Madeline Brewer Is the Final Girl on 'You,' And She’s Not Here For Your Opinions

PHOTOGRAPHY James Bee 

STYLING Sachiko Clyde

Madeline Brewer knows that you have thoughts about the end of You. But no matter what you think about those shocking eleventh-hour twists, the actor, 32, plans to remain blissfully unaware of it. “I am trying to avoid the internet right now,” she tells L’OFFICIEL the day after the hit series’ fifth and final season dropped on Netflix. The last 10 episodes of the thriller—which follows Penn Badgley’s character Joe Goldberg, a serial killer who charms his victims before the fantasy turns deadly—were always bound to stir up mixed feelings among fans. But long before the divisive finale revealed that Joe would live to see another day, it was the introduction of Brewer’s character, the romance lit–loving, free-spirited Bronte, that struck a chord in particular. 

“People really don’t like Bronte,” Brewer says, bluntly. “And that’s fine, because I like Bronte, and I don’t need anyone else to like her.” Although the latest employee at Mooney’s bookstore initially appears to be no more than married Joe’s latest obsession, a mid-season bombshell throws a wrench into any chances of a fairytale ending when it’s revealed that Bronte is actually Louise Flannery, a dental hygienist from Ohio who’s been playing Joe all along to get revenge for her friend—and his season one victim—Guinevere Beck (Elizabeth Lail). The catfishing twist leads Bronte to become the show’s secondary narrator, offering a dueling perspective to Joe’s in a series’ first. “By doing that, the show allowed some power to be put back into the hands of the women that were so manipulated by this man,” says Brewer. “That’s a testament to the producers, creators, and showrunners—and, especially, to Penn.” 

Badgley and Brewer’s final onscreen encounter is both bloody and chilling, with Bronte taking down the prison-bound protagonist once and for all. Having watched the TV show since it first premiered on Lifetime in 2018, Brewer—who also stars in Hulu's The Handmaid’s Tale, another series in its final season—considers any noise about Joe’s fate (and her role in it) to be just that. “I'd like everyone to love the ending like I do,” she says. “But a lot of people are probably going to hate it, and that’s their prerogative. I know that you can't please everybody.” She’s less forgiving of those who go online solely to project their discontent onto the cast. “It's so funny, because people are truly unable to separate the actor from the character,” she says. “I know Kaitlyn Dever is getting a lot of this right now, too [for her role as Abby on The Last of Us], and it’s like, why are we so incapable of doing that? Also, if you don't like my character, I don't care—but you don't need to call me ugly.” 

Ahead, Brewer opens up about protecting her peace, the end of The Handmaid’s Tale, and why she’s happier than ever to be out of the dating game after filming You.

L’OFFICIEL: Let’s start off with the question on everyone’s mind right now. How does it feel to be the newest final girl?

MADELINE BREWER: It’s freaking thrilling. Don't say freaking, Maddie—don’t do that! It immediately makes me sound like a 14-year-old boy. But it’s thrilling. I'm a huge fan of the show, and I'm so grateful that they entrusted this character to me. I mean, she is the final one. She’s the one who holds Joe Goldberg’s fate in her hands, and that’s no small ask.

L’O: How did you prepare for the role?

MB: I think Bronte is a bit more Gen Z than I am, so I spent a lot of time on TikTok. She has a vocabulary that is not the same as mine—I believe at one point I say, “Edgar Allan Poe, post-menty B, which I think could be its own genre of cottagecore e-boy maximalism,” which is the craziest line I've ever said in my entire life. I also read books, because Bronte's super well read. I like to think I'm pretty well read, but I got into reading some of what she would call “fairy smut.” She's a hopeless romantic, and unfortunately for me, the romance genre just does not tickle my fancy. So, I tried, and I understand why people like it. But I can't. It's not for me.

L’O: What do you think of her vigilante mission to catfish for the greater good? 

MB: I find Bronte to be incredibly intrepid and determined. She's fully alone in the world after some really traumatic years, and throwing herself into something that may or may not have an ending felt like an outlet for some of her grief—even if it took on a life of its own. I can't see her as anything other than bold and brave. Don't get me wrong, she's also a lunatic. I would never make some of the decisions that Bronte chooses to make, but that's why she's a fictional character.

L’O: What was it like to shoot the pivotal showdown between Joe and Bronte? She shoots him in the crotch, which is not the subtlest of symbolism, is it?

MB: No. Shooting that whole finale was some of the most fun I've ever had in my life, which is crazy because what we were shooting was so horrible. But you find levity and laughter. We do that on The Handmaid's Tale, too; we have such a great time, because what we're shooting is so utterly horrible and devastating. But in those final scenes with Penn, I got to say what I think is a bit of a thesis for the series, which is, “The fantasy of a man like you is how we cope with the reality of a man like you.” And I think many women who date men will understand that line.

L’O: After filming the show, are you happier than ever to be out of the dating game and planning your wedding [to cinematographer Jack Thompson-Roylance]?

MB: I'm happy about that for so many reasons, not just the fact that I've now eliminated the potential of being murdered. Or, at least I hope I have; I don't know if my fiance is a murderer. [laughs] Can you ever really know somebody? But I am grateful to be out of the dating game, and I feel for people who are in it. We live in a society that is so hyperindividualistic now: We exist almost entirely online, and the more we go into our phones and lose connection with other people, the less vulnerable we are. I think that's what's most dangerous. I don't think there are tons of Joe Goldbergs out there; don't get me wrong, there are some. But I think the real epidemic is our lack of human connection.

L’O: What’s your biggest takeaway from the series?

MB: That falling in love is scary for a lot of reasons, but when your gut is telling you that something's wrong, it probably is. And you're allowed to trust yourself on that. At certain points throughout the series, these “You” girls must have thought, “Something's off and I don't feel comfortable.” Listening to that voice inside may have saved them. Bronte even says to Joe towards the end, “You erased my intuition. You made me doubt myself." Intuition is having a really strong relationship to the voice inside of you, and nurturing that relationship is the most important thing you can do.

L’O: This isn’t your first time playing a character who sets out to take down the bad guys, as you’ve had your fair share of rebellious moments as Janine Lindo on The Handmaid’s Tale. What draws you to those revenge-seeking roles?

MB: I wouldn't say it's a conscious thing. Maybe it’s that I love when things are right and wrong, and justice being served. But what draws me first to any project is the character. I have loved Janine for so many years—she's like an old friend. And I love Bronte. She makes some decisions I wouldn't make, and I might want to grab her by the shoulders and shake her, but I do still love her. And I'm proud of who she is.

L’O: The world is a very different place than it was when season one of The Handmaid's Tale premiered in 2017—it almost doesn't feel as dystopian as it should anymore. How are you feeling as the show wraps up its sixth and final season?

MB: We started shooting the show during the 2016 election and we were on set for the 2024 election, and it simultaneously feels like everything and nothing has changed. It feels like, maybe, things have gotten a little bit worse. But I feel inspired by this final season of The Handmaid's Tale, because I think it shows that when these women—the oppressed class in Gilead—unite and support each other, they are incredibly powerful. And as human beings, we are at our most powerful when we are in community, picking up the slack for our neighbors, uplifting and inspiring each other. 

L’O: Do you turn to the people in your own life to process filming such intense material?

MB: I talk to friends or call my mom to decompress. There was a particularly difficult day on set for me this season, and I was very lucky that my fiancé happened to be in town. I just came home and cried; I had to get it out. I'm not someone who cries very often, but when I do my whole body feels lighter. It needs the release. So I like to cry, and I take a hot, pampered bath every single night of my life. It helps wash the day away and calms me down. I just try to protect my emotional and physical body.

L’O: You were 25 when The Handmaid's Tale premiered. Is there anything you wish you had known back then, pre-fame?

MB: When you first start out in your career and you're on a show that's getting eyes on it, you feel like—or at least, for me, I wanted everyone to like me and think I was good. And so I put my heart on my sleeve and loved, and hoped people would love me back. I realize now that I’m all I need. I have a wonderful support system that is invaluable to me, but I know how to take care of myself and how to keep what's mine, just mine. I think that I would tell my younger self, “You belong only to yourself. You don't belong to anyone or anything else—they don't get to have you. And when it comes to people wanting access to you, you don't owe anything to anyone.”

L’O: Are there any dream projects you’re manifesting, or is wedding planning your focus right now?

MB: There's definitely a lot of wedding planning, but I'm always thinking about what's next. I want to do theater, and I would love to play a real person in a biopic. I also want to direct and produce. I love acting, but I want to know more about how the sausage is made and then get in there and try it myself.

L’O: In your Instagram comments, followers are asking you to star in something where they're not constantly concerned for your wellbeing. What do you say to that?

MB: When the world is a fully safe place for all women—and I mean all of them—then maybe we won't have to make TV shows about it. But also I tend to feel attracted to characters who are in a bit of a darker world, so I don't think that's going to stop anytime soon. That being said…I'd really love to be in a Netflix Christmas movie. [laughs]

HAIR: Yuhi Kim

MAKEUP: Sasha Borax