Aahana Swrup
Netflix’s ‘Unseen’ is a six-part crime series set in South Africa. Created by Ozgur Onurme, this show features Gail Mabalane in the role of its protagonist, Zenzi Mwale. It’s based on a Turkish series, ‘Fatma.’ ‘Unseen’ follows the story of Zenzi, a mundane domestic worker looking for her missing husband. When her husband’s criminal past catches up to her, she finds herself leaving behind a string of murders in her wake and crossing paths with many dangerous individuals. This show employs a seemingly meek, unremarkable woman in its center and highlights her strength, perseverance, and pain by dropping her in the middle of a nail-biting crime thriller. Throughout the plot, Zenzi tries to search for explanations about her family. If you’re wondering where Zenzi’s dangerous pursuit leads here, here is everything you need to know about the ending of the first season of ‘Unseen.’ SPOILERS AHEAD!
Unseen Plot Synopsis
The show opens with a shot of Zenzi Mwale in police custody. A detective interrogates her for the murder of numerous men. The opening scene only serves as a setup for the show, and most of the story is told as a flashback to the five days following up to Zenzi’s arrest. It all starts on the day that Max, Zenzi’s husband, gets released from prison after serving his two-year sentence for the murder of a man named Yazid Noordien. Most people in Zenzi’s life, like her landlord Enrico Booysen and one of her employers, believe Zenzi would be better off without her husband. Zenzi believes otherwise. She cuts her work day short and goes to pick Max up after his release. Hours pass, but Max is nowhere to be seen. A prison guard informs Zenzi that Max was already released earlier in the morning.
Confused and worried for her husband’s safety, Zenzi tries to look for Max, but all her efforts prove to be futile. She seeks the help of one of her employers, Raymond Hendrix. Hendrix runs a butcher shop, though the business is only a front for his illegal activities. He is a friend of Zenzi’s husband but knows nothing about Max’s whereabouts. Zenzi steals a gun from Raymond’s office as a desperate longshot and sets out to find answers from Raymond’s rival, Jackson Thom. However, the crime boss has a bone to pick with Max and sexually assaults Zenzi.
In her self-defense, Zenzi shoots Thom and flees from the crime scene. After her first murder, Zenzi finds herself spiraling down a world of crime. Raymond tries to recruit her and use her help to take down the crime kingpin Blessing for his own selfish reasons. At the same time, he also tries to get his gun back from her to erase any evidence pointing toward his involvement with the whole thing. Zenzi’s continued quest to find her husband only sends her down more dangerous roads, and soon she finds herself involved with a big money laundering scheme.
Unseen Ending: Does Zenzi Die?
The world Max is involved with is a dangerous one. It already ruined Zenzi’s life once when it led to the death of her son Esulu. Throughout the show, Zenzi is constantly involved in life-threatening situations and even comes close to dying a few times. Even before Max’s imprisonment, Zenzi faces many financial troubles. After Max’s arrest, these troubles expand, and she falls behind on rent by quite a lot. Though her landlord Enrico Booysen acts friendly toward her and pretends to look out for her best interest, he is actually a creep trying to get Zenzi in his bed. One night, when Zenzi is at a bar, looking for Max, she comes across Booysen. After insisting on walking her home, Booysen violently tries to break into her house. Thankfully, his wife Alice’s interference stops him from succeeding.
However, a couple of days later, Booysen approaches Zenzi again. This time, he tries to manipulate her into sleeping with him. He tells her he might not sell his house at Zenzi’s request if she does as he asks. Facing potential homelessness, Zenzi shows up at the construction site Booysen tells her to meet him at. Still, she clarifies she does not wish to get involved with him. Booysen disregards her protests and tries to rape her. Zenzi flees but eventually kills Booysen by hitting him with a metal rod and pushing him off the edge of the second floor. Though Zenzi manages to escape with her life, she now finds herself involved in another murder case.
The next time her life is threatened, it’s directly related to Zenzi’s growing list of murders. So far, Zenzi has killed three people without even trying to and has escaped suspicions. Her ability to blend into the background and go unnoticed makes her a proficient killer. Raymond recognizes this fact and blackmails her into killing his boss, Jali, a.k.a. Blessing.
Their simple in-and-out plan of implanting deadly cocaine in Blessing’s office doesn’t go as smoothly as expected. Zenzi’s desire to confront Blessing about his involvement in Max’s arrest and disappearance almost gets her killed. However, Chyna, a woman who works at Blessing’s club and is involved with him, intervenes and pulls a gun on Blessing. Consequently, stopping him from killing Zenzi. Shortly after, the cocaine in Blessings’ system does its job, and Zenzi can escape with her life intact.
She fends off another murder attempt by Joseph the very next day and kills him as well. It isn’t until the very end that her life is actually put in impossible danger. By the end of the show, Zenzi has lost everything. She loses her husband hours after reuniting with him. The police know about her connection to several murders. The last thing that keeps her going is the need to find justice for the murder of her son, which she also achieves. Zenzi is beyond traumatized and doesn’t see a reason to keep living any longer.
As a result, she tries to jump off the roof of a building. Her sister, Naledi, finds her just in the nick of time and tries to talk her out of it. The show ends with Zenzi just about to step off the roof before the screen goes black. Her fate is left to audience speculation. The Turkish show that ‘Unseen’ is based on, ‘Fatma,’ had a similar ending for its first season. One key difference is that in ‘Fatma,’ the closing shot is of the titular character breathing and still alive. Therefore, it won’t be entirely unreasonable to expect a similar result from Zenzi’s attempted suicide.
Who Killed Zenzi’s Son Esulu?
The day after Max gets out of prison, Zenzi receives a phone call from an unknown number. After answering the call, only sounds of heavy breathing come from the other line before the unknown caller abruptly hangs up. Similar calls continue to plague her every day, with Zenzi demanding answers and the caller never uttering a single word. Initially, Zenzi suspects the call to be coming from her husband, Max. She fears for her husband’s well-being, not knowing what to make of his persistent silence. Eventually, she finds out the calls never came from Max but rather from Joseph, Raymond’s right-hand man.
Joseph has known Zenzi for a long time. He used to be Max’s best friend before Blessing cheats Max out of upholding his end of the deal between them. Before ending up in prison, Max works for Raymond and eventually catches the eye of Blessing. Blessing’s syndicate is in hot water for the death of a man named Yazid Noordien. Yazid had evidence proving Blessing’s money laundering schemes and was planning on using it as blackmail against him. Blessing kills Yazid and finds himself in need of someone to take the fall for his death. Max ends up becoming that guy. Blessing promises Max that he will look after his family if he pleads guilty to Yazid’s murder. However, after Max agrees and gets arrested, Blessing backs out of his offer.
Angered by Blessing’s betrayal, Max warns Joseph that if Blessing continues to ignore his family’s needs, then Max will expose Blessing for the murder of Yazid. Not only that, but Max is also aware of the money laundering and intends to use that in retaliation as well. Following his threats, Blessing sends two men to Max’s house to rough up his family and send a message. In the home invasion, one of the men accidentally kills Zenzi’s son Esulu. One of these men was Joseph, and the man who had shot Esulu was Raymond.
Read More: Where is Netflix’s Unseen Filmed?
