Sirens ending explained: What happened to Ethan?

Hindustan Times

5 days ago

Netflix's latest dark comedy thriller, Sirens, has had a compelling five-episode run with enough plot twists and character jabs to keep the audience hooked. Boasting big names like Julianne Moore, Kevin Beacon, and Meghann Fahy, the cast delivered a haunting portrayal of life behind the elite curtains of the privileged and wealthy. While most characters had their journeys set right from the beginning, many fans have questioned the outcome of Ethan Corbin III, played by Glenn Howerton.
The secret relationship between Simone (Milly Alcock), Michaela Kell's (Juliane Moore) assistant, and Ethan is set pretty early into the show. Once Michaela becomes aware of her assistant's secret fling, she takes it upon herself to step into the shoes of an able mentor and shield Simone from making the mistake she did when she married her husband Peter (Kevin Beacon). Convinced that Simone is only in it for Ethan's money, she makes a rather generous offer to lead her foundation in New York; a proposal Simone graciously accepts. With her mind set on breaking up with Ethan to move to the city, trouble soon invades paradise when he is nowhere to be found.
Turns out, Ethan is head over heels in love with Simone and plans on proposing to her. This bid for marriage makes him take a trip to bring Simone's estranged father from Buffalo, New York to Port Haven to seek his blessings. Simone, however, isn't as appreciative of the gesture as Ethan had hoped her to be due to years spent in foster care following her mother's death when her father gave up on her upbringing. Considering this too much to handle, Simone instantly decides to break up with Ethan; rejecting the proposal he wanted approval for so badly.
Dejected and heartbroken at the rejection, a drunk Ethan has an altercation with Simone at the Cliff House where he tries to win her back but to his dismay, she is unwilling to budge. During the fight, Ethan falls off the cliff despite an attempt by Simone to save him. While initial speculation suggested that Michaela or Simone herself may have aided his fall, Ethan's inflated sense of ego turns out to be his downfall (quite literally) in the end.
The fall, however, spares Ethan's life but breaks both his legs in the process. Despite Simone's attempt to visit him in the hospital during the finale, Ethan soon shuts her out and starts reacting quite aggressively to her presence in the room- a reaction that is suspiciously shut down by Peter.
A photo taken by the Vanity Fair photographer clears the confusion around Peter's strange reaction in the hospital when it's revealed to Michaela that her husband has been cheating on her with Simone all this time. Michaela is quick to convey the same to Simone by firing her from her post and demanding that she leave her home at once.
Simone's exit from Port Harbor, however, leaves just enough time for her to reconcile on the beach with Peter who puts forward an interesting proposition. Turns out, Peter has already asked Jose (Felix Solas) to destroy the picture of the two kissing from his wife's safe and instead asks Simone to take Michaela's place.
The final scene features Simone attending a gala on Peter's arm while Michaela and Devon (Meghann Fahy), Simone's sister, are sent packing from the island on a ferry.