Butterfly (TV Series, 2025) is a razor-sharp spy thriller that follows Rebecca, a lethal and precision-trained assassin in the service of Caddis, a shadowy and powerful private intelligence agency. Her world shatters when a supposedly routine mission spirals into chaos—bringing her face-to-face with David, the father she believed dead for nearly a decade. But this is no tearful reunion. David, a former co-founder of Caddis, carries a deep and bitter distrust of the agency, convinced that Juno—the current head and his old partner—is corrupt, dangerous, and willing to sacrifice anyone to protect her grip on power. Determined to pull Rebecca out of the life he believes will destroy her, David sets his own plan into motion.
What follows is a high-stakes game of cat and mouse across South Korea, with Rebecca torn between the loyalty she feels toward Juno, her mentor and savior, and the troubling revelations her father forces into the light. As the pair dig deeper into Caddis’s dark history, they uncover a conspiracy reaching into the highest levels of political and corporate influence. The series expertly weaves blistering action with layered emotional drama, exploring the fault lines between family and allegiance, trust and betrayal. Ultimately, David and Rebecca are forced to reckon not only with their enemies, but with the painful fractures in their own relationship—knowing that survival may come at the cost of the other’s trust.
This article contains spoilers.
Butterfly (TV Series 2025) Episode 1, “Pilot” Recap:
The episode opens in Seoul at a karaoke bar in the Conrad Hotel, where David hangs out with some men. Soon, David leaves to spy on a man in the adjacent room, who works for Caddis Private Intelligence and whose team is on a mission at the hotel. Meanwhile, outside, Rebecca gets approval to enter the hotel. Upon arrival, Rebecca talks to the staff, who inform her that Russian ambassador Mikhail Karpov is giving interviews. Then, Rebecca makes an excuse to use the washroom and reaches the interview location.
Next, Rebecca pretends to faint, so a guard steps out to get her juice. At that moment, Rebecca walks past Karpov, switches his phone with another, and leaves. Immediately, Karpov starts to have a stroke. Consequently, the guards suspect Rebecca, and a security personnel is in the lift with Rebecca. After that, a fight ensues, but Rebecca kills the guard and hides in a banquet hall. Simultaneously, the man in the karaoke bar guides Rebecca to escape, but David breaks into the room, kills him, and gets Rebecca’s exit location. Later, Rebecca takes the subway while a car approaches to pick her up.
Why does Rebecca agree to leave with David?
However, David pushes a stroller in front of the car to stop it, fights the men, and takes the vehicle. Soon, David waits at the exit spot, but Rebecca notices a broken headlight and realizes something is wrong. Therefore, Rebecca flees, and David loses her. Meanwhile, at Caddis headquarters, Juno’s (lead of Caddis) son Oliver, who works for Caddis, grows uneasy about Juno’s care for Rebecca.
Subsequently, David cleans the stolen car to remove evidence. Since David failed the mission, he prepares to return home, but cannot board the train. Therefore, David calls his wife Eun-ju, who urges him to come back. Nevertheless, David decides to try again and tells Eun-ju to move to a safe house. Elsewhere, Juno informs Rebecca she is flying to Seoul, which hurts Rebecca since Juno suspects her of breaching the operation.
Afterward, David leaves GPS coordinates in the stolen car, which Rebecca and Atwood find. Then, David meets his friend Yong-sik for help getting new passports. It is revealed that David co-founded Caddis but faked his death nine years ago and now disapproves of its methods, especially Rebecca becoming an assassin, since she is his daughter. Later, Rebecca’s team reaches the coordinates in the woods, where David is prepared.
First, David kills two men and moves to a warehouse to knock out Atwood. Eventually, David and Rebecca face each other, but she is angry over David abandoning her. Though David asks her to leave with him, she knocks him out and contacts Juno. Finally, David wakes as Atwood tries to kill him, but Rebecca shoots Atwood and finds Juno’s order on his phone to kill David. Realizing the betrayal, Rebecca agrees to flee with David.
Butterfly (TV Series 2025) Episode 2, “Daegu” Recap:
The episode opens with David and Rebecca in a supermarket. At this point, Rebecca is still mad at David and wants to know what the plan is. So, David says they are heading to Busan and from there to Vietnam, where David has a house. Now, Rebecca visits the washroom where she calls Juno to confront her about her orders to kill David. Instead, Juno asks Rebecca to be careful, as David is dangerous. Furthermore, Juno tells Rebecca she has a place in Caddis always. Now the father-daughter duo travels towards Busan, but there is a police checkpoint. The cops inform Caddis about finding David. The duo fights the cops and rushes to Daegu. On the way, David asks Rebecca if she called Juno, but Rebecca lies.
What does Rebecca learn about David?
In Caddis’ office, Oliver finds out about Eun-ju. Elsewhere, a man named Gun (a hitman) visits a woman and kills her and her husband. Juno calls Gun and asks him to kill David, but warns Gun that it’s going to be a challenge. In Daegu, David and Rebecca drink Makgeolli. Turns out David has drugged Rebecca’s drink. As Rebecca passes out, David checks her belongings and learns that Rebecca contacted Juno.
Meanwhile, Senator George Dawson visits Juno. While sharing a meal, Dawson brings up Karpov’s death and says that the man knew everybody’s secret. However, Juno feigns ignorance about who was behind Karpov’s death. When Rebecca wakes up, David says he can’t bring her along if Rebecca plans to hand him over to Caddis. Finally, David reveals that he was on an operation in the Philippines chasing a terrorist, Hugo Maldonado, and the organisation.
In one of the computers, they had details about David and Rebecca. During the operation, David’s entire team died, but he survived. However, David knew they would kill Rebecca, so he faked his death to protect Rebecca. Just then, David gets a call from Eun-ju saying Caddis members are following her and she is at Daegu station. Realising David has remarried upsets Rebecca. So, David asks Rebecca to stay back, and he rushes to the station. There, David kills some guards, and he talks to Juno directly.
David warns Juno not to harm his family, and if Juno does, then he will destroy everything Juno cares about. At that time, Gun tries to attack David, but Rebecca comes to David’s aid. While David and Gun fight, Gun slashes David’s stomach. Thankfully, the train arrives, and the duo gets on. Inside, Eun-ju comes with their daughter. Seeing David’s daughter Rebecca, is surprised and hurt.
Butterfly (TV Series 2025) Episode 3, “Busan” Recap:
In the opening scene, while David tends to his wounds, Rebecca shows frustration towards Eun-ju. However, Eun-ju clarifies that she is not Rebecca’s enemy, and she met David while he was in hiding. Meanwhile, David asks Yong-sik to fast-process their passports as Caddis is pursuing them. Elsewhere, a furious Juno dispatches her team and Gun to the next station to kill David. However, David and his family pull the emergency alarm, getting off the train and heading to a truck depot. There, they convince a truck driver to take them to Busan, and David tricks Juno’s team by leaving a bloodied handprint on a different truck. As a result, David’s family safely reaches the Busan safe house.
What truth does Oliver reveal to David?
There, Eun-ju confides in David, telling him she wants to be included in their plans and sympathizes with Rebecca. However, Rebecca eavesdrops on this conversation and becomes frustrated because David calls her different. Later, Eun-ju gets angry seeing Rebecca teaching Min-hee (David’s daughter) how to use a gun. Consequently, David begs them to get along until they can leave the country. Meanwhile, Dawson visits Juno, showing her an image of Oliver and a deceased CIA asset, Jae-Hun, which implies Oliver’s involvement.
Later, Juno scolds Oliver, who then asks to chase Rebecca, claiming he understands her thinking. Elsewhere, Gun finds Yong-sik, who refuses to cooperate and is subsequently killed. In Yong-sik’s room, Gun discovers David’s location and informs Juno. In Busan, Min-hee’s birthday prompts the family to bake a cake. Suddenly, Rebecca rushes out as David remembers her childhood. Afterward, Rebecca yells at David for abandoning her and starting a new family, especially because David cannot keep a family safe, given that he is a spy.
However, David cuts the conversation short to collect the passports. Meanwhile, Juno pins Karpov’s death on Rebecca in front of Dawson. In the market, David realizes Caddis is onto them when Yong-sik doesn’t answer his phone, and David spots Oliver. Immediately, Gun spots David and follows him back to the safe house. At the safe house, David gathers the family, and they head to the sea.
The team follows them there. David and Rebecca prepare to fight, telling Eun-ju and Min-hee to hide. David manages to shoot Gun, and he falls into the water while Rebecca chases Oliver. Consequently, Oliver reveals that Juno set up the trap in the Philippines. Therefore, David confronts Juno on the phone. In the final scene, David, holding a gun to Oliver’s head, promises to take away something Juno loves. A gunshot is heard as the screen cuts to black.
Butterfly (TV Series 2025) Episode 4, “Pohang” Recap:
The episode opens with a flashback to the day David faked his death. When David finds out the terrorist group is after him, he informs Juno to bring Rebecca to safety. When the terrorists killed David’s entire team, Juno was still on the walkie-talkie. Hearing this, David picked up the device to talk to Juno, but when Juno directly asked if David was alive, he found it to be odd since the attack was a surprise. Hence, David faked his death. After that, Juno visits Rebecca and informs her about David’s death. Currently, Juno is at sea with her crew. They are dumping the dead bodies. One among them is Gun, but Gun is alive. At work, Juno orders everyone to find Oliver. Meanwhile, in a warehouse, David and his family have lunch with Eun-ju’s family, who run an export-import business.
How did David meet Dawson?
They are well-connected, so David asks for undocumented visas, which frustrates Eun-ju’s father. Juno sends a voicemail to Oliver, knowing David will listen to it. So, Juno offers a trade: in exchange for Oliver, Juno will let David and his family go. Neither David nor Rebecca believes Juno. Meanwhile, Dawson knows Juno is pinning the murder on Rebecca, so he looks for proof to take down Juno. Now, David makes Oliver reveal the truth about Karpov. It turns out, Caddis was sending illegal intelligence to Russians, and Karpov was the middleman.
Unfortunately, the CIA finds out about it, hence Juno killed Karpov. Additionally, Oliver admits to having killed Jae-Hun. Furthermore, David blackmailed Oliver into revealing the truth by manipulating Juno’s voicemail. Meanwhile, Juno’s team blackmails Vicky Linwood (head of Dawson’s security) into revealing details about Dawson’s plans. Now, David and Rebecca plan to head back to Seoul to meet Dawson, while Eun-ju and Min-hee leave with Eun-ju’s family.
In Seoul, Rebecca purposely bumps into Dawson’s assistant, making him drop his things. David copies the assistant’s phone number to know Dawson’s schedule. That night, they put Oliver in a car trunk and took him to the Anyang market. There, David calls Dawson and asks for 60 seconds to talk without his security. Curious, Dawson agrees, and Rebecca creates a distraction, helping Dawson lose his security personnel. In a noodle shop, David tells Dawson that Juno is responsible for Karpov’s death and more.
When Dawson asks for proof, David is happy to provide one. After turning on Oliver’s phone (which Juno’s team can track), David gives the phone to Oliver and lets him go. Soon, Oliver is brought to Caddis. By then, Juno is informed that Dawson’s phone and Oliver’s phone were within 3ft. At the office, Oliver and Juno hug. By then, Rebecca and David are driving somewhere.
Butterfly (TV Series 2025) Episode 5, “Seoul” Recap:
The episode opens with Juno cooking breakfast for Oliver. From afar, David and Rebecca watch them. During the meal, Oliver confesses to Juno that he has told David about Karpov as well as Juno’s involvement with the attack on David. After the duo leaves home, David and Rebecca sneak into the house’s security system. After tampering with it, they enter Oliver’s house to bug the place. The reason is to make Oliver suspicious of Juno, so the spy camera is hidden in such a way that Oliver can spot it. At Caddis, Juno leaves Oliver with Hollis for a debriefing. At that time, Hollis questions Oliver about his meeting with Dawson, but Oliver says he didn’t meet Dawson. Since things get heated, Juno asks Oliver to take the day off. Just as Oliver gets to his house, David and Rebecca escape.
What tactics did David and Rebecca use on Oliver to lead him to Dawson?
Inside the house, Oliver notices the spy camera and is upset. Later, David meets Dawson in a spa and asks him to distribute a fake memo to his inner circle stating that Dawson has a key witness for Karpov’s case. This way, they can figure out if there is a mole in Dawson’s office. As expected, the plan works, and Dawson finds out it’s Vicky who is the mole as she meets with Juno.
Juno suspects Oliver of being the witness, so she ensures the security team keeps a keen eye on Oliver. Meanwhile, Rebecca asks David to ensure Oliver thinks Juno is out to get him killed. Only then will Oliver reach out to Dawson. Meanwhile, David and Rebecca hang out in one of David’s soju clients’ houses. Unfortunately, David’s face was spotted on a camera in Seoul, so Juno sends Gun after David.
In the car, Oliver spots his security texting Juno/Hollis about Oliver’s whereabouts. When Oliver gets home, Juno waits for him with a bow and arrow as a present. The reason is that Juno is sending Oliver to London to work for his father. Annoyed, Oliver leaves the house. In the security car, David is waiting. As soon as the security personnel get in, David knocks him out and follows Oliver. Now, David and Rebecca ensure that Oliver reaches a lonely area. They also have control of Oliver’s car, so David shuts off the electronics.
When Oliver gets out, Rebecca activates a device that sets the car on fire. Afraid, Oliver rushes to Dawson. In exchange for revealing information, Oliver wants complete immunity. That night, some cops start to approach the house, so David and Rebecca escape, but they take different routes. Just as David is catching up with Rebecca, Gun hits Rebecca with his car and takes Rebecca away as David watches.
Butterfly (TV Series 2025) Episode 6, “Annyeong” Recap:
The episode opens with David taking a stranger’s bike to follow Gun’s car. The chase continues for a while until David is blocked by a car and loses Gun. Inside the vehicle, Gun tells Rebecca that Juno wants to talk to her. In an enormous building, Juno and Rebecca talk. Now, Rebecca reveals everything that has happened – from Oliver turning to David and Rebecca making Oliver believe Juno was trying to kill him.
Meanwhile, David visits his father-in-law’s place and asks Doo Tae (father-in-law) for help to rescue Rebecca. Surprisingly, Doo Tae agrees to help if David will do him a favour. So, Eun-ju and her mother ask David not to accept as Doo Tae is not someone one should owe a favour to. Still, to save Rebecca, David agrees, so Doo Tae helps David with men and weapons. Elsewhere, Juno explains to Rebecca that she is family, even though David is her dad. In addition, Juno says David only came to save Rebecca to fix her, but Juno thinks there is nothing to fix in Rebecca.
Butterfly (TV Series 2025) Ending Explained:
After that, Juno advises Rebecca to leave with her and start another firm like Caddis elsewhere. Knowing what would happen if she refused, Rebecca hugs Juno and they go together. By then, the FBI raids Caddis’ office. Now, David knows Juno is headed to her jet in Incheon. The plan is set in motion, and as Juno and team are leaving, David’s group reroutes them by placing obstacles in their path towards an abandoned building.
In the car, Juno says David has a naïve view of the world, but she lives in reality, hence the distance between them grows. David takes down one car, and his team takes down the other. The one remaining is Juno’s car. So, Gun gets out and heads inside the factory to kill David. Meanwhile, Rebecca fights the men inside her car. Inside the factory, David kills Gun. The only one left is Juno.
When David is ready to kill Juno, Rebecca stops him, saying Juno is a part of her. Still, David wants to kill Juno; if not, Juno will regroup and come after them. Despite that, Rebecca convinces David to let Juno go. On their drive, David asks Rebecca about what Juno spoke to her, but Rebecca lies, saying she was in a holding cell until she was put in the car. Now, Juno is on a plane with Hollis, already planning to start another Caddis somewhere she does not have to play by American rules.
A while later, Oliver calls Juno and learns that David played them both. When Juno tries to be a loving mother, the phone connection gets cut. Elsewhere, David, Eun-ju, Min-hee, and Rebecca have a meal as a family. Eun-ju and Rebecca visit the washroom. When they don’t return, David goes to check and finds Eun-ju on the floor with a slashed neck. For now, Eun-ju is alive; however, Rebecca is nowhere to be seen.
The series closes on a tense cliffhanger: Eun-ju is clinging to life, and David’s first instinctive suspicion falls on Rebecca. It wouldn’t be unthinkable—Rebecca has always shown a disturbing ease with killing, hinting at deeper psychological scars. One theory suggests that something Juno said during their private conversation may have struck a nerve—or perhaps the two even conspired to turn on David in the end.
In that scenario, Rebecca may have attacked Eun-ju as part of a plan, vanishing from the scene before David could intervene. Another possibility lies in Rebecca’s personal grudges; she never truly accepted Eun-ju or Min-hee, merely tolerating them for David’s sake. Insecurity and jealousy could have pushed her over the edge. If Eun-ju doesn’t survive, the most immediate danger to David becomes Doo Tae. Yet there’s another, more sinister angle: Eun-ju’s attacker could be a professional hired by Juno, with Rebecca kidnapped—or worse. As the credits roll, the mystery hangs unresolved, leaving the audience desperate for a second season to untangle the web of betrayal, loyalty, and bloodshed.
