The Perfect Couple ending explained: Who really killed Merritt?

In The Perfect Couple, a night that should be chock-full of joy turns to tragedy when a murder occurs on the eve of a wedding. The Netflix series, The Perfect Couple revolves around high society and centers on the Winbury family as they come together at their luxurious Summerland estate to celebrate the wedding of Benji Winbury to Amelia.

What was supposed to be a night of joy now turns into one of the darkest moments of Amelia's life when her best friend, Merritt, is found dead. With secrets, affairs and motives seem to be ample reasons to kill, but things are much more shocking than one could have imagined.

So, who's the real murderer in The Perfect Couple? Well, it's none other than Abby. Without giving too much away, The Perfect Couple has something to do with a mix of greed, family pressure and a desperate attempt to control the future in one way or the other.

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When love, money and revenge collide

To begin with, the police zero in on some of the oldest motives in the book: love and revenge.

Merritt had been having an affair with Tag Winbury, fueling suspicion of his involvement when it was revealed that she was pregnant. This revelation instantly paints a cloud of guilt over both Tag and his wife, Greer, who has ample motive to have Merritt out of the picture.

After ironing out their alibis, though, it becomes clear that while motive could have been a factor, neither Tag or Greer was guilty of the crime. It becomes clearer with each new secret that Merritt's pregnancy threatens the continuation of the Winbury family in ways far more severe than anyone could have imagined.

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A race against time — and an inheritance

The deeper twist lies in how the finances are laid out for the children of the Winbury family.

The rule imposed on them to protect their inheritance from being squandered was such that the Winbury children would only be able to access their trust funds when all of them attain the age of eighteen.

With Thomas, the eldest sibling, in deep financial trouble, his desperation for the trust fund grows. When it's revealed that Merritt is pregnant with Tag's child, it would delay the release of the funds by another eighteen years, something Thomas simply cannot afford for to happen.

However, it's not Thomas who commits the crime. It's his wife Abby who, in desperation for security in their lives, resorts to extreme measures to achieve her goal. Abby knows a child of Merritt would void their entire financial plan, so she sets to eradicate the problem in a chillingly calculated manner.

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Abby's desperate act and ultimate downfall in The Perfect Couple

Not wanting Merritt's unborn child to postpone the Winbury family inheritance, Abby drugs Merritt and drowns her in the ocean.

She then stages the death to be an accident. Convinced that she has hidden her tracks, small details start unraveling her story, like a glass she had nervously cleaned.

Suspicion falls on Thomas first, given his history of substance abuse, but once his alibi with Isabel is settled, attention falls on Abby.

Detective Henry was the first to connect the dots. He felt that Abby had contradictions in her statement. Henry finds that Abby had been seen handling the glass and remembers her request to clean it, so the dots finally connect.

Confronted with the truth, Abby's intricately woven alibi unravels completely, landing her behind bars for Merritt's murder.

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In The Perfect Couple, the murder of Merritt uncovers not only one crime but also the web of lies within the rich Winbury family. The shocking plot twist of Abby having done the murder to secure her financial future sends shockwaves through the core of this family.

As relationships crumble and trust funds get delayed, one thing becomes clear: in a world motivated by money and power, the lengths one will go to protect oneself can get deadly. The finale of The Perfect Couple leaves viewers with an uncomfortable reminder that sometimes there's nothing called the perfect family.