Apple TV+’s new psychological thriller, Disclaimer, takes its audience into a tense, layered world where truth and deception blur between personal histories and manipulative narratives. Written and directed by Alfonso Cuarón, the series stars Cate Blanchett as Catherine Ravenscroft, a journalist whose life is upended by a mysterious novel that seems to mirror a traumatic chapter from her own past. As she faces accusations, estranged family bonds, and the resurgence of buried secrets, Disclaimer delves deeply into the complex web of relationships—between husband and wife, parent and child, victim and accuser. With a cast featuring Kevin Kline, Sacha Baron Cohen, and Lesley Manville, the show explores how storytelling can be wielded as a weapon, reframing personal history with a hauntingly distorted lens.
In this article, we will explore the twists and turns of Disclaimer (2024), uncover the truth about Catherine’s horrifying dark secrets, and determine whether she was indeed responsible for Jonathan’s death as mentioned in the book, The Perfect Stranger. Please be warned that this article contains spoilers.
Disclaimer (2024) Episode 1 “I” Recap:
Why does Stephen Brigstocke want to ruin Catherine Ravenscroft?
In the first episode of Disclaimer, we meet three interconnected characters across timelines, revealing the tension between past secrets and present-day lives. In the past, British teen Jonathan (Louis Partridge) goes on a reckless European adventure with his girlfriend Sasha (Liv Hill). However, their exploration ends abruptly when a family emergency forces her to return home, leaving Jonathan to roam Europe alone.
In the present, award-winning TV documentarian Catherine Ravenscroft (Cate Blanchett) receives a mysterious book titled The Perfect Stranger, which claims to tell a true story that closely mirrors her own past. As she reads, memories resurface—of a past affair and a death on a beach—which drive her to destroy the copy of the book in a frenzy. Her husband, Robert (Sacha Baron Cohen), believes her strange behavior stems from anxiety over her complex relationship with their estranged son, Nicholas aka Nick (Kodi Smit-McPhee).
In a separate storyline, Stephen Brigstocke (Kevin Kline), a retired teacher, discovers his late wife Nancy’s (Lesley Manville) writings about Jonathan’s tragic past. Believing Catherine is responsible for his son’s death, he publishes the book under his name with a friend’s help, distributing it across town in hopes of ruining Catherine’s life.
Disclaimer (2024) Episode 2 “II” Recap:
What happens between Catherine and Robert?
In Episode 2 of Disclaimer, tension mounts as Catherine’s past begins to unravel. We see Jonathan becoming enamored with a beautiful woman—young Catherine (Leila George)—at the beach with her son. Smitten by her beauty, Jonathan quickly snaps a photo, which she notices, sparking an awkward but flattering exchange.
In the present, Catherine, still reeling from her recent encounter with their college-going son Nicholas, resolves to restore balance in her family. She nearly confides her troubles to her husband, Robert, but refrains, knowing she’s the true protector of the family. Stephen, intent on disrupting Catherine’s life, approaches Nicholas at work under the guise of shopping and leaves behind an envelope addressed to him. Later, Stephen drops off incriminating photos of Catherine with Jonathan at Robert’s office, casting doubt on her past loyalty. Disturbed and conflicted, Robert sees a side of Catherine he never knew—one that stirs a complex mix of anxiety and attraction.
Meanwhile, we learn Catherine has met a very ill Nancy, who has cancer and wants to see Nick, believing he owes his life to Jonathan, though Catherine is reluctant. As Catherine tries to shield her family from this downward spiral, Robert discovers Nicholas’ disheveled apartment and blames Catherine’s influence. In a tense confrontation that night, Robert confronts Catherine with the photos, questioning her loyalty and being shocked by her evasions. Catherine’s admission of Jonathan’s death as the reason for her secrecy shatters Robert’s trust, leaving him no choice but to walk away, his faith in her irrevocably damaged.
Disclaimer (2024) Episode 3 “III” Recap:
What does Nancy find in Jonathan’s hotel room?
There is no way to fully understand the angst, anger, and confusion of someone enduring indefinite emotional turmoil. The fallout from Robert’s discovery of Catherine’s affair is palpable as we see him driving away. He ignores Catherine’s desperate calls and drinks heavily to numb his hurt. He spends the night in his car, waking to a flood of messages from Catherine. Unable to drive, he heads to work by bus, reflecting on the strangers around him and questioning the life he once thought he knew.
Robert skips the office, retreating instead to a small café where he reads The Perfect Stranger—the book detailing graphic accounts of what had happened in Italy when his wife decided to betray him. Through flashbacks, we see Jonathan meeting Catherine at a hotel, where she seduces him. Unfazed by his relationship, she gives him her room key, inviting him to join her. Despite young Nicholas calling out during the night, she chooses to stay with Jonathan, deepening their passionate affair.
Back in the present, Catherine is desperate to protect Nick from Stephen’s manipulations after discovering that he has read the book. She calls Stephen, praising the power of his writing, though he interprets her words as a threat. Her lack of apology only hardens his resolve to expose her to the world.
We flashback to Stephen and Nancy learning of Jonathan’s death. The grieving parents travel to Italy, where they identify Jonathan’s body, noticing his face isn’t swollen and a strange puncture wound on his arm. Nancy devastated and confused by everything that has destroyed her family, decides to check Jonathan’s room, where she finds film reels that she hid from Stephen. The couple then visits the exact spot where Jonathan died, and Nancy learns about Catherine, raging when she discovers that the woman has left for London. The episode ends as they stand in the waves, mourning and the role of Catherine in their only son’s life and death.
Disclaimer (2024) Episode 4 “IV” Recap:
Why does Robert kick Cathrine out of their lives?
The episode opens with a flashback of Catherine and Jonathan after their affair, where Jonathan takes intimate photos of her, hinting at his growing attachment. In the present, Robert reads this in The Perfect Stranger and finds himself both aroused and repelled by Catherine’s unapologetic nature. He heads to work distracted, plagued by visions of her affair, and his jealousy intensifies as he wonders if Nicholas may have been aware of her actions.
Meanwhile, Catherine struggles with Robert’s continued silence, becoming increasingly unstable at work. She heads to a bookstore seeking distraction but is confronted by The Perfect Stranger on display, forcing her to run away. On Stephen’s end, we see Nancy’s emotional turmoil over Jonathan’s death, including a harrowing flashback to her suicide attempt. Pulled from the brink by Stephen, she mourns Jonathan and hints at unresolved grief. Nancy later finds photos revealing Jonathan’s love for her, contrasting it with Catherine, who had left young Nicholas unattended to pursue Jonathan.
In another flashback, Jonathan tragically drowns while rescuing Nicholas, as Catherine callously ignores his silent pleas for help. Grieving, Nancy later succumbs to terminal cancer, leaving Stephen isolated. Now, fueled by bitterness, he devises a new scheme to entrap Catherine, posing as a teenage boy online. At home, the tension between Catherine and Robert escalates as he coldly prepares a taxi and suitcase, signaling that Catherine is no longer welcome in their life.
Disclaimer (2024) Episode 5 “V” Recap:
What happens to Nicholas?
With nowhere else to go, Catherine resorts to her mother’s house, hoping for solace. However, her mother’s worsening dementia underscores Catherine’s isolation. Catherine unburdens her pain by talking about the latest events of her life to her mother while she sleeps, even though she knows she won’t be understood.
Meanwhile, Nicholas’s dark descent becomes evident as he secretly uses heroin, explaining his erratic behavior and messy living conditions. Stephen, intent on dismantling Catherine’s life, reaches out to her assistant, Jisoo. Feigning concern, he subtly accuses Catherine of harassment and hints at her darker secrets. His manipulation intensifies as he connects with Nicholas through a fake Instagram account, exploiting Nicholas’s vulnerability by sending delayed messages to increase his desperation.
At work, Catherine’s credibility is undermined thanks to Stephen’s poisonous influence on Jisoo. Colleagues confront her about her dishonesty, with accusations based on the book’s content and the author’s allegations, escalating the tension until Catherine, pushed to her limits, hits Simon in front of the office, further tarnishing her image. Amid her spiraling reputation, Stephen intensifies his psychological game with Nicholas, sending cryptic messages and haunting images of Catherine and Jonathan.
Catherine’s final attempt to confront Stephen is ignored, and he meets with Robert, successfully turning him against her. With his relationships crumbling, Nicholas feels trapped and rejected, sinking further into heroin addiction. In a moment of anguish, he attempts to call Catherine but can’t bring himself to speak, instead drowning his pain alone, feeling abandoned by those he needs most.
Disclaimer (2024) Episode 6 “VI” Recap:
Why does Stephen want to kill Nicholas?
The episode dives into further chaos for Catherine and Robert when they learn that Nicholas has been rushed to the hospital following a heroin overdose. Catherine, shaken from a distressing call with Nicholas, initially believes he’s upset because he’s learned about her past with Jonathan. Upon arriving at the hospital, the Ravenscrofts are informed that Nicholas has suffered a stroke, leaving him neurologically impaired. This medical crisis drives Catherine and Robert into a desperate struggle to understand and help Nicholas while questioning their family’s shattered dynamic.
Meanwhile, Stephen’s vendetta against Catherine continues. Through flashbacks, we see him obsessively erasing his digital fingerprints, even deleting Jonathan’s Instagram account to cover his tracks. He also obtains Nicholas’s hospital location, revealing his fixation on “punishing” Catherine through Nicholas. These scenes are interspersed with more of Catherine’s memories of her past relationship with Jonathan, who left a lasting, troubling impact on her.
Stephen’s obsession reaches a new level as he considers injecting Nicholas with a drain unblocker under the guise of a hospital visit. Preparing for this dark deed, he puts on Nicholas’s deodorant and practices different accents to sound like Nicholas’s grandfather. However, his intentions are thwarted when Catherine intervenes, pushing him away from her son. In the scuffle, Stephen is hit in the head, while Catherine is removed by hospital security. This also gives Stephen the upper hand again, as Robert, embarrassed by Catherine’s behavior, apologizes to Stephen and requests another visit for him to see his son.
In a brief flashback, we see that after their trip to Italy, Nancy called Sasha’s mother to convey the news of Jonathan’s death, leaving the truth behind the young couple’s abrupt return unresolved. Back in the present, Stephen finds Catherine in his backyard, clutching a kitchen knife and demanding that her story be heard. When Stephen reacts, Catherine slaps him in frustration, her anger over his manipulation finally erupting. The episode ends with Catherine insisting on taking control of her narrative, signifying her determination to expose the truth, just as Stephen’s twisted “balancing act” edges closer to a dark resolution.
Disclaimer (2024) Episode 7 “VII” Recap:
Is Catherine responsible for Jonathan’s death?
