The Netflix series “You – You will love me” starring Penn Badgley is a complete success. Even if the second part of the fourth season was only released last month, there were already rumors about a sequel that should be shown from 2024. Netflix has now officially confirmed another season of the series. So the story about bookseller Joe Goldberg should soon go into its final round. Nothing official is known about the exact content of the finale, but murderous tendencies of the main character cannot be ruled out after season four.
Because: Even if “You” seems to have increasingly developed into a thriller with a fast-paced cat-and-mouse game in the most recent season, it turns out in the end that the main character cannot completely let go of his toxic behavior. Set in London, Goldberg (aka Jonathan Moore – that’s Joe’s new identity) starts out as a detective who seems to be hot on the trail of a clever serial killer intent on taking Joe down himself.
So Joe mutates from a stalker to a stalker – one thinks. The initially unusual change turns out to be an illusion after the first half of the season, the storyline takes new (familiar) directions and Joe finds himself in a crazy vicious circle of fantasies, from which it is almost impossible to distinguish between reality and illusion.
But not only the viewers are surprised by the sudden twists and turns. Confronted and overwhelmed by his actual deeds, Joe tries to take his own life in the season finale of the fourth part – without success. The unexpected end offers plenty of potential for a subsequent season with the usual psychopath behavior including stalking and Co.
Some people hope for a change in the storyline – despite the usual dramatic ending in favor of the main character. “Vengeance” is the keyword of season five, at least if you believe the words of leading actor Badgley. In his podcast, the Hollywood star wishes that Goldberg would finally be settled. Screenwriter Sarah Gamble is also looking forward to a “pleasant, twisted conclusion” to the series. However, it is still unclear whether this corresponds to Badgley’s ideas.
“I signed a six-year contract when it started,” Badgley reveals on his podcast. Two more seasons would therefore be possible, but the actor is increasingly assuming that the successful series will actually come to an end with season five. However, as Badgley points out to Indie Wire, it’s finally time for Joe to get his punishment in season five. So he deserved a different ending than season four offered. Goldberg murdered, mutilated, instrumentalized and buried corpses non-stop in the series. However, our favorite psychopath never suffered any relevant consequences.
With that in mind, Badgley believes an ending with a clear message is imperative. “It feels to me like we have to do one more season. It feels to me like Joe needs to get what he deserves and now he needs to fall because he has all this power and wealth.” , says the 36-year-old. But that’s just his personal opinion, he says.
“I think what’s particularly scary or dystopian is that he actually won. They took that man and put him on top,” he explains. He describes the character as an icon of postmodernism. Despite his downsides and all his deeds, Joe is popular, which is why it needs a morally satisfying ending with resonance.
In the past, the series has already been controversially discussed with regard to the trivialization of the topic of stalking and violence. The woman killer is too sympathetic, the female roles too stereotypical and the series should be viewed critically with regard to the trivialization and romanticization of stalking and psychopathic behavior patterns. For example, feminist sites like Refinery29 warned that the way stalking violence is portrayed encourages men to continue to engage in abusive behavior towards women and also makes women feel that stalking is some kind of extreme form of romantic behavior.
It is still unclear what the screenwriter and the director will decide in the end and whether Joe will receive just punishment. “I know that everyone involved, top to bottom, doesn’t want this show to be tiring,” the actor explains. So all the stars are currently pointing to a fast-paced fifth season – with or without a lesson for Joe Goldberg.
