Editor's Note: The following contains spoilers for the Season 1 finale of 'Mr. & Mrs. Smith'
The Big Picture
- John and Jane's relationship deteriorates, resulting in a deadly chase throughout New York. They must confront their own truths and insecurities before they can reconcile.
- The Other Smiths return to kill John and Jane, revealing themselves as professional assassins who specialize in eliminating Smiths.
- The series, which offers both thrilling action and a thought-provoking exploration of personal relationships, teases a Season 2.
When Mr. & Mrs. Smith hit Prime Video last week, most people didn't know what to expect. A series remake of the 2005 movie? An entirely different story? Creators Donald Glover and Francesca Sloane went with the latter and gave us one hell of a ride. The endgame was surely to pit John (Glover) and Jane (Maya Erskine) against each other, and that's what happens, but the ending has much more going on, too, including crucial scenes with the "Hot Neighbor" (Paul Dano) and John's Mom (Beverly Glover), as well as the return of the infamous other Smiths (Parker Posey and Wagner Moura). Ugh, those guys...
Mr. & Mrs. Smith
ActionComedyCrimeTwo strangers land jobs with a spy agency that offers them a life of espionage, wealth, and travel. The catch: new identities in an arranged marriage.
- Release Date
- February 2, 2024
- Creator
- Francesca Sloane, Donald Glover
- Cast
- Maya Erskine , Donald Glover , Paul Dano , John Turturro
- Main Genre
- Action
- Seasons
- 1
John and Jane Need To Be Honest With Each Other
John and Jane have their honeymoon phase but drift apart in the second half of the season. By the finale, they've decided to end their relationship, but things aren't so simple. They can be dangerous loose threads in the spy world, so Hihi, their boss, tells Jane to terminate John (and it's safe to assume John has the same order regarding Jane). It doesn't seem like they are going through with it, until one day a hail of bullets comes from the window toward Jane and nearly gets her - and, unfortunately, kills her beloved cat Max. In the next scene, John finds a bomb planted in his mother's house. From then on, it's Smith against Smith as they chase one another throughout New York.
They initially meet in a museum and run around the city, Jane trying to kill John, and John trying to get Jane to listen to him. There are bombs, knife fights, long chases, and everything that makes a great action sequence. Finally, Jane locks John out of their fancy brownstone, meeting John's mother for the first time. (Well actually, Michael's mother, as that's his real name.) They have an honest conversation about him and their relationship, and Jane is seemingly able to understand much of his behavior before...but still can't forgive him about Max. Meanwhile, John meets Hot Neighbor and asks him to use his back door to get into the apartment. They hash things out, as John is jealous of Hot Neighbor because of his apparent interest in Jane. Turns out Hot Neighbor is a Sotheby's real estate agent who's actually interested in their apartment, not Jane. They talk about relationships and Hot Neighbor promises to lend John a copy of The Prophet, which John lied to Jane about having read in the past.
When the Smiths finish their respective conversations, John enters his own apartment through the back door, and another great action sequence ensues. John and Jane go at each other with nearly all the guns hidden around the apartment, throw knives and furniture, and physically fight each other, and no one wins. Instead, with both completely wrecked, John gets a dose of truth serum into him and Jane, and now they are forced to be honest. Jane opens up about being refused by the CIA due to her sociopathic tendencies, not talking to her dad because he doesn't want to know her, and that she never slept with two of their targets, but actually just said that to make John jealous. John confesses his regret for being discharged from the Marines because of asthma and opens up about his anxiety. It's also revealed that John didn't try to kill Jane at the beginning of the episode (as he had promised earlier in the season he would never try to kill her) and that she didn't plant the bomb in his mom's apartment. Finally, the door to their house opens and the Other Smiths come in.
The Other Smiths Return to Kill John and Jane
Back in Episode 4, John and Jane meet the Other Smiths, a couple of spies who work for the same company and have ulterior motives. They work on extremely high-risk missions and mention that they had to kill Smiths before. What they didn't mention is that this is really all they do. After John and Jane have their truth serum-infused heart-to-heart, the Other Smiths arrive with keys they got from Hihi (who they call "super") to finish the job and take out the main couple. They take John and Jane to the dining room, where they reveal they were the ones to kill Max and plant a bomb in John's mom's house because taking out Smiths is their job — an extremely high risk one at that.
‘Mr. & Mrs. Smith’ Showrunner Breaks Down That Season Finale and Looks Ahead to Season 2
Co-Creator Francesca Sloane also explains the "Donald Glover effect" and how his support helped her find strength in her own voice.The Other Smiths are a little too confident, though, and reveal too much about themselves in Episode 4. When Other John sneezes (which they learned he does in threes when they had dinner earlier in the season), John escapes and Jane takes his gun, shooting him in the eyes. Jane and John then lock themselves inside their panic room, as Other Jane tries to break in, but fails consistently. John reveals he's been shot, and Jane breaks down in tears, promising to get them out of it. They briefly continue their heart-to-heart, Jane revealing her real name is Alana and even agreeing on having two kids with John (or Michael). John is quickly drifting in and out, and Jane decides to open the door to the panic room and take out Other Jane. When she does it, we only see three flashes of light from outside their house, followed by utter silence.
Does the Finale Set Up 'Mr. & Mrs. Smith' Season 2?
The credits barely start rolling when the last scene comes on. Hot Neighbor is back! He found the Smiths' house open and went in to lend John that copy of The Prophet. He sees the place completely trashed and quiet, so he just announces himself, leaves the book by the front door, and leaves immediately, probably fearing for his life. Outside, he calls a colleague at Sotheby's to tell him the owners of the mysterious brownstone "might be ready to sell," letting out a jolly laugh in celebration. Earlier, when John is at his place, Hot Neighbor (whose name is Harris Matterbach) mentions how that brownstone is something completely out of the ordinary, and that city hall would never allow for two brownstones to be merged into one and have a pool and garage. The Smith's home has all that, and he dreams of getting them to sell it, calling it "his Moby Dick."
This builds a lot into the narrative of mystery around Hihi and the company, implying that they are much more powerful than they let on. The Other Smiths mention that they simply comply with their orders, enjoy the rewards afterward, and never question who they're working for. We know the company isn't the CIA or the FBI, and likely not any other major intelligence agency. However, it's still incredibly powerful and is very interested in the relationship dynamics of their agents. So what's going on? That, coupled with there being no bodies in the Smith's house when Hot Neighbor comes in, is enough to warrant a potential Season 2. Mr. & Mrs. Smith is not only a great series with a very well-built world, but it's also an intelligent study of personal relationships. Did Jane manage to kill the Other Jane, and save John in the process?
Season 1 of Mr. & Mrs. Smith is available to watch on Prime Video in the U.S.
