Does Riley Flynn Die in 'Midnight Mass'? The Character's Fate Revealed

Gabrielle Bernardini - Author
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PUBLISHED Sep. 27 2021, 5:25 p.m. ET

'Midnight Mass'
Source: Netflix

Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers for Midnight Mass Season 1.

From the creator of the popular paranormal series The Haunting of Hill House, Mike Flannigan's latest Netflix project, Midnight Mass, follows the townspeople of Crockett Island who begin to witness miraculous events after a priest comes to the small isolated community.

When unexplainable events start to take place, a religious fervor takes hold of the townsfolk. But, these "miracles" come at a deadly cost.

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The first glimpse of demonic activity occurs when the cats on the island all end up deceased with their blood drained. As the series progresses, Riley Flynn (Zach Gilford), who was recently released from prison following his lengthy incarceration for vehicular manslaughter after driving under the influence, finds out that Father Paul is not telling the truth. So, when he goes to confront Father Paul, does the main character make it out alive? Keep reading to find out if the character is truly dead in Season 1 of Midnight Mass.

'Midnight Mass'
Source: Netflix
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Is Riley dead in 'Midnight Mass'?

In the supernatural miniseries, many characters are killed off on the show, including Riley.

After Riley decides to confront Father Paul for lying about Joe's whereabouts, he walks in on the monsignor standing next to a demon-like figure. The creature, which is referred to as an "angel," attacks Riley and the character is presumed dead.

However, Riley wakes up and shows up on Erin's (Kate Siegel) doorstep to reveal what is happening in the small town.

Fans are treated to a flashback of Riley waking up on the ground with Father Paul hovering over him, saying, "God still has a plan, and death isn’t part of it anymore, not for all of us. We don’t have to be afraid ever again." When Riley tries to escape, he realizes that the sun now burns his flesh. Is he a vampire?

Father Paul reveals himself to actually be Monsignor Pruitt, the town's former priest, and says he was resurrected from the dead by the "angel."

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'Midnight Mass'
Source: Netflix

Riley relays all of this information to Erin just before the sun comes up and burns him alive.

Yes, Riley is now officially dead. He sacrificed himself to make Erin understand what the town is dealing with so she can save the remaining residents.

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How does 'Midnight Mass' end? There are a lot more deaths in the Netflix series.

Father Paul finally reveals to the town that he is actually Monsignor Pruitt and persuades the townspeople to sacrifice themselves to be reborn. Since the residents have been drinking the angel's blood for weeks, they are brought back to life but have a thirst for blood. The remaining few that are still human decide to burn all of the boats on the island so none of the bloodthirsty creatures can escape and turn the world into vampires.

'Midnight Mass'
Source: Netflix
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In the finale, every building in the town is burned down which means the vampires have nowhere to hide when the sun comes up. The series ends with Warren (Igby Rigney) and Leeza (Annarah Cymone), who are still human, paddling on the ocean and away from the island.

Leeza — who had been paralyzed before Father Paul came to town — tells Warren that she "can't feel her legs," and she is once again left paralyzed from the waist down.

So, does this mean the angel is dead?

"We’re not saying he died," creator Mike Flanagan told The Wrap.

He added: "Our hope really there was just to say that Leeza’s concentration in her blood had begun to tip back, that she was going to be OK. We didn’t want it to confirm about the angel, in that way that you can never kill fanaticism, it’ll always kind of come back."

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