The Diplomat Season 2 Finale’s Big Twist Was Foreshadowed Over 1 Year Ago and You Didn’t Realize It

Warning: HUGE spoilers ahead for The Diplomat 2nd season.The Diplomat The season 2 finale had a very dramatic ending, and while some of it was nearly impossible to predict, one moment was quietly teased in the Netflix political drama’s first premiere in 2023. The big twist in The Diplomat the season 2 finale will inevitably influence the show’s future, which means The Diplomat Season 3’s story will almost definitely pick up right where Season 2 left off. However, a member The Diplomat The Season 2 cast will not return.

The Diplomat it was already a show of twists throughout both seasons. It’s the kind of show that makes the story feel like it’s being fully presented, and then another wrinkle comes out of nowhere. Certain events are easy to see from a mile away, while other incidents are genuinely surprising. That said, there are moments that are somewhere between spontaneous and foreshadowed, and The Diplomat Season 2’s massive character deaths fit that description.

Michael McKean’s President William Rayburn is revealed to have heart problems in Diplomat Season 1 Episode 3

The president plays a prank on his team by pretending to order coffee

The Diplomat Season 1, Episode 3, “Lambs in the Dark”, is McKean’s second of three appearances as President Rayburn in the show’s inaugural season. While meeting with Rory Kinnear’s Nicol Trowbridge, Rayburn’s team falsely discovers that the President has ordered coffee, which causes a bit of a stir. When Kate Wyler (Keri Russell) informs Nana Mensah’s Billie Appiah of the President’s order, Billie explains the commotion to Kate as guards burst into the room where Rayburn is having dinner with Trowbridge: “He can’t really drink coffee. This sets his heart on AFib, and he runs away.“

The caffeine in coffee likely triggers Rayburn’s condition. Fortunately, Billie’s panic is unwarranted and Rayburn is simply showing Trowbridge his team’s alertness. That being said, AFib is not a minor concernand it would be a little unusual if The Diplomat revealed this about McKean’s character in case it didn’t become relevant later. As such, the shock of learning from Hal about his vice president’s actions likely triggered the compromise of Rayburn’s heart and caused the implied cardiac arrest that resulted in his death.

The clever casting of President Rayburn still makes his death in The Diplomat Season 2 quite surprising

Michael McKean barely appeared in The Diplomat before his character died

Michael McKean is one of the biggest names in The Diplomatthe cast. Despite his reputation and performance record, he was barely used in either of the two seasons before President Rayburn’s death in The Diplomat Season 2, Episode 6, “Dreadnought.” He’s used even more sparingly in Season 2, only getting two episodes out of six, and none of the appearances are especially prolific. McKean’s limited presence on the series made it seem like he had a huge on-screen role in The Diplomatthe future that would make his casting make sense, but his surprise departure now makes that impossible.

Source: IMDB