The Codys were never going to ride off into a golden California sunset. Honestly, if you spent six seasons watching Smurf manipulate her "boys" into a cycle of heist-fueled trauma, you knew the Animal Kingdom series finale had to be a bloodbath. It wasn't just about who survived; it was about the inevitable weight of the past finally crushing the present.
When the TNT drama wrapped up its run with "Froot Loops," it did something most shows are too scared to do. It stayed mean.
The Long Game of Joshua Pope
J was always the smartest person in the room. From the moment he walked into Smurf’s Oceanside mansion in the pilot, he was a ticking time bomb. Remember his mom, Julia? The way Smurf let her rot in that dingy apartment while the rest of the family lived in luxury? J never forgot. He wasn't just joining the family business; he was infiltrating a cult to dismantle it from the inside.
In the Animal Kingdom series finale, we finally saw the culmination of a decade-long grudge. J didn't just steal their money. He systematically stripped Deran, Pope, and Craig of their safety nets, their brotherhood, and eventually, their lives. It was cold. It was calculated. It was exactly what Smurf raised him to be.
The irony is thick enough to choke on. Smurf spent years molding J into a weapon, thinking she could control him. She didn't realize she was sharpening the blade that would eventually be tucked between her sons' ribs. By the time the credits rolled, J was the last one standing, sitting alone by a pool in a tropical paradise that felt more like a prison than a reward. He won. But at what cost? He’s now the very thing he hated—a lonely predator with a pile of cash and no soul left to speak of.
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Pope’s Path to Redemption Was Paved in Fire
Andrew "Pope" Cody was the heart of the show, even if that heart was deeply scarred and frequently terrifying. Shawn Hatosy’s performance in the finale was a masterclass in tragic physicality. Throughout the series, Pope struggled with the "monster" Smurf created. In the end, his decision to let J live wasn't about weakness. It was the first truly autonomous choice he ever made.
Breaking the Cycle
Pope realized that killing J would just be another act in the Cody play. Instead, he burned the house down. Literally. The Oceanside house was a character in itself—a museum of crimes and suppressed memories. Watching it go up in flames felt like a literal exorcism of Smurf’s ghost.
- Pope saves J from the pool.
- He realizes the damage is done.
- He accepts his own end to stop the cycle.
There’s a specific kind of sadness in seeing Pope lie down on the driveway as the sirens approach. He was tired. He had spent his entire life being Smurf’s enforcer, then the family’s protector, then a man haunted by his own guilt over Catherine and others. In the Animal Kingdom series finale, Pope’s death felt like the only version of peace he was ever going to get.
Craig and Deran: The Tragedy of the Middle Brothers
If J was the brain and Pope was the soul, Craig and Deran were the chaotic energy that kept the show moving. Their ending was arguably the hardest to swallow. Craig, the impulsive adrenaline junkie who finally found something to live for in Renn and their baby, died in a dusty field after a botched convenience store robbery. It was small. It was avoidable. That’s what made it hurt.
Deran’s promise to take care of Craig’s son was a hollow victory. He lost everything. He lost the bar, he lost Adrian years prior, and in those final moments, he lost his brother. The showrunners, led by Daniele Nathanson, made a deliberate choice to leave Deran adrift. He’s the only Cody son left alive, but he’s a ghost.
People often complain that the finale was too grim. But look at the source material—the 2010 David Michôd film. That story didn't have a happy ending either. The TV adaptation took that DNA and stretched it into a Shakespearean tragedy set against the backdrop of surf culture and high-stakes heists.
What Most People Get Wrong About J’s Motivation
There’s a common argument among fans that J was the villain of the Animal Kingdom series finale. That’s a bit too simple, isn't it? If you go back and rewatch the flashback sequences from Season 6 involving young Julia and Baz, the perspective shifts.
The Codys weren't just a "wild" family. They were a predatory unit that discarded people when they were no longer useful. Julia was discarded. J grew up watching his mother struggle with addiction while his uncles lived like kings just a few miles away.
The Flashback Parallel
The finale brilliantly mirrored the past with the present. We saw Julia’s final descent alongside the boys' final stand. The moment J decided to drain the accounts wasn't a sudden whim; it was a debt being collected with interest.
- J sees the family as a parasite.
- He uses their own tactics against them.
- He executes the "exit strategy" he’s been planning since Season 1.
It’s easy to root for the brothers because we spent years with them. We saw their vulnerabilities. But J saw the truth. He saw the bodies they buried. He saw the lives they ruined. In his mind, he wasn't the villain; he was the reckoning.
The Production Reality of the Final Season
The final season was filmed under unique circumstances, and you can feel the intensity in every frame. The writers knew they had to wrap up multiple sprawling arcs while honoring Smurf’s legacy, even though Ellen Barkin had left the show seasons earlier. By using the flashbacks to keep Smurf’s presence felt, they managed to make the finale feel like a confrontation between the dead and the living.
The cinematography in the final episodes shifted too. The bright, saturated colors of the early seasons gave way to something grittier and more isolated. When Deran is standing on that beach alone, the world looks cold. It’s a visual representation of the family’s dissolution.
Practical Takeaways for Fans Revisiting the Series
If you’re planning a rewatch or just finished the Animal Kingdom series finale and feel like you missed something, keep these points in mind. They change how you view the entire trajectory of the Pope family.
Pay attention to J’s silence. In early seasons, his lack of dialogue was often mistaken for a lack of character depth. It wasn't. It was observation. He was learning how Smurf moved, how she manipulated, and how she hid money. Every time J nods and says "Okay," he's actually recording a weakness to exploit later.
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The "Baz" factor. Baz was J's father, though never officially confirmed by DNA on screen (though heavily implied and accepted). J’s betrayal of his uncles mirrors how the family treated Baz—and how Baz treated everyone else. The cycle of betrayal is the only real inheritance Smurf left them.
The location matters. Oceanside wasn't just a setting; it was a kingdom. When the family lost the house, they lost their sovereignty. The finale proves that without Smurf’s house acting as the "throne," the brothers had no foundation to stand on.
The Legacy of the Cody Family
The Animal Kingdom series finale remains one of the more polarizing endings in recent prestige TV. Some wanted a "Heat" style shootout where everyone went out in a blaze of glory. Instead, we got something much more grounded and painful. We got a story about how trauma travels through generations and eventually consumes everything it touches.
J sits by that pool, wealthy beyond his wildest dreams, yet he looks more miserable than he did when he was a kid in a cramped apartment. That’s the ultimate sting. He got what he wanted, but he destroyed his only connection to humanity to get it.
To truly understand the ending, you have to accept that there were no heroes. There were only survivors and those who got left behind in the dirt.
Next Steps for Deepening Your Understanding
- Rewatch the Pilot and Finale Back-to-Back: Notice the specific lines of dialogue J repeats. His "I'll take care of it" takes on a much darker meaning when you know the ending.
- Analyze the Flashbacks: Specifically look at the scenes in Season 6 where Smurf kicks Julia out. It provides the necessary emotional context for J's coldness in the final episodes.
- Research the David Michôd Film: Compare the character of "J" in the Australian film to Finn Cole’s portrayal. The film version is much more of a passive observer, whereas the TV version is an active architect of destruction.
- Track the Money: If you rewatch, keep a tally of the jobs. You’ll see that J starts skimming and making side moves much earlier than the final season, showing his long-term commitment to the betrayal.