‘You’ brought Joe Goldberg’s story to a fitting conclusion. The showrunners explain why he got what he deserved

Showrunners Michael Foley and Justin Lo speak to CNN about the end of Netflix’s soapy psychological thriller series “You” and Joe Goldberg’s fate.

It was only fitting that Joe Goldberg, the twisted central character in Netflix’s soapy psychological thriller series “You” starring Penn Badgley, would get what he had coming at the end of the show’s fifth and final season. The 10-episode fifth season, released Thursday on Netflix, concluded Joe’s seven-year journey of being a murderous but oddly charming man with a penchant for stalkery and obsessive behavior. This, however, did not mean death; it meant living with his crimes – and a pretty gnarly injury. Showrunners Michael Foley and Justin Lo didn’t know exactly how that would unfold, they told CNN in a recent interview that they knew Joe (Badgley) would “get his comeuppance” and would not be “redeemed.” “We knew that we wanted him to face people whose lives he ruined,” Foley said. “We wanted to show him at his most horrific and make him face what he really is and, in doing so, make us all face what we’ve been rooting for all these years.” The show debuted in 2018 and is based on the book series of the same name by Caroline Kepnes.