Mayor of Kingstown Season 4 Ending Explained: Is Callahan Dead?

Created by Taylor Sheridan and Hugh Dillon, Paramount+’s ‘Mayor of Kingstown‘ chronicles the eponymous town’s slow descent into terror and chaos through the eyes of its leader, Mike McLusky. Having been thrust into this overwhelming role four seasons ago, Mike now stands to lose everyone he cares for, and both his enemies and his own failures are to blame. For the most part, his two biggest agendas are to get Kyle out of Anchor Bay and Frank Moses in. While both may be checked off the list as of episode 9 of the season, the worst is still yet to come. Callahan shows no signs of stopping, leaving Mike and Ian desperate for clues. To that end, the season finale of this crime thriller series, titled ‘Belly of the Beast,’ teases the McLuskys’ confrontation with their fiercest opponent yet, in a game with no real victors. SPOILERS AHEAD.

Mayor of Kingstown Season 4 Finale Recap

Episode 10 of ‘Mayor of Kingstown’ season 4 picks up right in the middle of heavy action, as Don’s Diner is torn apart by fully armoured shooters. Although Stevie is shot, Mike, Ian, and Kyle manage to outmaneuver the gunmen, killing two and capturing the last one. Once the dust settles, the McLusky brothers try to torture the truth out of their captive and realize that it was Callahan who ordered the hit and that he is back in town. Elsewhere, Bunny rings up Jackson, telling him that it’s his last day as a correctional officer at Anchor Bay, courtesy of Mike’s goodwill. The stage is set for yet another prison gang war, and the mayor makes sure to inform Hobbs this time around. However, the latter appears to have her own plans at play, and can be seen conspiring with the cartel’s hitman, Cortez.

With Callahan still on the loose, Kyle is taken to a safehouse, where he vows to be the one to pull the trigger. While Ian agrees, he still has no way to track the gang leader down, so all they can do is wait. Finally finding a moment to breathe, Mike goes to meet Cindy, who is still shaken up by the recent string of violence, both in prison and outside. Not long after, Anchor Bay prepares for its bloodiest day yet, as Jackson sneakily unlocks Raphael and company’s cell, allowing them to duke it out with the Colombians, especially their leader, Roberto Cruz. At the same time, Bunny charges ahead with his own plan, surrounding the cartel’s hideout and opening fire. Although Cortez and his men push back for a while, the Crips soon gain the upper hand, and Cortez is captured before he can make a backdoor exit.

Meanwhile, Raphael storms the Colombian cell, but is met with mixed results. While the Crips mostly dominate the fight, Roberto manages to escape with minor wounds, and Raphael is the one who is critically hit instead. Yet another surprise awaits Kingstown, as Callahan himself walks into the police station, turning himself in. Ian intends to nip the matter in the bud and take Callahan straight to Mike, but he is interrupted by the police captain, who wishes to do things by the book. In due course, however, the captain realizes that incarceration only strengthens Callahan’s grip over the criminal underworld and that, on this specific occasion, looking the other way might be the wiser idea. Thus, Callahan’s detainment is erased from the records, and he is taken to the literal back of town, where Mike McLusky lies in wait.

Mayor of Kingstown Season 4 Finale Ending: Is Callahan Dead? Why Did He Turn Himself in?

‘Mayor of Kingstown’ season 4 ends with Kyle killing Merle Callahan as revenge for Tracy‘s murder, thus putting an end to the biggest threat to the McLusky family. While Mike’s cat-and-mouse chase with his former mentor and present arch-nemesis ends in his loss, Callahan pulls the rug from under his feet by showing up in Kingstown himself. His first step is to surrender to the police, knowing that there is a very good chance of him simply returning to his starting point this season: the Anchor Bay prison. However, the brief glimpses we get into his preparation for the big move hint at a strong sense of finality. Most importantly, he mutters to himself, and presumably to the brotherhood in spirit, that he is going to the “other side,” which is likely a play on both imprisonment and death.

A big question in this entire string of events is Callahan’s decision to surrender in the first place, as virtually everything points to his victory over Mike and Kingstown’s police force. We even see the gang leader casually stroll around in neighboring cities, self-assured that law enforcement will never track him. As such, his decision to fall right into Mike’s lap is curious at best, if not downright puzzling. However, a closer look at Callahan’s final decision reframes it as the purest indicator of his uniquely sadistic nature. From the start, he is fully aware of his own debilitating health condition, as well as his waning footing in the Aryan Brotherhood. Callahan fully believes that he has had the last laugh against the McLuskys and wishes to exit the vicious cycle while still riding the high.

Helmed by Lee Chang-min, Netflix’s ‘Cashero’ bridges the struggles of a superhero with those of an ordinary person, through a unique power system that doubles as a societal critique. Kang Sang-ung is a civil servant trying his best not to end up like his father, who has been perpetually broke his entire life. However, one sudden encounter between the two reveals that all of this had a very specific and peculiar reason: Sang-ung’s father was a superhero. Even more unbelievable is the fact that Sang-ung has inherited superstrength, as well as the downsides that come with it. Thus, he is thrust into a world full of supernatural conspiracies, one where he has few allies and one too many enemies. To that end, the ending of this Korean superhero comedy, adapted from the eponymous webtoon by Team Befar, brings a fresh perspective to the question of powers and responsibilities that is a staple in this genre of stories.

In effect, the idea of Mike killing Callahan only feeds the latter’s power fantasy, as one of his demands this season is an acknowledgment of how he made Mike into who he is today. For his former protege to end his life brings things full circle and only serves to feed his ego. Ironically, that is the exact reason why Mike backs off from the task and lets his brother take on the mantle. Callahan and Kyle’s previous face-to-face interaction is one defined by a fierce exchange of words, where the former confidently claims that the latter will die behind bars. This idea, however, is proven wrong, and even Callahan is taken visibly shaken for the first time. Although he tries to derive the same sadistic pleasure by taunting Kyle, the plan only backfires, as the cop shoots him in his genitals, inflicting maximum pain.

Being shot serves as a whiplash moment for Callahan, who, mere moments ago, was boasting about not fearing death. While the statement might have held true if it were Mike behind the trigger, Kyle chooses to take the more brutal route, ensuring that his desire for vengeance is felt through and through. With Callahan’s body going into shock, pure mortal fear splashes over his face, marking the moment Kyle goes for the killing shot. As Callahan lies lifeless, the scene is far from triumphant, as the damage has already been done. In true Kingstown fashion, no character dies a natural death, and no death truly marks the end of a character’s impact on the larger narrative.

How Did Cortez Escape? Where is the Cartel Hitman?

While Callahan’s death finishes one of the longest sagas in ‘Mayor of Kingstown,’ Bunny’s war with the cartel is just getting started, and the season ends this particular chapter with a cliffhanger. After wiping out the cartel hideout, the Crips gang takes hold of Cortez, the enigmatic hitman who has been leaving a blood trail in his wake this entire season. Even in captivity, his attitude doesn’t budge, as he refuses to divulge cartel secrets no matter what angle Bunny tries. However, the gang leader is still euphoric about his big victory mere days after getting out of the hospital, and in that excitement, he ends up looking away for just a second too long. By the time he checks back in, Cortez is long gone, having killed the two gang members who were tasked with torturing him.

Although Cortez’s escape happens off-screen, there are enough clues presented to paint a picture of what exactly transpired. Earlier, while he is getting beaten up, we see him actively scraping at his handcuffs, trying to force his hand out. It is likely that he musters enough strength to dislocate his thumbs, allowing him to break free and resume the fight. As Cortez’s physical prowess has been demonstrated numerous times this season, it is no surprise that he kills the two men, who are armed only with batons. From there, the Cortez’s bloody handprints form a trail that leads all the way to the building’s exterior, and this is where Bunny loses him. While the Crips leader is bound to sweep through the entire city in search of the elusive hitman, in all likelihood, this is a pointless exercise.

Notably, Cortez by himself is not that big a threat to the Crips, especially as he has been beaten already. However, his close ties with the cartel likely mean that news of this violent exchange is about to flow upstream. If the cartel hasn’t gone all-out already, they are surely about to now, signaling that Bunny’s chance to rest and recuperate is still far from sight. The Colombians are not the only threat that is creeping up on him, as Frank Moses’ infamous Detroit gang is still not completely out of the picture. While the man himself is most certainly in prison, he still has enough influence to stir trouble at the ground level, meaning that Bunny has to go the extra mile to secure his legacy as Kingstown’s one and only gangster.

Does Jackson Live or Die? Who Ordered the Hit?

While the Anchor Bay battle between the Crips and the Colombians is largely stirred up by Bunny and Raphael, that doesn’t mean that the cartel doesn’t have its stake in it. Towards the end of the season finale, when all the injured inmates are at the infirmary, Kevin Jackson is stabbed in the neck by Roberto Cruz, the cartel hitman. Cindy is the first to rush to the scene, but can only watch in horror as Jackson is surrounded by a pool of his own blood and ultimately dies. When the news reaches Hobbs, we see her acknowledge it with a muted expression, and the scene lingers just long enough to sow doubt. Although Jackson’s death can get lost in the prison chaos, Cruz’s strike is full of calculated intent, which all but confirms that this was an assassination ordered by none other than Hobbs herself.

Earlier in the series, Cortez, representing the cartel, demands two sacrifices from Hobbs as punishment for the prison shipment failure. While the first to die is Deputy Warden Torres, for getting careless, Hobbs is tasked with locating the mole and killing him herself. Notably, she doesn’t keep this detail secret from Mike, despite knowing that the mole is most likely working for him. What’s even more puzzling is Mike’s complete apathy about Jackson’s fate, which grimly highlights the darker shades of his character, wherein he treats anyone except his close companions as pawns in the game. Jackson, who serves as a triple agent for Bunny, then Hobbs, and ultimately Mike, already anticipates that he is doomed, and his death only confirms a tragedy that was effectively predestined.

Jackson’s death comes approximately one day after Breen’s psychotic episode, which resulted in a prison massacre. In both cases, Cindy experiences the bloodshed first-hand, and it is here that we see her go beyond her breaking point. Although she has come to accept that Anchor Bay is unlike any prison ever, this constant flow of horror is bound to tear apart a psyche, especially when everyone around her seems to be in on the conspiracy. This raises questions about whether or not Cindy will stay as a correctional officer any longer, as there is no guarantee that the next cruel play of fate won’t befall her. Hobbs, on the other hand, seems to have secured her position, not just as the warden, but also as a cartel ally. Still, with her cold war with Mike still brewing, the future of the town remains as ambiguous as ever.

Read More: Is Mayor of Kingstown Based on a True Story?