Pratik Handore
Netflix’s ‘Obsession’ is a thriller drama series that explores the torrid affair between William Farrow and his son’s girlfriend, Anna Barton, and its devastating impact on their lives and loved ones. As the narrative progresses, William’s affair affects his personal life and puts him on the brink of losing everything. As with most cases of obsessive relationships driven by sexual desires and emotional complications, viewers must be curious to learn the outcome of William and Anna’s affair as the ending of ‘Obsession’ sparks several questions. SPOILERS AHEAD!
Obsession Plot Synopsis
‘Obsession’ follows William Farrow (Richard Armitage of ‘The Stranger‘), a well-reputed and highly connected surgeon living happily married in London, UK. William is married to Ingrid (Indira Verma of ‘Game of Thrones‘) and his two children, a son, Jay, and a daughter, Sally. Jay (Rish Shah of ‘Do Revenge‘) struggles with dealing with adulthood, especially his serious relationship with his girlfriend, Anna Barton (Charlie Murphy of ‘Happy Valley‘), who is emotionally distant and keeps secrets from him. Nonetheless, Jay is eager for his new girlfriend to meet his parents and take their relationship to the next stage.
However, before Jay formally introduces Anna to his parents, she meets William at a party. Anna and William strike an instant chemistry and sparks fly between them. Anna and William hook up, marking the start of a scandalous and torrid affair. Later, Jay introduces Anna to Ingrid and William, but the former does not think she is the right match for his son. Soon, Anna and William regularly meet up to have sex, with Anna presenting herself as the submissive one, allowing William to be dominant in their relationship. However, Anna sets some rules to keep control over William, and they agree not to indulge in any illicit activities outside her apartment.
William eventually breaks the rules of their affair by following Anna and Jay to Paris when the couple goes on a romantic vacation. Meanwhile, Ingrid starts sensing her husband slipping away from her and fears he is having an affair. On the other hand, Jay decides to propose to Anna and ask her for marriage. At the same time, Anna confides in her best friend, Penny, about her affair, and William starts receiving threats about exposing his affair shortly afterward. Anna convinces William to give her permission to accept Jay’s proposal, making William feel powerful while promising to continue their affair even after her marriage.
Later, William and Anna work together at Anna and Jay’s engagement party to deduce who is texting William about their affair. The duo discovers that William’s daughter, Sally, found a page from Anna’s diary in William’s belongings, leading her to believe that her father is cheating on her mother. However, Anna convinces Sally that William is not having an affair. Meanwhile, William meets Anna’s mother, Elizabeth, and learns that Jay resembles Anna’s deceased brother, Aston. Soon, Anna’s secretive behavior leads to Jay suspecting her of cheating on him.
Obsession Ending: Is Anna and William’s Affair Exposed?
Eventually, Jay becomes suspicious of Anna’s behavior and becomes convinced that Anna is hooking up with his father after William says a sentence that Anna regularly uses. In the finale, Jay follows William to Anna’s house. He waits outside and calls Ingrid, exposing his father’s affair, before heading upstairs. Anna and William are having sex, and Jay can hear their moaning. When he knocks down the door, the truth is finally exposed, but it is too much to handle for Jay.
Although Jay knew on some level that his fiancé was cheating on him with his father, actually seeing them in the act causes him to spiral out. In shock, Jay slips and dies after falling from the staircase. Ultimately, Anna and William’s affair is exposed. Their tumultuous relationship was doomed from the start as it was deemed to end with someone getting hurt. However, Jay becomes the victim of Anna and William’s selfish and twisted obsession with each other as he dies after learning the truth.
Meanwhile, Anna is devastated and forced to come to her senses after Jay’s death. Her traumatic past with her brother Aston also comes to light as it is revealed that Aston assaulted his sister. One day, Anna asked him to stop, and he snapped, leading to his death by suicide. Jay’s death similarly affects Anna, who blames herself for his death. Meanwhile, William attends his son’s funeral while dealing with the shame. Thus, Anna and Willaim are both forced to confront their part in Jay’s death, as their affair was directly responsible for it.
How Did Jay Die? What Happens to Ingrid?
Jay’s death is a major turning point in the story as it leads to the emotional meltdown of Anna and the end of Willaim’s marriage. When Willaim returns home after Jay’s death, Ingrid reveals that she knows about his affair. Moreover, Ingrid is disgusted at Willaim’s actions and borderline repulsed by him. Ingrid blames Willaim for her son’s death and believes William should have died instead of Jay as a punishment for his actions. Thus, it is evident that Ingrid no longer wants William in her life, and their marriage is effectively over.
However, the cause of Jay’s death is unclear, as the scene leaves it open to viewers’ interpretation. While Jay died after slipping from the staircase, it is hinted that he intentionally committed suicide as he was devastated by Anna and William’s affair. Jay likely felt ashamed of pursuing a serious relationship with Anna and believing they had a future together while Anna cheated on him all this time. Later, Elizabeth tells William that Aston died from suicide and states that Jay also met a similar fate.
At this point, Elizabeth is unaware that Aston assaulted Anna. Instead, she believed that Anna and Aston were happy with their incestuous relationship. As a result, she never intervened. However, when Anna reveals the truth, Elizabeth realizes she is at fault for Anna’s trauma. Hence, it is likely that Elizabeth misinterpreted Jay’s death. Moreover, Jay’s relationship with Anna differed from her relationship with Aston. Hence, the idea that Jay and Aston died a similar death does not hold weight. Hence, we believe that Jay’s death was accidental, caused by the shock of seeing Anna and William together.
Do William and Anna End Up Together?
In the aftermath of Jay’s death, we see Anna going on a self-destructive spree and trying to hook up with married men. Meanwhile, Willaim seems unremorseful of his actions and does not consider himself responsible for Jay’s death. However, he still feels grief over his son’s loss. With Jay out of the picture, the door is open for William and Anna to end up together. Eventually, William and Anna meet one last time as they both need closure.
William does not regret his affair with Anna and insists he would do it all over again, knowing that it leads to his son’s death. On the other hand, Anna does not want to see William ever again and moves away after selling her apartment. However, William buys the apartment, confirming he is still not over his obsession with Anna. William and Anna’s relationship is complex, as it is fueled by the intensity and danger of such a scandalous sexual relationship.
On the surface, William is dominant and in control of their relationship. However, Anna secretly pulls the strings by slowly seducing William and setting the ground rules. Their affair brings out William’s feral side, and he makes a series of bad choices to keep the affair alive. Nonetheless, the affair destroys the lives of Anna, William, Ingrid, and Jay, highlighting the dangers of an obsessive relationship fueled by the sexual attraction between the two people.
After seeing the devastating consequences of her decisions, Anna decides to step away from William, ending their affair for good. In the final scene, we see Anna seeking therapy for her traumatic experiences. When the therapist, a man similar to William in age and stature, asks Anna if she would feel comfortable establishing some rules for their sessions, Anna chuckles at the situation’s strangeness. The scene seemingly implies Anna is equally obsessed with William or at least the idea of having inappropriate relationships.
Read More: Where is Netflix’s Obsession Filmed?
