A Man In Full Ending Explained

WARNING: SPOILERS ahead for A Man in Full.

A Man in Full ended with Charlie Croker’s debts finally catching up with him. Fueled by sheer grit and a fierce ego, Charlie meets his demise at the end of A Man in Full after his own body turns against his best interests. Throughout A Man in Full, which is the latest series created by the acclaimed television writer and showrunner David E. Kelly, Charlie (Jeff Daniels) avoids the repercussions of funding his lavish life on loaned money from a prestigious bank. As everything in the Atlanta-based real estate mogul’s life starts to unravel and fall apart, Charlie’s personality and drive inspire him to give everything he’s got until the wheels come off.

A Man in Full’s mixed reviews indicate a divided response among critics to Daniels’ first project with Netflix. A Man in Full’s cast features an impressive ensemble that includes Diane Lane (Man of Steel), Tom Pelphrey (Ozark), Bill Camp (The Queen’s Gambit), Lucy Liu (Kill Bill), Wiliam Jackson Harper (The Good Place), and Sarah Jones (For All Mankind). Kelly wrote the teleplays for all six episodes of A Man in Full, his first limited series since HBO’s Love & Death (2023). Oscar and Emmy-winning actress Regina King directed three of the six episodes of A Man in Full, with Thomas Schlamme (The West Wing, The Americans) directing the rest.

While the Netflix television adaptation of A Man in Full made several changes to Charlie Croker’s character as well as the plot of the original 1998 novel of the same name by Tom Wolfe, it still kept true to the core of the so-called “60 Minute Man”. As the ending of A Man in Full demonstrates, Charlie’s entire sense of identity is motivated by being the best, having the most, and maintaining the self-interested mindset of a modern-day conqueror. Although Charlie did show some of his softer side with Conrad’s prison situation and with his son Wally, Charlie’s pride ended up being his downfall as it made him a target of the obsessive Raymond Peepgrass.

Why Judge Taylor Dropped The Charges Against Conrad Hensley

Roger convinced the judge that it was a matter of self-defense

A major part of A Man in Full’s story hardly has anything to do with Charlie at all. After the husband of Charlie’s assistant, Jill Hensley (Chanté Adams), is arrested for assaulting a police officer, Charlie’s top attorney, Roger White (Aml Ameen), defends him in court. They are challenged by a conservative Judge Taylor, who has little sympathy for Conrad’s position and harshly sentences him to 60 days in prison. Roger is able to find a way to convince Judge Taylor to drop the charges altogether after having the police officer take the stand as a witness. Ultimately, Roger convinced the judge that it was a matter of self-defense, and Conrad was free to go.

Charlie Croker’s Message To His Son Wally Explained

Charlie stresses the significance of bringing other people joy

Before making his speech after being honored for his legacy as a star football player at Georgia Tech, Charlie has a brief conversation with his son Wally in the stands of the stadium. Wally doesn’t buy into the American collegiate system like his father did despite seeing all that it had done for him and his family. Wally also started to lose faith in his dad after seeing him bizarrely catch a rattlesnake with his bare hands for no good reason. Despite Charlie’s faults, he makes an effort to connect with Wally on the important things in life, such as bringing people joy. This is a rather ironic sentiment, considering how many enemies Charlie has.

Did Charlie Croker Really Betray Mayor Wes Jordan?

Charlie backed out of their deal to expose Norman

The real point of Charlie Croker’s speech at Georgia Tech was to expose the sexual assault allegations against Norman Bagovitch, Mayor Wes Jordan’s (Harper) political rival and opponent. Although Charlie didn’t explicitly talk about the sexual assault allegations, which were made by Joyce Newman (Liu) in particular, his endorsement of Mayor Wes did spike his popularity in the polls, as reported on the news towards the end of the series. Regardless, Mayor Wes was furious that Charlie didn’t throw his old teammate Norman under the bus as they had planned. Charlie didn’t completely betray Wes, but he did back out on their deal.

How Raymond Peepgrass Tried To Take Charlie’s Concourse With Big Red Dog LLC

Raymond is completely desperate to win Charlie’s attention

Raymond Peepgrass had been playing a long game throughout A Man in Full to essentially gain Charlie’s attention. Raymond had always felt slighted by Charlie over the years and hated the way that Charlie made him feel insignificant, which fueled his strange, methodical plot to get back at him. Raymond says several times that his hatred of Charlie came from an initial admiration for him, one that still persists in the final episode of A Man in Full. Raymond will basically do anything to earn the respect and attention of Charlie, who will never give it to him.

After he and Harry Zale (Camp) are told to forget about going after Charlie, Raymond’s weak attempts to gain Charlie’s attention quickly become much more aggressive and creepy. Raymond somehow seduces Charlie’s ex-wife Martha, who equally hates Charlie, by offering her a financial safety net after his bank takes all of Charlie’s money and assets. When this plan fails, Charlie opens up a new LLC called Big Red Dog, where he plans to reallocate Martha and Wally’s majority stake in Charlie’s beloved Concourse. Knowing this would completely unnerve Charlie, in addition to sleeping with his ex-wife, Raymond finally was able to get Charlie’s full attention.

The Real Meaning Of A Man In Full’s Ending

Charlie was too full of himself for his own good

Charlie dies at the end of A Man in Full after seemingly having a heart attack while his hand is involuntarily locked around Raymond’s throat. It’s unclear exactly whether Raymond was killed by the 60 Minute Man, but the two characters appear to be taking their last breaths together as they fall to the ground. If Raymond is dead, his body would probably still have been lying next to Charlie in the final shot of the series.

However, if Raymond isn’t dead, it’s surprising that he isn’t standing next to Martha trying to comfort her as Roger enters the scene. He also could have been rushed to the hospital. A Man in Full ends without much resolution, and the fates of Martha, Wally, and Raymond remain unclear as the credits roll. What’s evident, however, is that any redemption Charlie had earned up to that point has been eradicated, and ultimately he was a man too full of himself for his own good.

A Man in Full

A Man in Full is a Netflix original series starring Jeff Daniels, Tom Pelphrey, Diane Lane, and Lucy Liu. The limited-series is based on the book of the same name by Tom Wolfe, which revolves around a real estate mogul Charelie Croker in Atlanta. Charlie is facing bankruptcy and must protect his empire from those hoping to capitalize on his misfortunes.

Cast

Jeff Daniels , Tom Pelphrey , Diane Lane , Lucy Liu , William Jackson Harper , Aml Ameen , Sarah Jones , Jon Michael Hill , Chanté Adams

Release Date

May 2, 2024

Seasons

1

Writers

David E. Kelley

Directors

Regina King , Tommy Schlamme

Showrunner

David E. Kelley

Creator(s)

David E. Kelley