WARNING: SPOILERS ahead for The Madness.
Colman Domingo's Netflix Conspiracy Thriller Series The Madness leaves several questions and mysteries unanswered at the end. Created by playwright Stephen Belber The Laramie Project and Tape acclaim, The Madness follows the quickly unraveled life of Muncie Daniels after discovering a dead body in a remote cabin next door to their rented tree-lined home. Although The Madness Pulls a lot of inspiration from reality, or at least from reality-based people and ideologies found in modern American social and political climates, the Netflix limited series is not based on a true story.
Colman Domingo leads the cast of The Madness alongside John Ortiz, Deon Cole, Marsha Stephanie Blake and Tamsin Topolski. All over The Madness, Muncie is a CNN contributor who believes he is being framed for murder. He must rely on the support of his family and some helpful sources to clear his name. At the end of The MadnessMuncie tries to get revenge on a mysterious shadowy figure named Rodney Kraintz. It connects a dark web between Kraintz, Revitalize, and The Forge, which is an armed extremist group led by the online thought leader known as Brother 14, aka Mark Simon.
At first glance, Domingo doesn't seem like the first choice to star in a “reality-based” conspiracy series like The Madnesswhich initially adds promise to the premise of the series. Muncie's character demands a measured portrayal of an industry-trained media professional who puts his career as a part-time CNN contributor ahead of his family while trying to distance himself from his activist father's notorious legacy. The Madness presents common controversial issues that divide Americans todaysome mainstream and others quite widespread, and characterizes some extreme pockets of topical radical thought, but leaves some important intrigues open to interpretation.
10
Who was following Muncie in the black car?
Could be more Revitalize staff
One of the biggest unanswered questions in the final moments of The Madness that's who it was following Muncie and spying on him and his family as they had a family barbecue in a park. At this point in the series, Muncie has completely given up his life as a political contributor and media personality and begun his career as a high school teacher. Another indication that some time has passed is Elena's full recovery, which appears in the final scene of the series.
The people in the black car could be more Revitalize employees who are working on Rodney Kraintz's replacement and who are keeping an eye on Muncie. Although Kraintz is dead, other Revitalize investors and bigwigs know exactly who Muncie is, especially after he attacked the biotech company on CNN. Alternatively, the black car could just be a random person who isn't tracking Munciewhich would allude to Muncie's paranoia and his difficulty in abandoning “The Madness”.
9
Will Muncie and Elena get back together?
The final scene implies that they will
Another unanswered question at the end of the The Madness is whether Muncie and Elena will get back together. At this point, Elena has proven that she still loves Muncie and, as Demetrius points out, even killed for him. Muncie was slower to learn in the family department throughout the series but he went from being a career-obsessed media contributor to putting an end to the “madness.” There's a chance Elena will finally believe he's changed for the better and is ready to be a family man once again. It looks like Elena is willing to give Muncie another chance in the end.
8
Why was Rodney Kraintz alone in his office?
A billionaire without private security?
It is somewhat shocking and ridiculous that a billionaire like Rodney Kraintz does not have security personnel with him at all times, especially when he is in his highly valuable and secret office, disguised as an abandoned and incomplete warehouse. Still, Muncie manages to break down a side door and leave Kraintz alone. The biggest question here is what happened to the two guards in the black Porsche who left it in the first place. They just walked away and left it open with zero security, even after Daniels just appeared on CNN calling Kraintz directly by name. Kraintz wasn't trying to set Daniels up or anything, so the logistics here are pretty confusing.
7
Why exactly did Lucie Simon betray the forge?
It's unclear whether she will face legal consequences.
Lucie goes through a bit of a moral crisis in the final episode of The Madnesswhich ends with her reporting the PA branch of The Forge directly to the FBI. Lucie delivers evidence of the Forge's plans for domestic terrorist attacks, assassination attempts, and more. Lucie knew many members of The Forge personally and admits she was a part of it. Her the reasoning for turning them in was basically guilt; it was her version of walking away from “madness.”
Still, Lucie shows empathy for them, saying that the group is just the result of “people fucking people.” She also tells The Forge about Kraintz's location, which is how Bobby finds and kills him in the end. So whose side is Lucie on? She says she wants everyone to pay, including herself, and throws everyone under the bus. It is unclear whether she will face legal consequences even as a whistleblower.
6
What did Muncie achieve with his CNN speech?
Muncie's monologue didn't really do what he thought it would
Muncie's big monologue on CNN seems to really have no effect on anything, despite the theatrics and the big mic drop moment when he says “there is no more madness.” CNN kind of ignores him and then calls him delusional and no one on the show talks to him about it other than his son, who thinks it was a weak effort at justice. Muncie Publicly Calls Out Rodney Kraintz and Authorities Still Do Nothing About Itwhich raises the question: who exactly was Muncie talking to? Muncie's lawyer, Kwesi Dupree, told him that appearing on CNN would be the best way to get Kraintz off his back, which also didn't work. Muncie's speech on CNN didn't really do what he hoped it would.
5
How did Demetrius find Muncie's gun in the kitchen?
Muncie cleverly hid it in a kitchen pan
Demetrius conveniently finds Muncie's gun hidden inside a pot in the kitchen drawer. The series doesn't explain how Demetrius found the weapon or, more importantly, how he knew how to use it. Demetrius potentially had no idea how to use a weapon but that didn't stop him from going after Kraintz as soon as he got the chance. It's a forgivable plot leap, but the series probably would have benefited from including Demetrius' reaction to finding the gun after sweeping the house looking for it. The kitchen pot was a very clever place to hide it and apparently Demetrius is even smarter than his father.
4
What happened to Bobby after he killed Kraintz?
Bobby wasn't wearing a mask so he probably got caught
It would have been gratifying to know what happened to Bobby after he killed Rodney Kraintz in broad daylight. It's probably safe to assume that Bobby was caught, but the news report that announced Kraintz's death didn't mention anything about a murder suspect. Instead, they called Kraintz an act of “poetic justice.” Bobby wasn't even wearing a mask, which is quite shocking. Given this, it is almost certain that he was detained by the police. If so, he would serve a life sentence or potentially receive a death sentencewhich is still a valid legal penalty in the state of Pennsylvania, for first-degree murder.
3
Did Julia Jayne Kill YouTuber Laura Jennings?
Rodney Kraintz definitely killed her to protect Revitalize
Although it was never formally stated in the series, Julia Jayne is the most likely culprit in the murder of YouTuber Laura Jennings, who worked with Mark Simon before he was killed to expose Revitalize. It's not entirely clear whether Jayne was the one who killed Jennings, but FBI agents in The Madness episode 8 reveals that they found an injectable substance that triggers a heart attack-like response among Jayne's belongings. Without considering, Jennings was 100% eliminated by Rodney Kraintz's orders to protect Revitalizeso who pulled the trigger or injected the substance doesn't necessarily matter much.
2
What exactly is revitalize?
A huge technology company with a lot of money
Revitalize is an environmental biotechnology company that has bought political influence and paid online influencers like Brother 14 to spread misinformation and propaganda that would ultimately benefit them. Revitalise's main goal is to gain full control of environmental deregulation in the United Stateswhich is how people like Mark Simon and other online influencers and thought leaders can help sway political and social opinions to your benefit.
For Revitalize, which is likely a huge technology company with a high market capitalization, Mark Simon was just one of potentially thousands of online puppets who accepted his money to disseminate information and promote their political and financial agendas. Although Rodney Kraintz seems to be at the top of Revitalize, he may not be as all-powerful as he seems when Mucnie finally confronts him in the series finale. Like Mark, Rodney only plays a specific role in the dynamic ecosystem of the Revitalize network.
1
What will happen to the forge?
Bobby's arrest could spark a revolution
The Forge extends far beyond the group of men in the house shown in The Madness. Apparently, they are a national organization with a reach that connects Mark Simon's 5 million online followers. This means that if they choose to come together in reality, they would be an incredibly dangerous threat to American internal stability. Bobby's potential arrest following the events of The Madness it could theoretically trigger a revolution, which seems to be what the Forge has always wanted. This subplot may have been more interesting to explore than Muncie repairing her family problems in The Madness ending, as it leaves one of the biggest question marks in the series.