'The Morning Show' finale sees Alex Levy address accountability in a predictable, yet groundbreaking final outburst
This article contains spoilers for episode 10: 'The Interview'.
Through the course of 'The Morning Show' we have seen Jennifer Aniston's Alex Levy go from being the chic dragon lady running the eponymous show within a show to a vulnerable, insecure woman afraid of losing her job, and eventually, a stone-cold backstabbing b**ch, if you will, who doesn't think twice before sabotaging anybody else's life on her own quest to success. All of that takes a shocking turn right at the end of the debut run of Apple TV+'s iconic #MeToo posterchild and culminates into a nervous wreck on live television - something that was every bit as dramatic and predictable as it could be, but surprising nevertheless because we didn't see it coming from Alex. Reese Witherspoon's Bradley? Sure. But it is Alex who takes the stage and wows us as she pretty much loses her s**t on national television.
As the finale, aka episode 10 opens, we see Alex meeting with Marlon Tate - Chip's replacement as their talk show's new EP, who wants to give the world a new Alex Levy. Through the course of their conversation, it's obvious that Alex couldn't care less about Marlon's dreams and ambitions with the network, but she continues civilly to stay on network boss Fred Macklen's good books. Later when she meets Fred, we see her fighting for Chip's position, asking if there's any way they could send him on administrative leave on account of him being responsible for permitting an environment that fosters sexual misconduct, and then hire him back later. But she doesn't push her luck at keeping Chip because she cares about covering her own ass more than anybody else's - even though that means sucking up to the man who she knew was looking to replace her with a younger, fiercer model. She wouldn't even look at Chip as she exits Fred's office and watches him make his way in for the inevitable.
But all of that changes within the last 10 minutes of the show, right when she finds out about the reality of what went into Hannah's suicide. It isn't until she learns from Bradley about the secret interview they were planning behind her back to bust the network that Alex's entire view of the narrative changes. Learning that Mitch did do the deplorable things he was accused of, and getting the confirmation that Fred silenced Hannah with a promotion ignites a spark in Alex that's so potent that she feels the need to storm out of her dressing room and chase a leaving Bradley out in the streets to convince her to do one last segment of the talk show with her. In her nervous petulance comes out a vulnerability to Alex that we didn't get to see even when Jason slammed her with a divorce, or when she found out her position at the network was at stake. Something about Bradley's outburst about being accountable for Hannah's suicide sparked an unstoppable whirlwind in Alex and for that, we have both the characters to thank.
All of this is only made better by the final outburst she has on air because it was expected from Bradley. It starts with Marlon being the pretentious new EP and offering his sympathies in the wake of Hannah's tragic news which makes Alex grab the mug in front of her and splash the water right at Marlon's face. It's obvious that the ship has sailed and there's no holding back anymore. And even though the discourse is somewhat melodramatic and completely predictable, the fact that Alex mentions her own complicity and owns up to allowing the fear and paranoia regulated by Fred silence her until now is what proves to be a game-changer. Kudos to Aniston for the gradual progression of her on-screen outburst. The fumbling with the script from the teleprompter, the slowly getting up and nervously pacing around the set while Bradley takes over to announce the morning news on air is what makes the scene so special.
When Alex Levy finally sits down we know the storm is only halfway through, unraveling the network. She goes on air and she blurts it all out - directing the cameramen to zoom in on her when she empathetically tells viewers about all the Freds in the world being taken down by the Bradleys and Alexes, and that glimmer of hope and the glint in her eyes is what makes the ending so phenomenal and striking. She talks about being culpable, seeing the injustices and never stopping it because she was succeeding. It takes guts to accept all of this on live TV, especially for someone in Alex's position. We had high hopes from the long-awaited Jennifer Aniston comeback and the ending where she asks us to 'Get loud', doesn't disappoint at all.
'The Morning Show' season 1 is available for streaming only on Apple TV+