Ozark Is Finally Drawing To a Close. So What Comes Next?
Major spoilers for Ozark season 4 below.
We always knew it could be Ruth Langmore who’d blow apart the Byrdes’ money-laundering operation in Netflix’s twisty crime-thriller Ozark. But as the final
episode of season 4 part 1 reveals, Julia Garner’s Ruth—at times a friend to the Byrdes, at times a foe—has finally reached her point of no return. The finale is on the horizon, and we can expect plenty of scorched earth in its wake.
In previous seasons, Ruth’s been the victim of torture. She’s lost a man she loved: Ben, Wendy Byrde’s brother. Now she's lost her cousin, Wyatt, callously murdered by the incoming Navarro cartel boss, Javi Elizondro, for his association with the unhinged heroin queen Darlene Snell. Is the Byrde family directly to blame for Wyatt’s death? We can take turns pointing fingers later, but the danger’s still evident: Ruth is on the hunt, and she has nothing left to lose. If the Byrdes really believe they can leave their laundering days behind them in favor of a squeaky-clean career in Chicago, running the charitable Byrde Foundation off of Shaw Medical money, they’ll have to contend with a furious Langmore first.
The good news is, there’s plenty of story left before we bid goodbye to one of Netflix’s most persistently intriguing originals. Here’s what we know about Ozark season 4, part 2.
When will Ozark season 4, part 2 premiere?
We won’t need to wait long to see the Byrdes’ final chapter. The second half of season 4 is expected to premiere sometime in 2022, according to The Hollywood Reporter. In an
Production wrapped for the entirety of season 4 back in October 2020, which means the final episodes should be ready to go. It’s also likely Ozark’s creators will be gunning to get the final season into Emmy contending for 2022; they’ll need to have aired the full season by May 31 in order to meet eligibility standards.
Will season 4, part 2 be the Ozark finale?
This next chapter will be Ozark’s last. In June 2021, Netflix first revealed that season 4 would be split into two halves, each seven episodes long, to encompass the entire final storyline. Said Bateman, “A super sized season means super sized problems for the Byrdes. I’m excited to end with a bang(s).”
What will part 2 be about?
Part 1 leaves numerous questions to be answered in Ozark’s final seven episodes. A few to consider:
- What will Ruth do, now that she knows who killed Wyatt? Will she survive going up against the cartel?
- Will Jonah, Marty and Wendy’s son, continue to rebel against them?
- Now that Charlotte, their daughter, seems to have adopted the family business as her own, where will that lead her?
- Will the Byrdes all survive, and if they do, will they stay intact as a family? Will Wendy and Marty’s marriage last?
- As the private investigator introduced in part 1 continues his hunt for the Navarro lawyer Helen Pierce’s body, what else will he uncover? Will he find out what happened to Ben?
- Season 4, part 1 started episode 1 by foreshadowing sudden car crash. When will we see that accident in part 2, and what will come of it?
- Will the Byrde Foundation come to fruition as Wendy envisions it, or will her past crimes come back to haunt her?
- What will Javi do as the new head of the Navarro cartel?
- Now that Darlene’s death creates a vacuum in the Ozarks, might someone step in to fill her place?
- Will the temporary new sheriff learn what happened to the old one?
The Ozark creators seem confident these questions will all be answered—and the brewing family conflict of the previous three seasons will come to a dramatic (but, hopefully, satisfying) conclusion. Keep an eye on Ruth in the meantime: It’s always the ones we underestimate who end up with the most power.
This post will be updated.