'Presumed Innocent' Episode 2 Takeaway: Rusty Sabich may have been a stalker, but that doesn't make him a murderer
Contains spoilers for 'Presumed Innocent'
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Rusty Sabich's (Jake Gyllenhaal) life is taking major setbacks following the murder of his colleague and secret lover Carolyn Polhemus (Renate Reinsve) in Apple TV+'s 'Presumed Innocent'.
The mystery surrounding Carolyn's murder is deftly introduced in the first two episodes. Although Rusty is now the main suspect, he is adamant that Carolyn was killed by Liam Reynolds (Mark Harelik), the murderer of Bunny Davis.
However, Rusty is also established as the main suspect due to his web of lies, which includes lying to his wife Barbara Sabich (Ruth Negga) about the breakup of his affair. The fact that Carolyn was carrying his child adds to the mystery and makes Rusty the prime suspect.
Throughout the two episodes, Rusty is also seen hiding, as though he is making a concerted effort to hide something.
What did the text message reveal in 'Presumed Innocent'?
The second episode teases with some very serious clues that suggest Rusty is, in fact, heavily involved in the Caroyln murder case. But in the final seconds of Episode 2, Rusty received a vital message that left him speechless.
He is seen with his family, thanking them for supporting him after receiving his bail. In the midst of this, he receives a message stating that the sender is aware that he was at Caroylyn's house on the day of her murder and has seen him.
Before anything else is revealed, the episode concludes, leaving an array of questions to be answered.
The text message deepens the mystery behind Rusty Sabich's involvement in Carolyn Polhemus' murder
After reading the text message, Rusty's startling expressions imply that the text's contents are true, casting further suspicion on him for being involved in Carolyn's murder.
The fact that Rusty himself confessed to stalking Carolyn as their relationship was about to end cement suspicion that he is hiding something critical.
Now the question arises. Who sent the message? Are there any credible witnesses, or do they have an agenda? Is this person aware of the entire truth, or only a piece of it?
It is possible that the sender is Tommy Molto (Peter Sarsgaard), Rusty's workplace rival, who is determined to indict Rusty for Carolyn's murder. He may have sent the message to see what Rusty's next steps would be.
It is also possible that Carolyn was murdered by the same man who murdered Bunny Davis. So, now the question arises about its possibility cause the murderer of Bunny is Reynolds, who is rotting in prison.
However, the second episode does hint that there is a chance that it wasn't Reynolds but someone else who murdered Bunny.
Given the similarities between Bunny's and Caroyln's murders, it is possible that the murderer was waiting outside Caroyln's house for the perfect time to ambush her when he noticed Rusty approaching her house, which explains the text message.
It would be interesting to see how this text message arc plays out in future episodes and if Rusty is the murderer or is just being implicated based on circumstantial evidence.
'Presumed Innocent' trailer