Million Dollar Secret finale recap: Three contestants compete for the head-turning $1M cash prize

Million Dollar Secret, Netflix's "unique game of predator and prey," released its finale on April 9, 2025. Titled Get Rich or Lie Trying, it saw three contestants — Cara, Corey, and Sam — compete for the $1 million cash prize after Sydnee's elimination. However, after a tense game of strategy and manipulation, Cara managed to outsmart her competitors and win the $1 million.

The episode started with a guest activity that Cara purposely sabotaged to put Sydnee, who was her teammate in the game, at risk of elimination. She successfully executed her plan and sent Sydnee packing, convincing Sam and Corey that keeping Sydnee in the game would be unwise.

Soon after, the final three contestants participated in their final activity, which resulted in Sam earning a disadvantage. In the "endgame," a box-swapping round, the players' strategies and alliances were put to the test. Cara's game plan to deceive her contenders succeeded, making her the winner of Million Dollar Secret.

The official synopsis of Million Dollar Secret episode 8 reads:

"With life-changing money on the line, strategies backfire and alliances implode during a final game of wits. At long last, the millionaire is crowned."

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What happened in the finale of Million Dollar Secret?

Episode 8, the finale, started with the final four deliberating their suspicions. While Corey suspected Sam because he believed she had lied about the clue to the millionaire's identity, Sam suspected Corey, convinced that he had two sisters, as indicated by the clue host Peter Serafinowicz provided about the secret millionaire.

Meanwhile, Sydnee, who believed she had no more allies in the game, suspected Cara, saying she played an "innocent, naive" game. Peter joined the contestants for breakfast and informed them that one person from the losing team of the guest activity would get eliminated, before adding that the winning team would nominate who it would be.

Soon after the news, Sydnee pulled Cara, the undercover millionaire, for a private conversation to discuss her suspicions and sense if Cara had been deceiving her.

"I don't trust Sydnee. She's saying she's gunning for Corey and Sam, and I don't buy that. I feel like she's definitely onto me. I just think it'd be smart now to send her home," Cara said in a confessional.

A while later, the Million Dollar Secret guests were called to the trophy room for their activity. Working in teams of two, one from each team had to traverse a laser grid and retrieve their boxes without being able to see the lasers at all. However, their partner, who could see, would be responsible for guiding them on a safe path, avoiding the lasers.

Hitting a laser would add a 10-second time penalty, freezing the contestant on the spot. Whichever team safely retrieved their boxes would win the activity. Sam was paired with Corey, while Sydnee was paired with Cara. Cara, in a confessional, revealed that she wanted to throw the competition so she could put Sydnee at risk of elimination, confident that Sam and Corey would vote her out.

Cara not only misguided Sydnee, incurring multiple penalties, but also hit lasers during her turn to give the other team an advantage. Consequently, Sam and Corey won. In another scene of the Million Dollar Secret episode, Cara revealed to Corey that she jeopardized the game to eliminate Sydnee. However, in contrast to her expectations, Corey became suspicious of Cara.

During the elimination dinner, Cara and Sydnee attempted to convince Sam and Corey to keep them in the competition. They ultimately decided to send Sydnee packing. However, Sam and Corey were shocked to see Sydnee's empty box.

"Of course I was the easy choice to take out because I'm the bigger threat," the evictee said.

Sydnee from Million Dollar Secret (Image via Tudum by Netflix)

For their final activity, the Million Dollar Secret players had to thread five needles as fast as possible. Peter added that the player who finishes last would earn a disadvantage in the final endgame. Since the secret millionaire was still the game, Cara began the game with one needle already threaded.

Cara finished the game in under two minutes and took first place, while Sam took over three minutes and placed last. Corey finished in second place with a time of two minutes and thirty-four seconds.

In the final "game of wits," the three players had to swap the contents of a single box in private.

"First, Corey. You can swap your box with Sam or Cara or even Cara's box with Sam's. Then, Cara would have the same opportunity, not knowing which boxes Corey has swapped. Sam, as our third-place player, you will not get to move any boxes but you still have a chance to influence what Corey and Cara do," Peter explained.

The Million Dollar Secret host added that the player with the $1 million in their box at the end of the challenge would win the show. Cara, who had supported Corey so far, strategized to convince him that she was the secret millionaire so he would take the contents of her box. That way, she could retrieve the money knowing where it was.

She started interrogating Corey, accusing him of being dishonest. It confused Corey and made him believe that Cara was the millionaire. Consequently, he swapped the contents of her box with his. Cara, on the other hand, switched the contents of his box with hers. As a result, when Peter asked them to open their boxes, Cara found the money in her box.

While Cara broke down when she saw the money, Peter declared her the winner of Million Dollar Secret. He then revealed that she was the unseen millionaire and had two sisters. Peter also disclosed that Sam was a cop.

"I did it. I'm the millionaire," Cara concluded.

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Million Dollar Secret can be streamed exclusively on Netflix.