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The Ending of Those About to Die Explained: Who Lives? Who Dies? Everything to Know
There's a lot to unpack in Peacock's gladiator epic Those About to Die. Let's dig in.
Peacock’s Those About to Die picks out an exciting time in the Roman Empire and drops us right into the mean streets and palace intrigue of a city that is a powder keg always just one twist from going off.
When the dust settles on Season 1’s 10-episode run, the world of Rome and our heroes (and anti-heroes) is a very different one when compared to where the story began — and many characters don’t actually make it to the finish line at all. Ancient Rome was a dangerous place, after all.
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The story of Those About to Die is an ambitious one, weaving between characters and plots set within the palace, the Senate, the betting halls, and even the stables underneath the Colosseum along the way.
All 10 episodes of Season 1 are streaming now on Peacock, but if you need a bit of help keeping up with exactly what happened at the season’s end, check out our breakdown of the key moments and where things ended up heading into the reign of Domitian.
Who dies at the end of Those About to Die?
Scorpus: Arguably the most surprising death takes place before we reach the season finale, when Scorpus (Dimitri Leonidas) is killed during a chariot race, after being pushed into a chariot crash, or “shipwreck,” in his path by a rival driver looking to avenge his brother, who Scorpus had killed in the same manner during a previous race. This also correlates to the real historical death of Scorpus recorded in Roman history. His exact cause of death is unknown, though it’s confirmed he did die relatively young in the midst of a hugely successful racing career, and historians believe he likely died during a chariot crash. In Those About to Die, Scorpus is a close friend to Tenax (Iwan Rheon) as the duo started their Gold Faction racing group together.
Titus: The most consequential death is easily that of Titus (Tom Hughes), the emperor of Rome, who dies in the season finale and makes way for his brother Domitian (Jojo Macari) to ascend as emperor. In the series, Titus is killed in a coup led by his brother, with Tenax himself stepping in to smother Titus so there would be no visible injury or wound. To that end, Domitian claimed his brother dies from poisoning from tainted food. Interestingly, this story mirrors the real Roman history, with Titus allegedly dying from a sickness — but many in Rome theorizing that Domitian may have had a hand in his death to clear his own path to the throne.
Viggo: One of the most heartbreaking deaths in the finale is that of Viggo (Johannes Haukur Johannesson), a gladiator who becomes close friends with fellow gladiator Kwame (Moe Hashim). The pair help teach one another different fighting techniques to survive, until Domitian forces them to face off against one another in the opening games of the Colosseum. With their family members under threat of death, Kwame tragically kills Viggo in combat to save his sister — with Kwame earning the “wooden sword” to earn his freedom in the end.
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Berenice: Berenice, the conquered queen who served closely alongside Titus as his mistress, also met her end late in the season. Just as she’s acquired the evidence to halt Tenax and Domitian’s coup, she is killed by her own people for what they viewed as betrayal for her relationship with Titus. Berenice’s fate in real Roman history is a bit more murky, with her mostly falling off the written record in the wake of Titus’ death, with no true record of her historical fate record.
Most of the Corsi brothers: The three Corsi brothers (played by Pepe Barroso, Eneko Sargadoy, and Goncalo Almeida), serve as a living — and dying — representation of just how quickly Rome can take everything from you. By season’s end, two of the three brothers have died in chariot races. The trio originally came to Rome from Spain to try and sell their horses, but quickly found themselves pulled into the excitement of a potential life in Rome.
Who lives in the finale of Those About to Die?
Tenax: Not too surprisingly, series star Tenax (Iwan Rheon) does make it out of all this drama and scheming alive in the end — and with a promotion working close alongside the new emperor Domitian to sweeten the pot. Tenax aligned himself with Domitian for his own personal gain, and just when it seemed liked that decision might cost him his life, the coup works and Domitian ascends to power. As for Tenax, he ends Season 1 poised for more power and prestige, while of course still keeping his gambling den running so the flow of cash doesn’t dry up.
Domitian: As mentioned already, Domitian also survives to take his place as emperor of Rome. We knew from Roman history that would likely be the case, though the drama is in the details of actually seeing how it all plays out. Domitian ends Season 1 with a crown on his head, ready to rule Rome with an iron fist.
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Kwame: Kwame, the gladiator, also survives his various matches to escape victorious and alive by the end of Season 1. His final match is a battle to the death with his friend Viggo, which he wins. And, late in the season finale, Kwame even goes face to face with a rogue lion and survives that too.
Cala: Kwame’s mother, Cala (Sara Martins), is also still alive and well at season’s end, even after betraying Tenax in an attempt to save her daughter. Tenax and Cala have developed a level of respect for one another throughout the season, to the point Tenax seemingly gives her more responsibility to run his gambling operations while he ascends in Roman government alongside Domitian.
An assassination and a new emperor
Titus takes over as emperor after the death of his elderly father Vespasian (Anthony Hopkins) early in the first season. As noted above, Domitian and Tenax work together to get the drop on emperor Titus while he’s visiting an outpost, just as he is preparing to likely kill Domitian for working against him to delay food shipments and sow discontent among the people of Rome. Instead, Titus is killed and the season ends with Domitian taking over as the new emperor, with Tenax by his side working in the shadows.
The Colosseum is open for business
A recurring storyline during Season 1 is the construction of the legendary Roman Colosseum (aka the Flavian Amphitheater), which officially opens for use at the end of Season 1 with a legendary slate of games including the flooding of the facility for a planned alligator attack, and plenty of bloody gladiator battles (plus the escape of a lion into the crowd, which was not on the event schedule).
Historically, Emperor Titus is remembered for finishing and opening the Colosseum, so having this moment come to fruition made a lot of sense in Season 1 before his death.
The entire first season of Those About to Die is streaming now on Peacock.
