WARNING! This article contains spoilers.
The finale of BBC’s new series The Tourist aired on Sunday night.
The six-part drama, which is set in the Australian outback, follows Jamie Dornan’s character The Man, who loses his memory after being run off the road by a mysterious driver.
The show’s official synopsis reads: “A British man who finds himself in the glowing red heart of the Australian outback is being pursued by a vast tank truck trying to drive him off the road.”
“An epic cat-and-mouse chase unfolds and the man later wakes in hospital, hurt, but somehow alive. Except he has no idea who he is.”
“With merciless figures from his past pursuing him, The Man’s search for answers propels him through the vast and unforgiving outback.”
A woman named Luci quickly befriends The Man, but by the end of episode one, it becomes clear that she’s not who she seems.
It’s eventually revealed that The Man’s real name is Elliot Stanley and towards the end of the show, viewers discovered that Elliot worked as an accountant for a drug lord named Kostas.
Elliot went on the run after he fell in love with Kostas’ fiancée, who turns out to be Luci, and stole a bag with over £1 million stashed inside.
The pair were supposed to share this cash, but they kept breaking up.
In the final episode of the show, Elliott meets the woman who he keeps seeing in his flashbacks – Lena Pascal.
She tells him that she was one of his trafficking victims, who he forced to smuggle bags of heroin into Australia by swallowing them into her stomach.
Elliott realises his actions lead to the tragic deaths of two women, who were killed when the bags filled with drugs exploded inside of them.
Struggling to come to terms with this discovery, Elliot tries to kill himself by crashing his car. When that doesn’t work, he takes an overdose in the hospital, and viewers are left wondering whether he will survive.
Taking to Twitter to react to the shock ending, one fan wrote: “The Finale of The Tourist was a Tour De Force and surpassed all expectations. Having stayed on the road through many twists, switchbacks and sharp left turns, the Williams Brothers thriller reaches its conclusion and plays to its strengths, Jamie Dornan & Danielle Macdonald.”
Another tweeted: “Thoroughly enjoyed The Tourist on @BBCOne #JamieDornan & #DanielleMacDonald were outstanding-the whole cast were excellent! A great collaboration with STAN Australia. More like this please.”
A third viewer wrote: “I don’t follow many TV dramas, but the @BBCs The Tourist has been exceptional. David Lynch like weirdness, great casting and no happy ending, even the music was marvellous evoking The Shining type shadows. Quite marvellous.”
The Finale of "The Tourist " was a Tour De Force and surpassed all expectations.#Having stayed on the road through many twists, switchbacks and sharp left turns, the Williams Brothers thriller reaches its conclusion and plays to its strengths, Jamie Dornan & Danielle Macdonald ❤️
— KEVIN LYONS (@KEVINLY01703141) January 31, 2022
Thoroughly enjoyed The Tourist on @BBCOne #JamieDornan & #DanielleMacDonald were outstanding-the whole cast were excellent! A great collaboration with STAN Australia. More like this please 👍🏻!
— sue jennings 💙🕯🌱💜🤍💚#PensArmy #BanYulin (@motherwellrules) January 30, 2022
I've been sat here thinking about the ending of The Tourist.
Honestly, I'm 🤷🏻♀️
— Dolly 💙 ️✊✌🐰 (@fauxpaschick) January 30, 2022
The Tourist what bloody ending.
— Laura P ♊️🌈💙 (@LauraP_71) January 30, 2022
I don’t follow many TV dramas, but the @BBCs The Tourist has been exceptional. David Lynch like weirdness, great casting and no happy ending, even the music was marvellous evoking The Shining type shadows. Quite marvellous #TheTourist
— The trouble with Jono (@jonathanrog68) January 30, 2022
Others were not happy with the ending of the show, with one viewer tweeting: “Disappointed with BBC ‘The Tourist ‘. Started poor, picked up a bit but ending poor. Better luck next time.”
Another wrote: “Thoughts on the Tourist ? Bit disappointed in the ending but really enjoyed it overall.”
Disappointed with BBC 'The Tourist '. Started poor, picked up a bit but ending poor.
Better luck next time.— Mike (@Jeno321J) January 29, 2022
Just finished watching The Tourist…what a weird ending!
— ✨💕🦋 Trudee 🦋🌸🍃 (@Trudeestweets) January 17, 2022
Can’t be the only one that thought The Tourist started great but got too silly? All the initial suspense only to pack a million curveballs at the ending.
— EKB (@emmabxker) January 17, 2022
Very much enjoyed The Tourist but wasn't keen on the ending. The last episode petered out, & tonally seemed wrong, since there was so much dark humour & fun in the whole series – yet the conclusion was bleak & lost its comic touch. pic.twitter.com/M3JKTBk7zg
— Lydia Massiah🌿📚🍄 (@lydia_massiah) January 17, 2022
You can watch the full series on BBC iPlayer.
