Editor’s Note: The following contains spoilers for Smoke, Episode 8.

Summary

Episode 8 of Smoke showcases the consequences of silence over action, leading to a shocking death.

Greg Kinnear and Rafe Spall spill all on the tension buildup in “Mercy” and how it builds to a brutal moment of regret and betrayal, redefining the show’s moral center.

The final scene reveals Michelle’s choice not to help Burke, offering complex characters without clean heroes.

The penultimate episode of Apple TV+’s critically acclaimed Smoke proves that no one escapes unscathed in the Dennis Lehane series — not from fire, not from guilt, and certainly not from the consequences of choosing silence over action. Episode 8’s “Mercy” saw anything but that, as the walls begin to close in on nearly every major character, culminating in a shocking death that redefines the show’s moral center. Rather than rushing through the twists and turns, “Mercy” lets tension simmer until it finally erupts. What begins as a complicated emotional entanglement between Michelle Calderone (Jurnee Smollett) and Burke (Rafe Spall) ends in a brutal moment of regret and ultimate betrayal. Spall’s performance moves seamlessly between warmth and peril, while the final moments between the former lovers leave no doubt about Michelle’s choice… or its cost. Burke’s fatal ending isn’t just about violence, though. Instead, those last scenes shared are about how Calderone’s impulse calcifies into a decision. “It goes from something instinctive that you might actually applaud… and then we see her choose not to help him,” Spall tells Collider. “Which puts our protagonist in a completely different light.” That complexity, he adds, is “one of the things that makes the show compelling.” Meanwhile, Harvey (Greg Kinnear) quietly steps into a redemptive light, revealing his own failings with a vulnerability that makes him one of the series’ most quietly tragic figures. It’s a performance that lingers in its restraint — as Kinnear says, “I think Harvey is a decent guy… but ultimately realizing the depth of the betrayal from Dave [Taron Egerton] was a big one.” Helping to break down that surprising end, Spall and Kinnear share with Collider what it was like constructing the season’s most emotionally charged hour, the writing’s refusal to offer clean heroes, and why even ghosts might have a future in Smoke.
Greg Kinnear Unpacks Harvey’s Blind Spot on ‘Smoke’

“I really am the last guy to see all the cards in the deck, and it’s certainly not out of ignorance.”

Image via Apple TV+

COLLIDER: Greg, when Michelle and Burke start planning how to trap Dave, Harvey becomes this quiet but crucial ally to them. What do you think motivated him at that moment? Is it guilt, justice, or something else? KINNEAR: First of all, I’m kind of the last man standing, right? I really am the last guy to see all the cards in the deck, and it’s certainly not out of ignorance. I think Harvey is a decent guy. I think he has a friendship. He feels like a very lived-in character, and when we start this show, he has a long-standing relationship with Dave. I think they have a friendship. There’s integrity to that friendship, and an honesty. They work together. That’s pretty intimate. I think that he just genuinely, whether it’s that we don’t want to see the things that we don’t want to see in our friends, or whether or not he’s flat-out missing it, I guess, it is for the audience to figure out. But ultimately, I like that he was kind of playing catch-up on this and then ultimately realizing, obviously, the depth of the betrayal from Dave.
Rafe Spall Explains Burke’s Death and That Final Scene on ‘Smoke’

“It’s great that it’s a shock. That’s just a testament to the brilliant writing.”

Image via Apple TV+

Rafe, Burke’s death is one of the most disturbing scenes in the entire series. I was so taken aback by it. I really thought you were going to make it. I don’t know what happened. I think I had to put that in the freezer. I was so upset. KINNEAR: Oh, it’s in the freezer, alright! [Laughs] It definitely is in the freezer. What was important to you, Jurnee [Smollett], and Dennis [Lehane] about staging that scene without making it a spectacle? It is the final scene that is so emotionally charged between them, and there’s a lot of buildup between the two of them leading to that moment. SPALL: It’s a very original scene. I’ve never seen a death like that that goes from something instinctive that you might actually applaud, which is, from the audience’s point of view, she’s punching him in the face, he’s being kind of an asshole before, and then he’s saying he’s going to ruin her career, and turns out it’s on his neck. Then he’s suffocating, and then we see her choose not to help him, which then puts our protagonist in a completely different light, which I think speaks to the writing throughout the series, where it’s very difficult to know who to back, who to root for, which I think is ultimately very human. This is full of people who think they’re doing the right thing, that make mistakes, and I think it’s one of the things that make it compelling. In terms of shooting that episode, that was directed by Jim McKay. We spent a lot of time on it, and I really liked the scenes that build up to it. They were some of my favorite scenes that I’d shot, when actually, you see them having quite a nice time. That was nice. I just think that it’s great that you were surprised by it, which I think is the point of it. It’s great that it’s a shock. That’s just a testament to the brilliant writing of Dennis and his excellent team.
What Can We Expect for ‘Smoke’ Season 2 After the Finale?

“I didn’t really die. That’s a good idea, isn’t it?”

I will say, the writing is so unique. I haven’t seen anything like this. I know it’s built from a podcast, Firebug, but I am wondering, this looks like it’s a limited series, but the fact that we do see Michelle starting to see Burke in her thoughts, like he’s her conscious now, and there’s a lot more story to tell for Harvey — if you were to return, what would you like to see? Rafe, I know if your character would be a ghost, so he goes where she goes, but Greg, what more would you like to explore with your character since there was so much to get to? KINNEAR: I played a ghost in Ghost Town. True story. So, I don’t want to do that again. I can give you all my tips, though. It’s great fun. I don’t know. I’ll leave that to Molly [Anne Miller] and Dennis and all the smart people who know how to craft this story. This uses Kary Antholis’ podcast, Firebug, kind of as a jumping-off point. The creativity that went into evolving and devolving all of these stories into what it is is so amazing, and I’m humbled by it. I don’t know if we were to cue it up again, where we would find Harvey and where his place would be in this, but I obviously worked with Dennis on Black Bird and had such a great experience, and this, well, so we’ll see what comes. SPALL: What was the show when he comes out of the shower, and it was a dream? Was that Dallas? That could happen in this, and I didn’t really die. That’s a good idea, isn’t it? Should we pitch that? KINNEAR: Yeah, you should pitch that. He’s [Lehane] one room over. SPALL: I’m going to go speak to him when we get off this call. KINNEAR: And he loves showers. SPALL: [Laughs] He does love showers. The following interview has been abridged for clarity. Watch the whole video above, and learn what songs Spall and Kinnear would karaoke to, like Egerton’s character, Dave. The finale of Smoke streams next Friday.

Smoke

Release Date

June 26, 2025

Network

Apple TV+

Directors

Kari Skogland