Diksha Sundriyal
Netflix’s ‘The Beast in Me’ follows a grieving writer who gets entangled in an investigation that unravels her entire life. Played by Claire Danes, the protagonist is Aggie Wiggs, who has not been able to write since her son, Cooper, passed away a few years ago. His death is a significant event in her life because that’s when everything fell apart. At first, there appears to be a clear story as to what happened to Cooper. But by the end, it turns out that the truth about it is more subjective than what seemed in the beginning, and for that to come to light, Aggie will have to confront her own demons. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Cooper’s Tragic Death Has a Shocking Truth Behind It
‘The Beast in Me’ opens with an accident, with Aggie appearing to be in deep shock. It is revealed that she and her eight-year-old son, Cooper, had been in an accident where they collided with an oncoming car. The car was being driven by a young man named Teddy Fenig, who Aggie thought was intoxicated. He refused a breathalyzer at the scene of the accident, and later, when he did agree to it, the results showed a negligible amount of alcohol, which Aggie believes was because it had been too late, since the alcohol was already out of his system. Due to this, Teddy was allowed to walk free, but that didn’t stop Aggie from making it clear that she blamed him for her son’s death.
Things had gotten so bad that she found his workplace and threw a brick through the window to intimidate him. This led him to get a restraining order against her, but even then, she never stopped blaming him for the tragedy that completely broke her life. Interestingly, her vengeful emotions were never shared by her wife, Shelley. Like the law l, she believed that it was a tragic thing that happened to them but there was no point ruining Teddy’s life for it either. Aggie’s obsession with Teddy pushed Shelley away from her, leading to the breakdown of her marriage and causing her to fall into a terrible cycle that she may not have been able to come out of. She is enraged by Teddy to the point that it seems she will kill him when she has a chance. However, eventually it turns out that her hatred for Teddy is her own guilt and grief being reflected back to her.
Aggie’s Culpability in Cooper’s Death Comes to the Fore
A flashback scene in the final episode suggests that there is more to the story than Aggie is willing to reveal to the world. Turns out that Teddy is not entirely to blame for the accident. That day, as Aggie was driving Cooper, she was under immense pressure. She had an interview with the Times, for which she was already late, and at the same time, Cooper was being a little difficult to deal with. She was also arguing with Shelley, which put a lot of strain on her. While driving the car, she was in the middle of the interview by phone, but Cooper, who was in the backseat, wasn’t being his quiet self. He was making noises while playing with his toys, which was perfectly normal for a kid his age.
But at the time, Aggie was too agitated to let it pass. During the interview, she repeatedly told Cooper to be quiet, but when he didn’t, she turned around to chide him. It was just for a split second, but that was enough to cause the disaster that happened next. The moment she turned to look back at Cooper, Teddy’s car came out of nowhere and hit Aggie’s car. This led to the accident, which resulted in Cooper’s death. So, it wasn’t just the shock of losing her child, but it was also the realisation that she caused it, which led Aggie to unravel completely. To prevent herself from falling into the merciless pit of guilt, she made up a narrative in her mind about Teddy being the irresponsible drunk driver who was solely responsible for the accident.
This allowed her to escape facing the truth of the matter and confront her actions, as it was easier to portray the other person as the villain of the story. It was much easier to hate and hound Teddy rather than accept that she, too, had a hand in her own son’s death. This self-serving need to escape the consequences of her actions led her to develop a desire for vengeance, which ultimately resulted in more bloodshed. Teddy, who, too, had blamed himself for Cooper’s death and was being eaten alive by his guilt, became another victim of this vicious chain. Eventually, Aggie had no option but to be confronted by the truth and to accept that she had blamed Teddy, so she could escape the burden of blame herself.
Read More: Where is The Beast in Me Filmed?
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