After five emotional seasons of Insecure, it’s time to say goodbye to our favourite LA crew. The final episode of season five aired on Dec. 26, and it gave us all the full circle moments we needed to see to officially say goodbye. Over these past five years, we’ve laughed, cried, yelled, and screamed at our TV screens as Insecure mirrored young Black millenials’ lives in a way that’s never been done before. And so many of us are grateful to have a show that’s given us the diverse representation we’ve always hoped to see.
“For me, it was realising [that] this is it, this is really it.”
Insecure began its journey on HBO in 2016, but original Issa Rae fans know its history dates back to its YouTube days when it started as The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl. Just like the beloved characters on Insecure – Issa (Rae), Molly (Yvonne Orji), Lawrence (Jay Ellis), Nathan (Kendrick Sampson), Kelli (Natasha Rothwell), and Tiffany (Amanda Seales) – many of us have grown up with the series as well, so it’s hard to fathom life without it.
Even Orji previously told POPSUGAR that it was hard for the cast to bid the show farewell. “[It] was very emotional. Tears were shed,” she said. “For me, it was realising [that] this is it, this is really it . . . Nothing will ever be the same, but we won’t get these moments again because it already happened for the first time with each other, so now we have to let each other go to go do other dope things.”
With so much anticipation for Insecure’s ending, the pressure was on to see the show end perfectly. During the tenth episode titled “Everything Gonna Be, Okay?!,” Issa reflects on everything it took to get her where she is today – which is a huge milestone considering where she started in season one. Instead of traditional time jumps, every scene of the finale is marked according to each character’s birthday – accompanied by almost every noteworthy birthday anthem. And just as we hoped, the finale also closes the chapters on Molly, Lawrence, Nathan, Kelli, and Tiffany’s storylines.
We may be saying goodbye to these insecure-turned-secure characters for now, but the final episode assures us that life goes on for all of them even after the show ends. Ahead, try not to tear up as you read about everything that happens during Insecure’s series finale.
HBO / Merie Weismiller Wallace
What Happens to Issa on Insecure's Series Finale?
Issa has truly been through it all, but her character finally finds peace in the finale. “Everything Gonna Be, Okay?!” picks up with Nathan dropping Issa off back at her apartment right after his fight with Lawrence. While they sit in his car, he realises how messy their relationship has gotten and suggests it’s time for them to break up. After everything she’s been through with him, Issa doesn’t seem to put up much of a fight and instead accepts their fate. She later runs into him at her birthday party at the beginning of the episode, where they hash out their differences and say goodbye one last time.
Though Lawrence still seems to be on her mind, she briefly pursues a new relationship. However, as they always do, the two make their way back to each other and get back together. Toward the end of the episode, they’re seen together at Molly and Taurean’s wedding. One of the final scenes shows Issa walking into their home (assuming this is the case) as Lawrence and his son, Elijah, finish decorating a birthday cake for her.
The episode doesn’t explicitly share the current status of their relationship, but it seems to allude to the fact that Issa and Lawrence are engaged as she’s wearing a ring. Issa subtly hints about being engaged when Molly jokes about how Taurean won’t leave her side during their honeymoon. Issa asks, “Is that what I have to look forward to?” The two friends share a final laugh over the phone, recalling their old “broken pussy” joke from the very first episode of the show, just as the beat plays in the background.
As far as The Blocc goes, Issa has grown into her role as a boss and officially moved her company into a bigger office space. In addition to Sequoia (Courtney Taylor), Issa has expanded her team to hire more crew members. At the end, Issa hops into her Lexus and drives through her old neighborhood as she looks back on how far she’s come – with brief cameos from Thug Yoda (Tristen J. Winger), her old coworkers, and a nod to Lawrence’s old Best Buy shirt.
HBO / Raymond Liu
What Happens to Molly on Insecure's Series Finale?
At last, Molly gets her well-deserved happily ever after! She’s seen celebrating her 32nd birthday at the start of the series finale, surrounded by close friends and family. She later helps throw Issa a surprise birthday party at Crenshawn’s office space and turns it into a fundraiser for The Blocc.
While visiting Tiffany and Derek at their new home in Denver, Molly gets a call from her brother Curtis where she finds out her mom died. The finale later jumps to her 33rd birthday, and over the phone, she tells Issa how hard her mom’s death has hit her, saying, “I keep trying to wrap my mind around the fact that I’m going to keep having birthdays without her.” But Taurean gives her the perfect distraction from her grief – the two get engaged.
We later see the couple at their wedding with all their friends and family, and there’s even a sweet memorial set aside for Molly’s mom. After the ceremony and reception, Issa helps Molly out of her wedding dress as the new bride expresses her newfound happiness. In the final scene, Molly wishes Issa happy birthday while she’s on her honeymoon with Taurean, where she later jokes about how he “broke my pussy” – an ode to Insecure’s series premiere.
HBO / Merie Weismiller Wallace
What Happens to Lawrence on Insecure's Series Finale?
Looks like Lawrence hive actually does come out on top in the series finale! Much to fans’ surprise, Lawrence gets a shot at redemption with Issa after his huge fight with Nathan at Tiffany and Derek’s going away party. Just when we thought Issa wouldn’t be able to tell him how she really feels about him, fate gets these two back together again – another full-circle moment from season one.
It’s safe to assume he’s still successfully co-parenting his son, Elijah, with Condola (Christina Elmore), and he finds a way to incorporate Issa into their situation. He also moves out of Chad’s (Neil Brown Jr.) house and eventually moves in with Issa now that they’re a couple again. At the end of the finale, Lawrence and Elijah are making a birthday cake for Issa before they go out to celebrate. The end of the episode leaves clues that the two are now engaged.
HBO
What Happens to Nathan on Insecure's Series Finale?
Nathan doesn’t get his happy ending with Issa, but he does find peace in the finale. After his huge fight with Lawrence, he drops Issa off at her apartment and breaks up with her, saying their messy relationship is too “toxic” for him. He later pops up at Issa’s 32nd birthday party (because he still gets The Blocc’s emails) and gives her a donation from the barbershop for helping them out. The two end things peacefully and part ways once again. It’s the last time we see Nathan.
HBO / Raymond Liu
What Happens to Kelli on Insecure's Series Finale?
Kelli has come to embody the “growth” she’s been striving for since the very beginning of Insecure. In the final episode, her character arguably gets the best ending of them all. At her birthday party, she announces she’s expecting her first child with her new man, and we later discover she finally took Molly up on her offer to lead a new estate division at her law firm. So, in the end, we really did get justice for Kelli!
HBO / Merie Weismiller Wallace
What Happens to Tiffany on Insecure's Series Finale?
Though Tiffany’s appearances in the series finale are brief, we do get a chance to see what happens to her. As expected, she moves to Denver with Derek and comes back for Molly and Kelli’s birthday parties to reunite with the girls once again. She says she “f*cking hates” living in Denver, but is adjusting to being a stay-at-home mom while her daughter, Simone, starts preschool. The last time we see her is at Molly’s wedding, where she’s very noticeably pregnant in her bridesmaid’s dress.
