‘The Madness’ Deaths, Explained: Who All Died? & How?

Characters drop dead like flies in Netflix’s latest thriller, The Madness. The show finds Colman Domingo’s lead character in the middle of a huge conspiracy, where he has to move mountains in order to prove his innocence. In this article, we’re going to look into all the major deaths and the cause behind them. In case you’re looking for a detailed recap and explanation, please check here. 

Spoilers Ahead

Mark Simon 

White supremacist leader Mark Simon, aka Brother 14, dies in the most horrible manner in the show. Not only do Boris, aka Ant, and Donald Sloss Jr. murder him at the Poconos cabin, they also chop up his body. Clearly, Rodney Kraintz, the man who’s behind the murder, is sending a message here. Mark had the audacity to go against him upon knowing the organization called Revitalized is killing American people. Mark might be a racist, but he can’t stand the idea of someone killing White Americans. Quite naturally, he bailed and had to pay the price. He doesn’t even get to know who’s the one behind his killing, and probably dies thinking Stu Magnusson ordered it, when he actually had nothing to do with it. 

Boris, aka Ant

Mark’s death puts Muncie Daniels in the middle of the chaos, who is unfortunate enough to come looking for him at the worst moment imaginable. All Muncie was hoping for was some generator fuel, as Mark asked him to come by if he needed anything when they met earlier. But unfortunately, Muncie finds Mark’s chopped-up body, and he is soon spotted by the killers—Ant and Donald Jr. They immediately run after him, and Boris has a scuffle that ends with Muncie stabbing him with a pen. That’s the last of Boris we see, and the next thing we know, the guy is dead. Muncie can’t be the killer here because he stabbed Boris only once. The show never explicitly makes it clear, but I believe Boris was killed by his friend, Donald Sloss Jr., because the plan was to frame Muncie. That’s why Boris was killed, and he had many stab wounds on his body so that it looked like Muncie Daniels had done it.

Laura Jennings 

Whistleblower journalist Laura Jennings suffers a sudden heart attack and dies at the hospital, but we all know that’s not quite what happened. Much later in the show it gets revealed that Mark Simon told Laura about what Revitalized is doing, and she planned to put them out in the open. She even found out about the ever so elusive Rodney Kraintz, aka the man who was calling the shots. We also see Laura trying to contact Muncie Daniels and assuring him that she knows he didn’t kill Mark. Considering all this, the journalist’s life was hanging by a thread already, and Rodney Kraintz made sure to end it quickly.

Stu Magnusson 

For a large chunk of The Madness, Stu Magnusson seems like the real villain who is behind all the killing and the framing of Muncie. It makes sense considering the organization he’s a part of. Also, him being a hedge fund manager gives him the perfect opportunity to orchestrate everything. Except, Stu didn’t actually do it and was never aware of what was happening. He had no idea that Rodney Kraintz is the one who’s killing people and security consultant Julia Jayne was executing his orders. Only when Muncie Daniels gives him a visit (second time around) does Stu realize something is off. He still finds it quite hard to believe, but in the meantime, Donald Jr. walks into the room and shoots him. Stu Magnusson would have survived had Muncie Daniels not accused him of killing Mark Simon. This is just unfortunate, but considering Stu was part of something like Revitalized, I would say he had it coming.

Donald Sloss Jr.

Right after killing Stu (and one of his men), Donald’s job was to kill Muncie. He shoots, but Muncie promptly hides behind the sofa. It ultimately comes down to a very physical fight where Muncie chokes Donald to death. Donald might have been in the military, but Muncie also knows how to handle himself as we’ve already seen him practicing jiu-jitsu at the start of the show. Also, Donald made himself pretty much a lost cause and Muncie was literally fighting for his life. The urgency brought strength in Muncie, and Donald had to pay. After what he has done, I would say the guy deserved it. 

Franco Quinones 

This one has to be the most tragic death in the show. FBI agent Franco Quinones was not only great at his job; he was a good guy as well. Agent Franco is the main reason Muncie survives in the show, as the man helps him throughout. He is the one who believes Muncie and provides him with all the ammunition to fight a battle. It is also evident that Muncie happens to genuinely like Franco, as we see them bonding over pizza and whiskey in the middle of all the chaos. What is particularly sad here is the fact that Franco shoots himself. He ends his life because he is unable to accept the fact that the system he works for is compromised. He probably also feels guilty for not being able to deliver on his promise of freeing Muncie and also ensuring (Mark’s wife) Lucie’s safety.

Julia Jayne 

I guess we all hated her, right? Inarguably the most unhinged character, Julia is the enforcer of all the bad things Rodney Kraintz does. Of course she actually believes in Rodney and genuinely feels whatever they are doing is making the world better. That makes her both terrible and insane and makes the audience root for her death. The fact that it was a particularly violent one made me really happy. Julia totally deserved getting bludgeoned to death by Elena, especially given the fact that she was, in fact, trying to kill Muncie and his whole family.

Rodney Kraintz 

Revitalized investor Rodney Kraintz might appear as a calm man who has a soothing presence, but make no mistake, he is pure evil. We don’t get to see much of Kraintz, but by the end of the show, we know what this guy has done. His speech about how the powerful always win in the world is quite infuriating. His death was a necessity for the show to make a point by the end, and I am glad that the show gives us that. Bobby Woods killing him is something that we probably didn’t see coming, but it only makes sense. Kraintz is the person who is responsible for Mark Simon’s death. Bobby is in the Forge, and he has been looking for revenge, which he gets. Not that there should be any sympathy for Bobby, considering he is still a racist, but here, he serves the purpose. The world is a better place with one less man like Rodney Kraintz after all.