The greatest TV plot twists are those that make you sit up straighter, jaws on the floor, hands on your head, rushing to rewind the scene and shout “no way!” to an empty room. Over the past two decades, the small screen has morphed from a cozy backdrop for dinnertime to a battleground for storytelling. And much of that transformation is thanks to the art of delivering a good plot twist.
Prestige dramas are becoming more common with streaming platforms taking the reins, and TV shows no longer play it safe. They dive right into the most mind-bending sci-fi thrillers, horror slow-burns, and tangled family sagas. They have become more cinematic and ambitious. And at the heart of these TV shows of the 21st century are surprises that turn the entire narrative around. From identity reveals to long-laid secrets, these plot twists deepen character arcs, subvert well-worn tropes, and keep us pressing “next episode” every time.
So here they are, the 20 greatest TV plot twists of the 21st century so far.
20
Peter Is From Another Universe in ‘Fringe’
For a major part of Fringe, Peter Bishop is the genius who helps the Fringe Division in exploring the unknown and unraveling bizarre scientific anomalies. But under the surface of his sharp intellect and his complicated relationship with Walter Bishop, his father, lies a secret that changes the course of the entire series. In Season 1, Olivia Dunham stumbles upon Peter and coaxes him to help her get access into St. Claire’s Mental Institution, where Walter is admitted.
In Season 2, the show takes a shocking detour into the past, revealing Peter isn’t from the world he believes he belongs to. Walter, desperate to save him, crosses into a parallel universe and kidnaps the alternate Peter, which sets off a chain reaction that ripples through the show’s overarching conflicts. The twist is effective because it recontextualizes everything we thought we knew about Peter’s existence.
19
Elliot’s Prison Reality in ‘Mr. Robot’
Mr. Robot has long been considered one of the most inventive and stimulating TV shows of the 21st century. At the center of this thriller is Elliot Alderson, a hacker who gets embroiled in a complex plan to take down a global financial system. While Season 1 lays the groundwork for the series, Season 2 takes things to another level by infusing subtle clues about Elliot’s seemingly mundane routine, like living with his mother and avoiding computers, and suggesting that it’s all too suspicious.
The truth hits like a brick in Episode 7, when Elliot is revealed to be in prison the entire time. The show essentially misdirected the audience and made Elliot’s world look eerily off without ever explicitly telling why. The arc is brilliant because it says that Rami Malek’s character has been an unreliable narrator, even to himself. The prison setting explains his isolation and his disconnect from the outer world and even his conversations with Christian Slater’s Mr. Robot.
18
Peggy Was Pregnant All Along in ‘Mad Men’
Mad Men is a captivating character study that explores the lives and personalities of the advertising executives of 1960s New York City. And Peggy Olson, played wonderfully well by Elisabeth Moss, is the definition of ambition in the series because she carves out a space for herself in the male-dominated industry. But in the finale of Season 1, the show delivers a twist that is both shocking and deeply tragic, but it also leaves fans with a newfound respect for Peggy.
Throughout the season, Peggy endures negative remarks and her weight gain is commented on, but never in a way that explicitly suggests the reason behind it. Which is that she was pregnant the entire time and didn’t even realize it. The reveal comes when she’s rushed to the hospital, unaware that she’s about to give birth. The pregnancy was a result of a brief affair with Pete Campbell – a moment she had mentally blocked out. When she tells him after, “I had your baby, and I gave it away,” it’s a raw and unflinching moment.
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17
Martha Is Finally Getting Out in ‘The Americans’
The world of The Americans is complex and ripe with Cold War tensions and family secrets. Some characters you are intrigued by, and some you want to see happy. From the moment Martha Hanson is introduced, she feels like a ticking bomb. A secretary at the FBI, she’s recruited by Philip Jennings, who poses as “Clark” and tries to manipulate her into planting surveillance bugs.
Over the course of several seasons, Martha transforms into a tragic figure, and by Season 4, her entire world comes crumbling down. Her marriage is a life, her job is compromised, and the FBI is closing in on her. When Philip finally reveals his real face, it’s more like a death knell. But then, in a rare act of mercy, the show does something unexpected – it lets Martha live. She’s sent to the Soviet Union, and while the freedom is warranted, it also feels haunting because in Season 5, when we see her again, she’s isolated and quietly devastated.
16
Penelope Is Lady Whistledown in ‘Bridgerton’
When Bridgerton arrived on Netflix, it was a cultural phenomenon. The series pulled audiences in with its sumptuous setting, intricately woven romantic storylines, and, of course, the mysterious identity of the gossip columnist, Lady Whistledown. From the very first episode, her scandal sheets begin to stir the pot in Regency-era London, and the hunt for her identity becomes a delicious subplot. Eloise takes it upon herself to unmask her and begins suspecting everyone, from dressmakers to debutantes.
4
/5
- Release Date
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December 25, 2020
- Network
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Netflix
- Directors
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Tom Verica, Tricia Brock, Alex Pillai, Alrick Riley, Bille Woodruff, Cheryl Dunye, Sheree Folkson, Julie Anne Robinson
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Ruth Gemmell
Lady Violet Bridgerton
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Luke Thompson
Benedict Bridgerton
But the brilliance of the plot twists that Penelope Featherington is Lady Whistledown is how the series hides her in plain sight. The wallflower of the show, she’s sweet, overlooked, and perpetually living in the shadow of her peers. She’s quietly observing, she’s always present at the balls, and she’s always listening. But she’s the last person anyone would suspect. Especially since Whistledown’s sharpest blows are aimed at her own family.
15
Father Paul Is Monsignor Pruitt in ‘Midnight Mass’
Another identity-reveal-plot-twist comes in Netflix’s Midnight Mass. The masterpiece from the mind of horror auteur Mike Flanagan is an unsettling exploration of faith and mortality. It begins with Father Paul Hill arriving on Crockett Island as the compassionate priest sent by the archdiocese to replace the aging Monsignor Pruitt. But something’s off. Miracles begin to occur and the townspeople start to feel different.
By Episode 3, titled “Proverbs,” the truth is surfacing, and we find out that Father Paul is not a new priest at all. He is Monsignor Pruitt, rejuvenated after encountering a vampire in Jerusalem and drinking its blood. The reveal is chilling because it turns a story of faith into one of fanaticism. It’s also thematically rich and clever, proving the horror genre can be thoughtful too.
14
The Upside Down Connection in ‘Stranger Things’
The Duffer Brothers’ Stranger Things pays a nostalgic homage to ‘80s pop culture and is beloved by fans for its ensemble of characters and the mysterious and terrifying alternate dimension known as the Upside Down. For three seasons, the show teased it as an eerie, decaying parallel world that seemed to mirror and evolve alongside the real one. But in Season 4, the show drops the truth that the Upside Down isn’t evolving at all. It is frozen in time. Specifically, on November 7, 1983, when Will first vanished.
The detail is uncovered by Nancy and the crew while navigating the dimension and coming across Nancy’s diary, which stops updating after that date. In a way, it not only adds lore but also retroactively alters the emotional and narrative stakes of the series. The plot twist does cast some doubt on iconic scenes like Will communicating through Christmas lights in Season 1, but overall, it builds intrigue around Vecna’s control over time and memory.
13
Bernard Was a Host in ‘Westworld’
Westworld has long been regarded as one of the most ambitious and intellectually stimulating TV shows of the 21st century, and for good reason. Jeffrey Wright’s Bernard Lowe is introduced as the calm and thoughtful programmer who seems to be the moral compass and a contrast to the park’s chaos. He’s a trusting confidant to Ford, a grieving father, and a quiet observer. But in Season 1, Episode 7, the show pulls the rug from under us and reveals that Bernard is not human. He’s a host. A machine created by Ford himself.
The revelation reframes every interaction Bernard has ever had. His empathy and his grief, and even his romance with Theresa Cullen. And while we’re still processing the information, we see Ford forcing Bernard to eliminate Theresa and watching him obey without hesitation. It is the first time we see a host murder a human, and it’s absolutely gut-punching.
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12
Nina’s Twisted Nature Revealed in ’24’
24 was filled with twists and turns and the series demonstrated just why every second counts. But one character’s journey has become the stuff of legend. Nina Myers begins 24 as Jack Bauer’s trusted colleague at CTU. She seems loyal and composed, and she even had an affair with Jack when he was separated from his wife, which adds a layer of emotional complexity to their dynamic.
Throughout Season 1, she participates in the investigations revolving around terrorist threats and what not. But in the final hours of the season, the show detonates a bomb – Nina is the mole. Just like Jack once suspected. Turns out, she has been working against the CTU. The misdirection is clever because the show presented Nina as a character who was crucial in uncovering other moles earlier in the season. The twist was controversial but effective.
11
Jonas and Martha End It All in ‘Dark’
In an attempt to separate the perfect TV ending of the 21st century and the greatest TV plot twist of the 21st century, we have Dark, a show about time travel, family secrets, and the unraveling of reality itself. Jonas’ journey in the series begins with the disappearance of Mikkel, but it quickly spirals into a mind-bending exploration of time loops and alternate realities. And by Season 3, we’re introduced to not just one, but two mirrored worlds – that of Jonah and Martha – and they’re both locked in a loop orchestrated by their older selves, Adam and Eva.
In the final two episodes, when Claudia reveals the existence of a third “origin” world, it strikes us that Jonas and Martha, the emotional core of the series, are not just victims of the loop, they ARE the loop. They travel back to the origin world and prevent Tannhaus’ family from dying in a car crash so he would never invent time travel. As they succeed, their bodies start to flicker and fake, which suggests that they have destroyed both their worlds as well and broken the cycles.
This story originally appeared on Movieweb
