, in both friendly and romantic ways, for the duo with a very complicated history.
Her island fling, Morgan (Trevor Salter), offers her a spot on a month-long excursion, which she initially accepts and views as a beacon of hope for a new chapter. But when her dad’s dementia flares up while they’re discussing her departure, she realizes she can’t be away for that long and opts to return to Buffalo with him. However, she leaves the door open with Morgan, hoping to join him on a future voyage.
Over its five episodes, the limited series reveals Devon essentially raised Simone.
(Image credit: Netflix)
Where does the relationship between sisters Simone and Devon stand at the end of ‘Sirens?’
Even after a very real conversation with Devon about their father’s diagnosis and how much she’d value her sister’s help, Simone still chooses to put herself first. Devon can’t understand why her sister would betray Michaela and pushes back on Simone’s reasoning of letting go of things that don’t serve her. “You didn’t serve me, but I didn’t let you go,” Devon says tearfully, recounting how she dropped out of college to raise Simone—something she’s proud of herself for doing. They say, “I love you,” to one another before Devon watches Simone be christened as the next Mrs. Kell from afar, realizing she’s lost the battle of saving her sister’s soul.
The truths about Michaela (Julianne Moore) and the choices she had to make are revealed in the final moments of the finale.
(Image credit: Netflix)
Was Michaela a cult leader or murderer in ‘Sirens?’
As soon as Devon arrives on the island in the first episode, she clocks Michaela’s aviary foundation as a fraudulent, potentially cult-like institution, mostly because of their “hey hey” greeting and how the members hang on every word she says. But on the ferry back to the mainland in the finale, Devon finally gets to question Michaela face-to-face. She reveals that the culty greeting had no meaning behind it, and that the foundation wasn’t nefarious. “People will do anything if you’re Mrs. Kell,” she explains. “You just have to tell them what the rules are.”
As for the murder allegations, she’s innocent on that front, too. Michaela reveals that Peter’s first wife, Jocelyn, is no longer seen in public due to a botched plastic surgery procedure. Jocelyn developed necrosis, which rendered half of her face dead, and she now chooses to live as a recluse. Sirens slightly missteps in even suggesting both of these character beats for Michaela, as it plays a little too closely to stereotypes of the rich and powerful and diverts from the rich interpersonal drama of the show, but the idea behind it begs an interesting question: What would you do to gain power?
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