Presumed Innocent episode 8 (finale): Is Rusty actually the killer?

With the finale of Presumed Innocent on Apple TV+ just a mere matter of days away, is there a better time to talk theories? We don’t exactly think so!

Without further ado then, let’s just talk about a theory that is so obvious that it is so easy to overlook: What if Rusty actually did kill Carolyn? Given that this was not the case in the source material and he’s such an obvious suspect, you could just divert your eyes. Yet, as Tommy himself even pointed out, there are such an abundance of clues at this point starting us right in the face.

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So where is the best place to start off here? Well, we know he was present the night of her death, he has a history of violent altercations, and he also clearly had a lot of anger built up towards her at a certain point. Also, you can’t ignore just how unlikable Jake Gyllenhaal’s character has been from the start of the series — is there a single redeeming quality that he has?

Now, you can try to justify the obvious answer by saying that he went outside of himself when he killed her and has no recollection; or, there could be some sort of other outlandish twist that explains it. Perhaps the darkest twist would be that he killed her and is still found not guilty. The entire show could be commentary on the present-day legal system.

The biggest thing that doesn’t work with this theory

What’s with the fire poker? If Rusty did it, why would someone leave it with that message for Tommy? It’s hard to chart that part of it, especially since Rusty would not have left it for him there and it’s hard to know why someone else would suddenly find it and drop it off.

Related – Be sure to get some more news on Presumed Innocent now, including what else is coming

What do you most want to see moving into the Presumed Innocent finale, and who do you think killed Carolyn?

Be sure to share right now in the attached comments! Once you do just that, remember to come back — other updates are ahead.