As far as shows that radiate unsettling energy go, Netflix’s You has got a large slice of the cake. It’s a series that straddles the genre lines and gives us everything we’re looking for in a psychological thriller. Only problem is that our main character is a white man that primarily stalks women and occasionally kills them. Joe is the epitome of a man who continually romanticizes and justifies his behavior when it comes to women.
I’ll admit that some of his victims aren’t people we’re wasting tissue boxes on. He’s murdered some despicable human beings (usually for his own selfish reasons) and it makes us not totally hate him in those moments. How many folks has he murdered across four seasons? You are about to find out. Please keep in mind that spoilers are ahead surrounding major twists in You season 4.
Flashback victims:
- Joe’s biological father
- Elijah Thornton (played by Esteban Bentio)
Benji (Season 1)
Despite how much of a fuck boy Benji (Lou Taylor Pucci) was, he didn’t necessarily deserve to die. His death happened because he was becoming an inconvenience to Joe, rather than it being solely due to the horrible hazing video that Benji unearthed to grant his freedom. The way he died too was a bit horrific, drinking a coffee with peanut oil in it and triggering a fatal allergic reaction. Essentially, being honest about his allergies to Joe made it easy to kill him.
Peach Salinger (Season 1)
Even though Peach (Shay Mitchell) wasn’t exactly a perfect person (she was also doing creepy shit), she wasn’t remotely on the level of Joe. But in his eyes, she was the creep, and he was the protector. This led him to follow her and Beck (Elizabeth Lail) to the Salinger’s family estate in “Amour Fou” (Season 1, Episode 6). Once Beck left in a huff, Joe emerged out in the open and Peach rightfully pulled a gun on him. Despite her initially having the upper hand, Joe killed her on the front lawn and staged it like a suicide. Her book death is even more disturbing, believe me.
Ron (Season 1)
Ron (Daniel Cosgrove) was an abusive piece of shit and therefore no loss was felt when Joe killed him. What’s unfortunate is that killing Ron is a narrative way to make Joe seem less monstrous. Joe stabbed him in the neck to save Paco (who really sucks by the way) from the hands of Ron.
Beck (Season 1)
Beck (Elizabeth Lail) is literally a victim of stalking and complete violation and realizes it too late. And while she was annoying as well as dysfunctional, it didn’t mean she deserved to die. Essentially, she’s killed because she won’t accept Joe being a stalker who murdered people she knew. It’s quite sickening because she almost gets away and then is strangled to death by Joe in the basement of Mooney’s. In season 2 of You we get to see the marks on Beck’s neck by way of hallucination (or ghost?).
Jasper (Season 2)
Jasper (Steven W. Bailey) is literally so basic and unimportant in the grand scheme of things. But he’s the first person that Joe kills in season 2 and it’s pretty gnarly. After Joe murders him, he literally dismembers the body and puts him through a MEAT GRINDER (which we bet he didn’t clean afterwards).
Henderson (Season 2)
This is another death in the series that’s sudden and yet not a tragic loss. Henderson (Chris D’Elia) was a predatory celebrity and Joe takes it upon himself to expose him. Henderson attempts to flee Joe’s capture and is accidentally killed by falling down the stairs. A disturbing part of all this is that Chris D’Elia isn’t far from his You character.
Ryan (Season 3)
This series has a pattern of making some of Joe’s victims deplorable—with Ryan (Scott Michael Foster) falling on the scale of being absolutely horrible! Plus, him being the ex-husband of Joe’s Season 3 fixation, Marienne Bellamy (Tati Gabrielle), made it very easy for Joe to murder him. His death isn’t shocking per se but it’s literally the only time Joe kills in Season 3. And it had nothing to do with protecting Love (Victoria Pedretti).
Love (Season 3)
In no way am I excusing everything she does, but Love (Victoria Pedretti) is a force in You. She’s presented as Joe’s new obsession in season 2 and then the tables are turned when it’s revealed she was equally as obsessed. Rather than being a victim of Joe, she winds up being a killer just like him. And from there, they have a baby, get married—then it falls apart. Once Love fully realizes that Joe doesn’t really love her and that she deserves better, she makes the decision to kill him. Only for him to use wolfsbane that kills her in the most agonizing way possible. Poor Love.
Malcolm (Season 4)
If only Season 4 had been bold and had Joe not be the Eat the Rich killer. But just as some of us expected, Joe killed the very misogynistic Malcolm (Stephen Hagan) in his own apartment and left him on the table. The discussion surrounding mental health in season 4 is very shaky and ultimately it should’ve been in the dialogue that Joe was clearly dissociating (whether he has D.I.D or not). Regardless, the real Rhys Montrose (Ed Speleers) was not in fact murdering people.
Simon Soo (Season 4)
There’s very little to say about Simon (Aidan Cheng) because he’s ultimately another throwaway character. He was mainly important regarding the Eat the Rich killer mystery and even then, he wasn’t all that significant. Simon was merely an entitled rich kid who was gaslighting artists and using their work for his shows.
Vic (Season 4)
Vic (Sean Pertwee) as a character is relatively forgettable and of course he doesn’t last long because Joe takes him out. It’s quite ironic that Vic dies from being strangled in a crypt too. Joe’s just that crafty, you know? There’s not much else to say about this man because again, he’s relatively forgettable.
Gemma (Season 4)
It’s incredible how the You side characters get even more unlikable as the show goes on. Gemma (Eve Austin) is without a doubt one of the worst in that rich friend group. Her accusing Joe was essentially what cemented that she was going to die. Most people who suspect Joe end up dead one way or another.
Rhys Montrose (Season 4)
The violins are swelling and the most obvious twist is revealed to us in part 2. It was the most obvious twist we could have gotten. And ultimately, many of us are still disappointed that Rhys (Ed Speleers) wasn’t actually the killer. The real Rhys Montrose was being stalked by Joe (making him Joe’s You for the season) and just like his other obsessions, Joe violently murdered Rhys. If I’m being honest, it’s one of the most disturbing murders because the real Rhys had no idea what was going on.
Tom Lockwood and Hugo (Season 4)
Bringing in Kate (Charlotte Ritchie)’s father so late into the season was a bit silly. But regardless he was always going to die because that’s just how it goes. Tom Lockwood (Greg Kinnear) wasn’t your typical asshole in the Youniverse. Instead, he was quite casual about how horrible he was and was clearly never going to be a healthy presence in Kate’s life. Therefore Joe took it upon himself to get rid of Tom and his bodyguard Hugo (all while framing him in the process) with the help of Rhys.
Eddie (Season 4)
Despite how Eddie (Brad Alexander) was only made interesting through Nadia (Amy-Leigh Hickman), his death is pretty sad when you think about it. Both Nadia and Eddie tried hard to take Joe down and failed because Joe Goldberg continues to win. Poor Nadia ends up being framed by Joe for Eddie’s murder and it’s an aggressively bleak ending for both Eddie and Nadia.
(featured image: Netflix)
