Here’s What Really Happened During the ‘Big Little Lies’ Finale

If you’re anything like us, you’ve now invested over seven hours diving into the super rich world of Big Little Lies and countless hours dissecting the murder at the center of the story. Last night, HBO gave us the answer to the question that has been plaguing audiences from the beginning: Who killed who in this gossipy drama about parenting? The only problem is the show threw the answer to its central question in the last 15 minutes of its final episode.

In order for the finale of Big Little Lies to work, you have to make several correct assumptions. If you did your viewing research, you probably stumbled across the right answer even if you’re not entirely sure you did. However, if you didn’t, you’re likely pretty lost about why the series ended this way. Here’s what actually happened during those shaky final moments according to the novel the miniseries is based on. Spoilers ahead.

Does the book end the same way as the miniseries?

More or less yes. The same person dies in the same way, but there are some slight differences. If you ever want to read more Madeline Martha Mackenzie quotes, I highly recommend reading.

Is Perry (Alexander Skarsgård) really Ziggy’s father?

Yes. This is a plot point the book makes much clearer than the show. The identity of Ziggy’s father and Jane’s (Shailene Woodley) rapist has been a mystery that has haunted the series from its first episode. Halfway through the series, Madeline Martha Mackenzie (Reese Witherspoon) and Celeste (Nicole Kidman) learn that the name of Jane’s assailant is Saxon Banks. This is where the narrative shifts a little.

In the series, “Saxon Banks” is just an ominous name that the confused and hurt Jane simultaneously tries to avoid and confront. Madeline Martha Mackenzie and Celeste try to discover his real identity, but they don’t find much. However in the books, Saxon Banks is the name of Perry’s (Alexander Skarsgård) cousin. It’s later revealed that Perry used that fake name when he assaulted Jane. In both the show and book, no one realizes Ziggy’s parentage until Jane sees Perry on the balcony.

In the series, this vital plot point is communicated almost exclusively through pointed looks between the three leading ladies. The book is far more direct. When Jane first sees and is introduced to Perry, she says “I think we’ve already met.” Everyone is too distracted by their own dramas and their increasing drunkenness to realize the weight behind her words until Jane adds “Except you said your name was Saxon Banks.”

Cue the outrage and the realization that Perry is actually the biggest garbage person on television.

Why did Bonnie push Perry?

The show presents a weird dynamic. Three women who have been wrapped in each others lives for weeks and Laura Dern scrappily punch and kick the abusive monster before them. However, it’s Bonnie (Zoe Kravitz), the calm, centered yoga enthusiast that pushes Perry to his death. In the series, it’s a jarring moment that feels like it’s trying to force Bonnie back into the narrative. However, the books are a completely different story.

The novel describes Bonnie losing her practiced calmness and becoming a woman who could come from the “wrong side of town.” Later, the novel explains that Bonnie came from an abusive family, so when she sees Perry violently kicking his wife, she reacts gutturally. It’s a powerful revelation that connects every one of the story’s central characters to men who have destroyed and violated them. Most of this is lost in the series, as well as the chilling condemnation Bonnie gives to Perry right before pushing him. From Liane Moriarty’s novel:

“Your children see!” screamed Bonnie. Her face was ugly with rage. “We see! We fucking see!”

Do they get in trouble for killing Perry?

The series ends with all of the show’s leading ladies lying about what happened on the balcony that fateful night. The cop sees through their obvious BS but seems to let them off the hook, allowing the show to end with a shot of all five women and their children enjoying the beach. The lies are a testament to these characters’ newfound strength and friendship with each other. However, for fans vexed by the intense wealth of the series, it may be frustrating to watch a show about how a bunch of rich people proudly get away with murder. If this is bothering you, you may be pleased to learn the book ends differently.

In the novel, everyone agrees to defend Bonnie, but Bonnie turns herself in. Because she’s charged with manslaughter instead of murder, she’s only sentenced to perform community service, which the kind-hearted and philanthropic Bonnie completes happily. The last scene of the book sees the seemingly perfect Celeste giving a speech about domestic abuse to an auditorium of people, explaining that it can happen to anyone. It’s still an ending that’s a bit too picture perfect, but it’s more nuanced than the ending we saw last night.

Is Madeline Martha Mackenzie and Ed’s marriage OK?

No idea. The affair dividing the only relatively sweet, stable couple was never in the book, and it’s barely addressed in the finale. However, if there’s a second season, this will likely be what they show will focus on.

Now that the big stuff is out of the way, it’s time for the smaller, pettier, and more obsessive questions:

Is everyone super rich in the book?

Nope. Only Celeste and Perry are rolling in money. The rest of the families are mostly middle class. Economic disparity is actually a big theme of the book because Big Little Lies’ central school is attended by everyone, from children of plumbers to children of CEOs.

Is Bonnie non-white in the book?

She is not. That was a change that was made for the series, and as Decider’s Lea Palmieri points out, it can be interpreted as a problematic one.

Why was everyone attending an Audrey-Elvis party?

I can’t really tell you that, but it was still a thing in the book. The book, which was set in Sydney Australia, has seemingly no connection to Audrey Hepburn and Elvis Presley. Even more confusingly, these two celebrities seemingly had nothing to do with each other when they were alive. It’s just a weird BLL quirk.

Why does Ed (Adam Scott) have two Elvis costumes?

I wish I could answer that. I also can’t tell you why Ed chose to wear a dopey Hawaiian shirt to an Elvis party when he has a kickass full body suit in his closet. Some things will always remain a mystery.

Stream Big Little Lies on HBO