Was Michaela leading a cult?

Loosely inspired by the songstresses from Greek mythology, Netflix’s Sirens is a funny, moving exploration of femininity and class.

The series stars Meghann Fahy and Milly Alcock as working-class sisters entering the upper-crust milieu of Julianne Moore’s Michaela Kell, a savvy and magnetic billionaire philanthropist. Alcock’s Simone finds herself entranced by Michaela’s world upon becoming her assistant, while Devon, a college dropout with addiction issues and a toxic (and married) boyfriend, is suspicious of it.

In fact, Devon suspects Michaela of sweeping Simone up in a cult. She also believes that Michaela may have murdered Jocelyn, the mysteriously absent first wife of her old-money husband, Peter Kell (Kevin Bacon). Much to Simone’s chagrin, Devon makes her feelings about Michaela known during a Labor Day weekend visit to Cliff House, Peter and Michaela’s estate on an idyllic island.

So, is it true? Is Michaela as malevolent as Devon suspects? And is Simone in danger? We answer those questions and more below. Read on for Entertainment Weekly‘s Sirens ending explainer.

Was Michaela leading a cult?

No, Michaela was not running a cult. She is simply a beautiful, charismatic, and very rich woman, which is bound to prompt worship-like behavior from those in her orbit. Sure, she and her entourage are weird, but anyone who’s spent time around the 1% knows that there’s an alien quality to the hyper-rich.

“People will do anything for you when you’re Mrs. Kell,” Michaela admits to Devon in the episode’s closing moments. “You just tell them what the rules are.”

Michaela’s Folger Wildlife Preservation Society, meanwhile, is exactly what it sounds like — a wildlife foundation that works to care for the birds populating their little slice of paradise. That’s nice, huh?

Did Michaela kill Jocelyn?

That’s also a no. Despite there being ample intrigue and mystery around what happened to Peter’s first wife, the truth is pretty depressing.

Devon confronts Michaela at the Kells’ Labor Day gala, her anger and suspicions boiling over. “You know what you are?” she shouts for the whole room of glammed-up patrons to hear. “You’re a megalomaniac, cult leader, slut, whore, and a murderer. That’s right, we all know what you did to Jocelyn, babe.”

Michaela explains to Devon that Jocelyn isn’t dead, but living as a recluse on an island in the Pacific Northwest. She hasn’t been seen in public for a decade, having been disfigured by a plastic surgery procedure gone wrong after her divorce from Peter.

“We try to respect her privacy by not speaking about her publicly,” Michaela adds.

Why does Michaela fire Simone?

Michaela fires Simone after being shown a photo of Peter and Simone kissing.

In episode 3, Peter kissed Simone after a day spent quahogging (digging for clams), but Simone didn’t reciprocate. Of course, Michaela doesn’t know that, so she fires Simone and shows her the photo, which she locks away for “insurance.”

This is devastating for Simone, who was just promoted from Michaela’s assistant to the head of one of the Kells’ foundations in New York City. Now, she’s destined to move back to Buffalo to help care for her father, Bruce (Bill Camp), who’s suffering from dementia.

This fate is Simone’s worst nightmare, in part due to the trauma of her childhood years.

What happened to Simone as a child?

Throughout Sirens, viewers learn that Simone and Devon grew up in less-than-ideal circumstances. Though Devon suffered, it was the younger Simone who was impacted most. When she was 7, her mother committed suicide by running her car in a closed garage, a tube funneling exhaust into the front seat. Simone was in the car at the time and would have died if not for Devon pulling her out.

A depressed Bruce was unable to properly care for the girls in the aftermath, and things got worse when Devon left home for college. In the finale, Bruce apologizes to Simone for neglecting her.

“I shut the door when you called out to me,” he says. Simone eventually went into foster care, while Devon dropped out of college to care for her.

Since Simone will be coming back to Buffalo to help care for him, Bruce promises that he’ll “do better this time.”

The idea of living with him again, whether he does better or not, is too horrible for her to consider. She runs away, heading back to Cliff House.

What happens between Michaela, Peter, and Simone?

Simone reconnects with Peter on the beach, revealing to him that Michaela knows he kissed her and has the picture locked away in her safe. He confronts Michaela, telling her he’s unhappy. He tries to make it her fault, saying that her insecurity over her infertility has impacted his ability to see his kids with Jocelyn.

Michaela knows that’s bull, telling him that it’s his own fault. He’s not swayed and tells her that the photo of him and Simone kissing has been destroyed. And when Simone comes down the stairs in a gown, ready for the gala, Michaela realizes she’s been replaced — not only as Peter’s wife, but as the head of the wildlife foundation.

We know that Simone doesn’t love Peter. She seemed put off when he kissed her, but she got a taste of life as a one-percenter and refuses to give it up for her father, the source of so much trauma. So when he told her he was falling in love with her, she saw it as an opportunity.

Devon is disappointed in her sister. “What about Michaela?” she asks.

“If it doesn’t serve you, let it go,” Simone replies.

While Devon could join Simone in her world of wealth and privilege — hunky boat captain Morgan (Trevor Salter) has invited her on a month-long trip to Palm Beach — she says she’s going back to Buffalo to care for their father.

“I want to go home and take care of Dad,” she says. “Dropping out of college to take care of you is the best thing I’ve ever done. I don’t think you understand how proud I am of myself that I did that. You didn’t serve me, and I didn’t let you go. But now I have to.”

Simone asks why Devon is being so dramatic, saying that she’ll make an effort to reconnect with her soon. But they both know this is a hollow promise. The gulf that’s grown between them isn’t just one of distance, but of class and privilege. There’s no place for Devon in Simone’s new life as the partner of a billionaire.

How does Sirens end?

In the final scenes of Sirens, Devon rides the ferry back to the mainland with Bruce. Sipping coffee with her dad, she sees Michaela board the ferry and follows her.

Devon apologizes, and Michaela asks for what. “Oh, murder accusations. Cult accusations. Light theft. Toiletries and a couple of necklaces.” Michaela accepts her apology, and Devon tells her she plans on getting her own place, “somewhere with light.” Michaela tells Devon to cash the $10,000 check she previously cut for her “before it bounces.”

Devon asks Michaela about Simone, and Michaela is pessimistic about her future with Peter. “But Jocelyn thought the same thing about me,” she concedes. “And it took him 13 years to decide I was a monster.”

“You’re not a monster, Michaela,” says Devon.

“Neither is she,” Michaela responds. She’s talking about Simone, who she knows isn’t selfish so much as trying to take control of her life away from those who hurt her.

The series ends with Simone standing outside Cliff House as the sun sets over the island, the new queen of this kingdom.

Where can I watch Sirens?

Sirens is currently streaming on Netflix.

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