Who died in ‘Outer Banks’ Season 4? JJ’s family secret and finale twists to remember before Season 5
After the Pogues sailed into another treasure hunt, ‘Outer Banks’ Season 5 is ready to make them pay the bill. Season 4 left the Pogues without their home and the Blue Crown, but with a pregnancy as they mourned one of their closest friends. Several characters died, including Wes Genrette, Terrance, Hollis Robinson, Omar, and Lightner, but the death that drives the final season is JJ Maybank’s. His biological father, Chandler Groff, stabbed him after JJ gave up the Blue Crown to save Kiara.
Season 4 began with the Pogues spending much of their El Dorado reward on JJ’s family property and building Poguelandia 2.0. Financial and zoning problems soon put that home at risk, while Wes Genrette hired the group to recover an amulet linked to Blackbeard and the Blue Crown. Wes died under unexplained circumstances at the end of the second episode, but the finale connected his death to Groff.
Terrance also returned as part of the mercenary crew hunting the treasure. When Lightner attacked Cleo for the amulet, Terrance intervened and was killed. Cleo’s grief followed her through the season and led to another death in Morocco. After Lightner shot Cleo in the arm, Pope shot and killed him to protect her and avenge Terrance.
Groff was responsible for most of the season’s deaths and past murders. Netflix’s Tudum counts at least five victims shown on-screen or in flashbacks: mercenary Omar, Wes, Larissa Genrette, Hollis, and JJ. Larissa’s death happened years earlier, but Season 4 revealed Groff had killed her. By the finale, he had also murdered Hollis and Omar while clearing his path to the Crown.
Luke Maybank finally told JJ that he was not his biological father. The woman JJ believed was his mother was also one of Luke’s former girlfriends. Larissa was JJ’s real mother, Wes was his grandfather, and Groff was his father, making JJ a Genrette and, by birth, a Kook. Co-creator Shannon Burke told Tudum, “That was the most extreme thing we could think of: That JJ’s actually a Kook.”
Groff did not return to build a relationship with JJ. He wanted the lens needed to continue the Blue Crown hunt and used his son whenever it helped him. In Morocco, JJ found the Crown but surrendered it when Groff threatened Kiara with a knife. Groff took the treasure, stabbed JJ, and left him to die in Kiara’s arms before escaping.
Sarah Cameron confirmed her pregnancy with two tests in Episode 7 and later told John B. Before the final trip, John B asked JJ to be the child’s godfather. The storyline now gives John B and Sarah another reason to find a way home.
Rafe and Sarah also began repairing their relationship after years of conflict. Rafe helped the Pogues reach Morocco, fought Groff, and eventually accepted Sarah’s account that Ward died saving her. Their truce explains why Rafe is part of the group’s uneasy alliance in Season 5.
The Pogues ended the season without the Blue Crown and with Groff planning to sell it to a buyer in Lisbon. Rafe suggested going after him, while Kiara made revenge her priority. Co-creator Josh Pate said, “They feel a duty to avenge JJ. If they don’t go after Groff, they’ll feel like they’ve let the spirit of JJ or their friendship down.” That mission begins when the fifth and final season arrives on Netflix on August 20.
