The Perfect Couple Ending Explained: Who Killed Merritt Monaco?

The Perfect Couple’s murder mystery plot is full of twists and turns that keep viewers guessing until the shocking ending, which reveals the killer and their true motivations. The Netflix miniseries, which is based on the book of the same name by New York Times bestselling author Elin Hilderbrand, opened with the Winbury and Sacks families coming together at the Winbury estate on Nantucket Island to celebrate Benji and Amelia Sacks’ wedding.

But things took a sharp turn when Amelia discovered Merritt, her maid of honor and best friend, dead in the beach water.

It was a difficult case to solve when the police began looking into the murder since they discovered that every major character in The Perfect Couple may have had a reason to kill Merritt. With Merritt’s pregnancy and her affair with Tag, they had their most obvious suspects: Merritt and his wife.

A provision in the Winbury children’s trust funds, however, would have made the pregnancy affect them as well. In the end, the suspenseful denouement clarifies issues such as why Abby killed Merritt while conveying crucial lessons about the discrepancies between people’s perceptions in public and their true selves.

The Usual Suspects Turn out to be The Red Herrings

Love, money, or retaliation are thought to be the only three main reasons people commit murder. Regardless of the twisted form of all three reasons, the murderer’s motivations can always be traced back to one of these factors.

This also applies to Merritt’s murder. Though money ultimately proves to be the driving force behind her tragedy, love and retaliation are initially thought to be the main factors.

Merritt and his wife, Greer Winbury, are at the top of the suspect list because of Merritt’s affair with Tag and the pregnancy that followed. According to the police, Tag wanted the pregnancy to end because the brief affair turned into something more than he had anticipated. For Greer, it was just an act of pure hatred toward her husband’s mistress.

However, the motive alone cannot establish guilt. When Tag and Greer’s alibis are cleared, it is demonstrated that they are both innocent. Tag establishes his presence in his room at the time of the murder by using his watch and the information it records. Greer left the room for a short while that evening, but when her true relationship with Broderick Graham is revealed, it further establishes her innocence.

Even though there are more Winbury family members to take into account, none of them appear to have a compelling reason to want Merritt dead—basically, because none of them had any interaction with her. They all initially believed her affair with Tag to be unimportant.

Merritt’s pregnancy was what ultimately led to her demise at the hands of Abby Winbury, not the fact that she was pregnant and threatening to ruin everything. We must comprehend the Winbury family’s history to comprehend why she was killed.

Why Abby Killed Merritt In The Perfect Couple

The Perfect Killer keeps viewers guessing by delaying the resolution of Merritt’s death until the second part of the last episode. In the end, Merritt was killed by Abby crushing up pills, adding them to her juice glass, submerging her head in the water, and holding her down. Abby had a strong financial motive for wanting Merritt dead, even though others had much more obvious ones.

Since Will’s birthday is so close to the 18th birthday, the Winbury children would only get their trust money when the youngest child turned 18. With Thomas owing Isabel money and Abby wanting a new apartment, everyone depends on their trust funds.

Because Tag would be Merritt’s father, and they would have to wait an additional 18 years to receive any money, Merritt’s pregnancy threatened to throw everything off. Isabel stopped Thomas when he attempted to intimidate Merritt into ending the pregnancy. Abbey thus decided to complete the task herself.

How is Abby Caught

Following the discovery of the barbiturates in Merritt’s system, Thomas is the target of suspicion due to his habit of stealing pills from people. In addition, he took a pill from Amelia’s mother without realizing it was intended for her euthanasia.

He admits that he nearly shot Merritt in an attempt to protect his father from the trouble when the police questioned him. He left the scene with Isabel, spending the rest of the night at the Sand Dollar Hotel, but Isabel stopped him.

Although Thomas’ alibi has been verified, the fact that he had one before raises suspicions. He had been with Abby all night; she had told the police. Although it initially appeared that she might have lied to keep her husband safe, it soon became apparent that she was providing an alibi for herself because she never thought Thomas would come clean about his affair with Isabel.

When they question Abby’s testimony, the detectives notice things they haven’t before. Detective Henry, for example, recalls the Winbury family’s maid telling about how Abby told her to wash a glass of juice with hot water. Henry recalls that Abby was washing a glass and appeared extremely anxious the morning she arrived at the house.

Henry asks Abby if Thomas was with her again that night to ensure she’s not dreaming. She answers yes, which the detective knows is a lie. This and the other evidence that comes to light to implicate Abby in Merritt’s death suffice, and she is taken into custody.

It’s interesting to note that Greer connects the dots just before the police arrive and discovers that her pregnant daughter-in-law—who had slipped everyone’s suspicions—is the murder’s mastermind.

What Happened To Merritt’s Killer

Abby was handcuffed and taken away from the Winbury estate after the police discovered what she had done. This is a far cry from Elin Hilderbrand’s book of the same name, in which the murderer escapes punishment because it was determined that the death was an accident.

The Netflix series’ portrayal of Abby’s arrest is a clear example of how everyone is subject to the law when they commit murder, even those from extremely wealthy families. Legally speaking, both Karen and Thomas could have been charged with crimes, but fortunately, they were not charged for their unintentional involvement in Merritt’s death.

Will Amelia and Benji Remain Together

Amelia had reservations about marrying Benji, even though the main plot point of The Perfect Couple was their wedding. Feeling that Benji was too perfect, she was not passionate about him. Though she didn’t feel like she should, she wanted to love Benji.

She received taunts and insults from the other Winbury family members, which probably didn’t help. She never seemed to fit in with them. Reminding everyone of the disparities in Benji and Amelia’s upbringing was the gap separating Amelia from the Winbury family. It wasn’t until the Netflix miniseries’ conclusion that Amelia and Benji called it quits.

Amelia’s reunion with Benji’s best friend, Shooter, served as a trigger for their breakup. From their past interactions, she already felt something for him. They tried to suppress their feelings for one another throughout the show, but they couldn’t help but notice how it would sometimes resurface.

Amelia also realized that the reason for her and Benji’s distance wasn’t their different socioeconomic backgrounds when she discovered that Shooter was wealthy. Shooter and Amelia shared similar values and had a mental and emotional connection despite their disparate wealth levels. At the end of the final episode, she and Benji part ways.

The Extramarital Relationships in The Perfect Couple

The Perfect Couple’s propensity for extramarital affairs raises significant questions concerning appearances and reality. Greer and Tag portrayed themselves as the ideal couple and, consequently, their family as the ideal family, thanks to Greer’s book series. But behind closed doors, there was a lot of fighting, infidelity, and judgment within the Winbury family.

They were unable to stop having affairs despite their wealth. Indeed, it could be contended that their privilege encouraged them to believe there wouldn’t be consequences, and their boredom from the lack of responsibilities drove them to cheat. Ultimately, the Winburys demonstrate that even the most idyllic family may have secrets the public may never learn.

The Reasons Greer Dislikes Amelia in The Perfect Couple

Throughout “The Perfect Couple,” Greer harbored intense animosity towards Amelia, refusing to accept her as a part of the family. Greer’s resentment was driven by her determination to maintain the status quo and preserve the esteemed reputation of the Winbury family. As the head of the household, her professional success hinged on the belief that her family was flawless, making it impossible for her to leave without completely disrupting her life.

Amelia and Benji were unmarried and childless, allowing Amelia to pursue her career as a zoologist without the pressure of maintaining a perfect public image. Despite Greer’s initial pressure to call off the wedding, her attitude towards Amelia eventually changed after the book author decided to no longer uphold the family’s reputation.

What The Perfect Couple’s Final Scene Really Means

Despite their public persona, the Winburys in The Perfect Couple was anything but a happy, healthy family. They shared everyone else’s dysfunctionality. Nevertheless, they were idolized by everyone outside them and were seen as the ideal to aspire to. The Netflix miniseries demonstrated no ideal family, pair, or life by the end.

The Winburys, like many, choose what to reveal, so what’s shown may not be reality. It’s hard to truly know someone online, especially in the era of influencers. The Perfect Couple challenges audiences to rethink their parasocial relationships and romanticized views of strangers.

About The Perfect Couple

The Perfect Couple is an American mystery drama series starring Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Dakota Fanning, and Eve Hewson. It is an adaptation of the 2018 novel of the same name by Elin Hilderbrand, premiered on September 5, 2024, on Netflix. An adaptation of The Perfect Couple was in the works at Fox Entertainment in 2019. Jenna Lamia was announced to be adapting the book for the project in December 2019.Lamia was revealed to be serving as showrunner and Susanne Bier as director for the adaptation which was greenlit as a six-part series by Netflix in August 2022. Lamia, Bier and the book’s author Elin Hilderbrand served as executive producers along with Nicole Kidman and Per Saari for Blossom Films, Shawn Levy and Josh Barry of 21 Laps Entertainment, and Gail Berman and Hend Baghdady for The Jackal Group.Changes from the novel include changing the bride’s name from Celeste Otis to Amelia Sacks. Lamia later disclosed that adjustments were made to the series specifically to steer clear of any parallels with Big Little Lies.These changes were made after Kidman joined the project.Bier revealed that she declined the opportunity to direct season 2 of The Night Manager to direct the series. In March 2023, reports surfaced that Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Dakota Fanning, and several other potential cast members were set to star in the series. Later, Kidman, Schreiber, and Fanning were confirmed, along with Eve Hewson and Billy Howle joining the cast.The remaining cast included Ishaan Khattar, Jack Reynor, Sam Nivola, Mia Isaac, Donna Lynne Champlin, and Isabelle Adjani.Later that same month, Omar Epps joined the cast.