When Trevante Rhodes first read the ending of Tyler Perry’s new film Mea Culpa, he only had one thought: “Tyler Perry, you dog, you.” 

It’s a reaction that audiences will share. The erotic thriller comes to a close with twist after twist, upending the world of Chicago defense attorney Mea Harper (Kelly Rowland). “This is a ‘watch it again,’ ” writer-director-producer Perry tells Tudum. “Watch it again and watch it again. Every time you watch it you’ll see that I drop little Easter eggs all along the way so that if you watch it back, you’d say, ‘Oh, that’s why.’ ”

In that spirit, here’s your guide to the twists and turns of Mea Culpa. All rise. 

Bob Mahoney/Perry Well Films 2/Netflix

Does Mea end up defending Zyair in court?

Not quite. When Mea Culpa begins, Mea’s found herself in the unenviable role of sole breadwinner for her family, while her husband, Kal (Sean Sagar), remains unemployed and bitter and her mother-in-law, Azalia (Kerry O’Malley), snipes away from the sidelines. And in the midst of all her personal strife, Mea’s been offered what might seem the case of a lifetime: Hotshot artist Zyair Malloy (Rhodes), accused of killing his girlfriend, needs a lawyer. And what’s more, the prosecutor handling the case is Kal’s brother, Ray (Nick Sagar). It’s a busy week at the office, to say the least. 

But soon, things get even more complicated. Unhappy at home, Mea becomes more and more entangled with Zyair. When her private investigator, Jimmy (RonReaco Lee), sends her a photo of Kal heading into a hotel room with another woman, Mea snaps and falls into Zyair’s waiting arms — even though his sinister-seeming paintings seem to contain clues pointing to his guilt. 

For the sexy and maybe dangerous Zyair, making provocative art is a method of seduction and catharsis. (It’s a hobby that Rhodes shares. “Painting feels good to me too,” he reflects to Tudum via email.) After a night of passion with Zyair, Mea discovers multiple paintings of other women beneath a painting of herself, including a vandalized portrait of Zyair’s murdered ex-girlfriend. Frightened, she leaves — and to add to her confusion and despair, she soon learns that what seemed to be a photo of her husband cheating on her was in fact showing him on his way to care for his ailing mother.

Bob Mahoney/Perry Well Films 2/Netflix

Did Zyair really kill his girlfriend?

No. After a rough week, Mea is devastated and quits the case, heading off to a Dominican resort on vacation. But when she spots the woman that Zyair is meant to have murdered working at her hotel, she’s left reeling. For Perry, twists like this one emerge naturally from the characters. 

“The characters, the way they show up in my head, they show up as real people telling me stories, and I start to write and write and write and write and write,” he tells Tudum. “And I’m looking at what they’re saying and listening to their motivations. And it all leads me to wherever the twist is supposed to happen.” 

In this case, the twist emerges from the dark motivations — ambition, jealousy, deceit — of Mea’s family life, and it hits soon after Mea arrives home from her travels. All along, Mea has chosen to believe that Ray, her brother-in-law and adversary in the courtroom, has the best interests of the law at heart. That was a mistake. Ray, it turns out, is the ringleader of a scheme to frame Zyair — taking revenge on him for sleeping with Ray’s wife, Charlise (Shannon Thornton). Ray also expects that a successful prosecution (and sympathy votes earned thanks to his mother’s fake cancer diagnosis) will push him over the finish line in the upcoming mayoral election.

In the bloody confrontation that ensues, Azalia stabs Charlise to death (worst mother-in-law of all time, if we’re being honest). Mea flees the scene and is picked up by a seemingly remorseful Kal — but an overheard phone call soon confirms that Kal has been in on the scam all along. Just in time, Mea swerves their car into the path of an oncoming semitrailer, killing her husband and clearing the path for the police to arrest Ray.

Bob Mahoney/Perry Well Films 2/Netflix

So, do Mea and Zyair end up together?

Not so fast. “I think Mea decides she’s done with people for a while,” Perry says. “She goes in a certain direction, and I think that Zyair moves on but he misses her.” That interpretation is underlined by the final scene of Mea Culpa, which sees Mea watching Zyair address reporters from a distance. His name now cleared, he texts Mea a thank-you and a plea to let him see her soon. She throws her phone in the trash and walks off. “Maybe there’s another movie here,” Perry chuckles. “Maybe he starts to stalk her.” 

Not before she heads back on her well-earned vacation, we hope. Or, as Rhodes puts it: “Netflix&chillville.”

Mea Culpa is now streaming on Netflix. 

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