FX’s new murder mystery series A Murder at the End of the World follows Darby Hart (The Crown’s Emma Corrin), an amateur sleuth and tech-savvy hacker affectionately referred to as a Gen Z Sherlock Holmes. One of nine guests invited to a billionaire’s remote estate, Darby’s skills are put to the test when one of the guests is murdered.
Episode one of the seven-episode limited series opens with Darby presenting the true crime memoir she wrote, The Silver Doe, to a bookstore audience. A bit awkward and shy, she begins to tell them about a murder victim. It’s obvious she was obsessed with the case, drawn to it in part because she’s the coroner’s daughter.
As Darby reads a chapter from her book, a flashback shows her with Bill (Harris Dickinson, Trust) at a motel discussing breaking into a possible serial killer’s house. Bill’s hesitant and wants to let the cops handle it, but Darby’s against it since their suspect is also a cop.
Bill initially refuses to go, but Darby’s powers of persuasion are too strong. They set off on their dangerous adventure that leads to Darby attempting to hack the suspect’s garage door. Unfortunately, she ends up opening all the garages in the vicinity.
She and Bill eventually make their way downstairs into the basement where they begin drilling into the concrete and come up empty-handed. Strangely, the tables have turned and it’s now Bill who’s not ready to give up yet.
Morning arrives, and somehow they fell asleep. Darby’s awakened by a banging noise and realizes someone has rebuilt the panels under the stairs. They rip into the wood, tearing it down and revealing a buried skeleton. They realize the ring Darby has from evidence matches the band on the skeleton’s finger.
Darby and Bill discover they aren’t alone when the basement door opens, and a man with a gun is standing at the top of the stairs. As they begin to say the names of all the murder victims, Bill steps in front of Darby. We hear a gunshot ring out, but the scene cuts away without revealing who was shot.
Back in the present, Darby’s asked by one of the audience members why she dedicated her book to the hacker Lee Anderson. Darby explains that when she was growing up, Lee was one of the only female coders around before she was doxed and her life was ruined.
Another audience member asks what happened between Darby and Bill because they seemed to be so in love. The scene shifts away before she responds.
Darby’s walking home from the presentation when she receives a message informing her that she was sent crime scene photos. She nods off while looking through them but is snapped awake by a text from tech king Andy Ronson’s assistant. Jumping on a video chat, she debates with her friends whether she should click the link that was sent by Ronson’s assistant. Ultimately, Darby decides to go for it.
After granting access to her phone’s camera, she looks outside but sees nothing. Yet when she holds her camera to the window, there’s a man standing there asking to be let up to her place. It turns out he’s there virtually to invite her to Andy’s 2023 retreat.
Darby’s intrigued enough by this invitation that she accepts a trip to Ronson’s remote estate. Before boarding the private plane, she realizes the guy who asked why she dedicated the book to Lee works for Andy.
Darby has her temperature checked and her mouth swabbed … why is that necessary? … and then finds herself on board with several other passengers. One of the passengers is a filmmaker named Martin (Jermaine Fowler), who just happens to be reading her book.
Darby dozes off and dreams about being back at the motel and discovering a note from Bill that describes their relationship as both too much and not enough. He left without saying goodbye.
As the plane lands, those on board finally learn the retreat is in Iceland. Darby gets in a car with Lu Mei (Joan Chen) and makes small talk, asking Lu Mei what she does.
Upon arrival at Ronson’s manor, Darby’s given a ring that will grant her access to certain areas, including her room and the common rooms. Andy’s virtual assistant pops back up as Darby settles into her room and explains that the special glasses on the nightstand will allow her to see him as well as the layout of the building. He also provides information on the guests who will be sitting next to her at the welcome dinner.
Once everyone’s gathered around the dinner table, Andy (Clive Owen) introduces himself and his wife, Lee (Brit Marling) – Darby’s hacker hero. Andy reveals he brought them all together for two reasons. One, to introduce them to Ray, his virtual assistant whom he hopes can be more than just an assistant to people. And two, to discuss climate change. Andy believes the people he has gathered are original thinkers.
A guest arrives late to dinner and to Darby’s shock, it’s Bill, who’s now a famous artist.
Dinner is followed by a relaxing nighttime swim, during which Ziba (Pegah Ferydoni) and Martin try to figure out why Darby is there. Martin believes they are all there for some type of audition, but why Darby?
Bill shows up outside her door and she reacts by punching him in the stomach. (Darby really needed to get that out of her system). They take a walk, and he compliments her book, calling it art. He admits he knows Lee and came to the retreat to see her.
Darby asks why he left back then, and Bill admits her bravery scared him. Also, the fact that she left him so many times before he left her – and it didn’t seem to faze her – scared him as well.
A short while later she does a search for Lee Anderson and Fangs (aka Bill) and finds photos of them together in public. She turns on music to ease her mind, landing on a song that fondly reminds her of Bill. Unable to rest, she sets out to look for him.
The opening episode ends with a major twist. Darby stands outside Bill’s room and hears what she initially believes is her ex being intimate with someone. However, she quickly realizes that might not be the noise she’s hearing.
She makes a quick decision to look through his window and sees Bill in distress. He looks at Darby, eyes full of pain and fear, and says, “Darby, stay with me.”
- A Murder at the End of the World Episode 2 “The Silver Doe” Recap
- A Murder at the End of the World Episode 3 “Survivors” Recap
- A Murder at the End of the World Episode 4 “Family Secrets” Recap
- A Murder at the End of the World Episode 5 “Crypt” Recap
- A Murder at the End of the World Episode 6 “Crime Seen” Recap
- A Murder at the End of the World Episode 7 “Retreat” Finale Recap
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New episodes of FX’s A Murder at the End of the World air on Tuesdays on Hulu.
Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij (The OA) created the series and serve as writers, directors, and executive producers. Andrea Sperling, Melanie Marnich, and Nicki Paluga also executive produce.
