The Dark ending explained: Identity of serial killer revealed in terrifyingly tense finale and news on a series 2
How was the killer luring and murdering the young men?
The Dark turned out to be one of the best crime dramas on ITV this year, and the unexpected ending left us with goosebumps.
The series dropped as a boxset (on Sunday, July 12, 2026) and many of you binged it straight away. And we don’t blame you. It was one hell of a ride – equal parts scary, dark, unnerving, and shocking.
Executive producer Ben Stephenson told us that the killer was “surprising’, and he wasn’t wrong. Although there had been some clues, many viewers were left guessing until the very last moment.
The six-part thriller followed DI Monica Kennedy’s investigation into a serial killer in a small Scottish community. A man targeting vulnerable young males, who he murdered with a legal drug.
But who was the killer, why did he do it, and how did Monica’s traumatic backstory play a part? Here’s the ending of ITV drama The Dark unpacked.
***Warning: spoilers from the ending of ITV drama The Dark ahead***
What happened in the ending of The Dark on ITV?
Episode six began with DI Monica Kennedy reeling from Philly’s murder, knowing that it was intended as a message to her directly from the killer.
She tried to put her family’s safety first by moving them away from the town. But, when she finally discovered the killer’s identity, she had the opportunity to save his final victim… Of course, Monica raced to the scene, even though it meant putting herself – and ultimately her daughter who was in the car with her – in danger.
When she finally came face to face with the killer, she was able to outwit him. But not before he showed her his true ugly self.
Who was the serial killer?
Monica predicted that the serial killer targeting young men in the small community would be someone often overlooked. Someone who would blend into the background, who you could walk past in the street without a second glance. And she was dead right.
The man in the mask was headmaster Kyle Ward. He was connected to all the boys via his job, but also through his daughter Tammy who was friendly with some of them. At first, Kyle came across as dull, predictable, and perhaps a tad over-protective of his daughter. But with a serial killer on the loose, that wasn’t a red flag.
He revealed himself in the final episode as he attempted to set social worker Michael Bach up for the crimes. However, his attempts to frame the innocent man failed, when Tammy “figured it all out”. She stumbled upon Michael’s wall of evidence, in which he’d been trying to establish a link between the boys. When she say the picture of Nichol Morgan on the wall, something sinister clicked. She’d seen her dad and Nichol together, as he used to visit their house.
Once she worked it out, of course her life was in danger too. Kyle attacked them both, put them both in Michael’s van, and made it look like Michael had committed murder-suicide by exhaust fumes. Of course, this was the way Michael’s own dad had died. Kyle had done his research.
Before leaving Michael and Tammy – his own daughter! – to die in the van, he placed the mark over Michael’s head. Making it look like he was the killer.
The Dark on ITV ending: How was the killer caught?
After staging Michael’s murder-suicide, Kyle called DI Monica Kennedy. He told her that the killer was Michael Bach, and begged her to come to his house. Of course, it was all a trap. Kyle wanted to kill Monica after she mocked the killer in the police press conference and called him “unintelligent”.
Once she arrived at the house, Kyle put on a good performance for Monica. He appeared as a stunned dad, worried about his missing daughter… However, he let it slip that he knew about the female victim Philly Murray. That was the exact moment when Monica realised he was the killer. That information had not been released.
Realising her cup of tea was likely drugged, she swapped the cups when Kyle wasn’t looking. However, she began to behave as if she was drowsy in an attempt to get him to open up. Once he thought she was drugged, he began to talk openly about his victims.
Little did he know that Monica hadn’t drunk the drugged tea at all. It was Kyle who had drunk the tea, and enough to kill him. In The Dark ending, Kyle died having admitted to his crimes.
Why did he kill the boys?
Kyle targeted young, vulnerable boys. Jason Morgan and Robert Wright had all lost someone close to them, leaving them with a “piece missing”. They were susceptible to grooming, and believed their “missing” loved one was the person messaging them on the burner phones Kyle gave them (or rather Nichol did).
Why had Kyle turned to murder? We could get existential on you – why does anyone kill? But the truth is, the explanation wasn’t rock solid.
He told Monica that after his wife died he felt “liberated”. He could play the role of “doting father”. Kyle said: “Tammy gave me the perfect cover to indulge myself.”
The truth is Kyle was a psychopath, who had no empathy for the boys in his care. He believed they were “squandering their potential”. He explained: “I gave them a chance to do better in the next life. I sent them with wishing stones.”
What else happened in the ending of The Dark on ITV?
Viewers also discovered that Nichol Morgan was connected to the killings. He had been coerced into leaving phones for the intended victims, and reported on them to Kyle.
But you’d be a soulless SOAB to blame him. Nichol, another vulnerable young adult, was being bullied by his stepfather and had a miserable home life. Kyle groomed him, said all the right things, before beginning to “drop darker ideas” in his head.
Nichol did not kill the boys, but he felt the weight of guilt on his shoulders. At the end of the series, Nichol begged Monica to arrest him.
Of course, Kyle had also groomed Owen and later killed him.
What was The Burning Light and who was Lucy’s dad?
Viewers learnt more about Monica’s disturbing past with The Burning Light community. It’s what made her a good detective and gave her an insight into grooming, manipulation, and power.
While investigating the cult of The Burning Light, Monica fell under the spell of the leader. So much so, she joined the cult, and even had his baby. That’s all we know about Lucy’s father, apart from the fact that the same man was the father of Philly Murray’s child, too. We also discovered that they were located on the Isle of Mull, an island in Scotland.
Monica was brainwashed. And she admitted that she had “recruited Philly”. She said: “That mark on her arm? I did it, I branded her.”
It was a shocking insight into Monica’s past, and how she ended up living in the margins of society. Somehow, in ways not yet explained, she got away.
In the closing scenes of The Dark, Monica and her family were preparing for Christmas. Amongst the post was a letter addressed to Lucy in distinctive writing. It read: “My darling daughter, it is time to let the light in.”
So he knows where Monica and Lucy live. This means huge danger for the family. Gulp.
Will there be a series 2 of The Dark?
ITV has not confirmed a series 2 of The Dark. But we’re 100% convinced there will be one. Dramas this good need more episodes!
There’s so much more to explore here, with series 1 dangling several loose ends. Not least the mysterious presence of The Burning Light. It’s clear Lucy’s father plans to get his clutches into her. We also need to know more about how Monica’s involvement with the cult, which could be a whole prequel series in itself.
The Dark is based on the 2020 bestselling book called
Book 2, entitled Dark Waters, sees DI Monica Kennedy called to her first Serious Crimes case in six months. A dismembered body has been found, abandoned in a dam. When another victim surfaces, Monica knows she is on the hunt for a ruthless killer; but her own dark past isn’t far behind…
Meanwhile, the third book – Under the Marsh – sees Monica revisit the case of notorious serial killer Pauline Tosh. Imprisoned for life, Pauline asks Monica to visit her at the remote Highlands Carselang prison.
Pauline hands her a hand-drawn map with a cross marking the desolate marsh lands near Inverness and Monica can’t ignore it. She was always convinced there were more victims out there. And when a body is discovered it looks like they’ve found a new name from Pauline’s kill list…
Read more: Start date confirmed for Sally Phillips’ new cosy crime drama The Hairdresser Mysteries on BBC One
