🤐 SPOILER ALERT 🤐 

In The Diplomat, ambassador Kate Wyler (Keri Russell) arrives in London on a mission: to stop a war before it starts.

After a British aircraft carrier is blown up off the coast of Iran, Kate spends the whole first season of the drama making allies — and some enemies — while trying to figure out who’s behind the attack. Was it Iran? Was it Russia? 

In a shocking, final-minutes revelation, we find out it was actually British prime minister Nicol Trowbridge (Rory Kinnear) who supposedly instigated the order. If you didn’t see that twist coming, don’t worry — neither did UK foreign secretary Austin Dennison (David Gyasi). 

And the PM’s suspected crimes don’t end there. As the finale draws to a close, it seems he’s ordered a second explosion — one which may very well leave Kate’s husband Hal (Rufus Sewell), deputy chief of mission Stuart Hayford (Ato Essandoh), office clerk Ronnie (Jess Chanliau) and MP Merritt Grove (Simon Chandler) for dead.

So… where on earth does the Emmy Award-nominated series go from here? Let the cast, along with series creator Debora Cahn, clear the debris.

What did you want to accomplish with this cliff-hanger ending?

Debora Cahn: I wanted it to make people want more. I wanted to bring together all of the different dynamics of the political relationships and the personal relationships in one event that splits apart all at the same time. The essential conflict in the relationship is that these are two people [Kate and Hal Wyler] married to each other and in love with each other, who are colleagues, who were great collaborators and are sometimes great competitors. It takes all the dynamics of a relationship of a marriage and heightens them when you can’t ever get away. Work is at home. Work is sleeping next to you. I think it just turns up the volume of all the good dynamics and pitfalls incumbent in any relationship.

What did you make of the big reveal that it was the prime minister all along? Was that a shock to you reading the scripts?

David Gyasi: Yeah, it was a shock. I didn’t see that coming. One of the first things that Debora said to me is, “You get almost caricatures of baddies and goodies. And it’s the ones that slip under the radar and seem fairly harmless or seem fairly stupid [like Trowbridge, that are the most dangerous].” And you look at what the agenda underneath that could be. I’m not comparing Trowbridge to Hitler, but Hitler doesn’t come along with horns. [He] comes more subtly than that. I love messaging like that because I think we need to be aware right now.

Where do you think Dennison and Kate’s relationship is headed?

Gyasi: I have no idea. I’m just excited to see what that relationship [becomes]. They’re so opposite to one another, and yet, when you scratch the surface, [you see] what drives them [and they’re] probably more connected to one another than a lot of other characters. I think they’re both people that understand that they’ve been gifted these positions of authority and power.

Did the explosion in Grove’s car leave any survivors?

Rufus Sewell: I hope so. I hope we all survive. What can I say? I mean, I loved the dramatic turn. And I just have to hope a) that there’ll be a second season, and b) that everyone will be OK. But the drama needs to be real.

Where do Hal and Kate go from here?

Sewell: All I know is that if you resolve it one way or another too quickly, we’re screwed. I like to think there are enough problems to last us [a few seasons]. Who knows? I would like someone with a better imagination than mine to take over on that rather than follow my dumb suggestion.

The Diplomat is now streaming on Netflix.

The Diplomat Season 1 TrailerInternational affairs meet personal affairs. London's newest diplomat has arrived.

Additional reporting by Cole Delbyck and Phillipe Thao.