Warning: The following contains SPOILERS for The Day of the Jackal season 1 finale.Eddie Redmayne, who plays the titular assassin in The Day of the Jackal, talks about the massive death that no one sees coming in the season 1 finale. The TV adaptation of Frederick Forsyth’s 1971 novel of the same name captures an intense cat-and-mouse chase between Redmayne’s sniper and Lashana Lynch’s MI6 agent Bianca. While the Jackal originally dies at the end of the novel (and the movie adaptation), the TV remake flips the ending and sees Bianca end up as one of the Jackal’s victims.

Redmayne sheds some light on the final scene between Bianca and Jackal in an interview with TV Insider. The actor reveals that the decision about the Jackal’s survival was made before the series went into production. He believes that the Jackal “has deep respect for Bianca because they are two sides of the same coin” while relating to “her tenacity” and “obsession.” The final moment is about balance, but it also reveals the core of their relationship is a game. Check out what Redmayne said:

It was a balance because if you watch the original movie in which the Jackal dies — spoilers, sorry — it is so quick and ruthless, and it’s the astonishing genius of that last moment in Zinneman’s movie. Even though it had been decided before we started shooting that there the Jackal was potentially gonna continue, I think that Anu and the team wanted to retain something of the shock factor of the kind of the abruptness that is so unique. And yet, how do you do that whilst also paying respect to a character played so beautifully by Lashana who we’ve sat with? I remember our rehearsal day of that [episode] finding what that balance was….

That moment when he comes and momentarily kneels by her, they never meet other than these glancing moments in which their worlds played, but there is something. The Jackal, I think, has deep respect for Bianca because they are two sides of the same coin, and her tenacity and her obsession is something that he relates to. And even though it’s been a relationship that has been not tangible through meeting, it’s been one that intellectually has been — it’s the game. As she says, ‘I wanna win.’

What This Means For Bianca And Jackal In The Day Of The Jackal

The Jackal Has Similar Motives To Bianca

Redmayne’s comments provide very interesting insight into how to interpret Bianca’s final scene. As the actor mentioned, the Jackal’s death in the film was “quick and ruthless,” which is exactly how the TV series handles Bianca’s death. The talented MI6 agent has been trying to uncover Jackal’s identity obsessively since the pilot, and in The Day of the Jackal‘s two-episode finale, Bianca is able to find Jackal at his home. However, the chase costs her everything.

Redmayne clarifies that the need to win is what drives Bianca. The same also applies to the Jackal, who goes the length to make impossible shots at a high risk. Having her death mirrors the Jackal’s ending in the movie and the book emphasizes the game concept, which indirectly explains Jackal’s true motivation. At the same time, Bianca’s death also leaves an open spot in The Day of the Jackal season 2.

Our Take On Bianca & Jackal’s Dynamic In The Day Of The Jackal

Bianca Dies In A Similar Way Jackal Dies In The Film

Both the Jackal and Bianca are morally questionable characters. Bianca would do anything to get the Jackal, even though it makes her the bad guy. Bianca puts her family in danger, and she neglects her husband and marriage. She also has several deaths on her hand. The Jackal is the same. He’d stop at nothing to finish a job, and apparently, the Jackal enjoys the high risk and challenge that comes with the job more than the monetary reward.

Since the hit crime series arrived on Peacock and Sky, audiences have been obsessed with the Jackal’s true motivation. Redmayne’s comment offers some insight into the mystery. The way The Day of the Jackal handles Bianca’s shocking death also has a poetic ring to it, given that she was supposed to be the one who nailed the Jackal. It all comes down to the final moment, when life and death are separated by one bullet. Bianca had the Jackal, and here was a 50/50 chance of her survival, except that the Jackal got to her first.