32 Most Shocking Twists From Crime TV Shows

What makes TV crime dramas so alluring? It could be the simple thrill of the action or the satisfaction of seeing evil brought to justice, but, for me, it's the twists and revelations that shake up the story. Let’s revisit some of the most mindblowing moments from some of the best crime TV shows, and make sure to keep our SPOILER WARNING in mind.

Omar's Murder (The Wire)

Creator David Simon's The Wire delivered a shocking death that illustrates how even the most imposing and legendary individuals can expire in an unremarkable fashion. Fans of the acclaimed HBO drama anticipated that Baltimore thief Omar Little (Michael K. Williams) might go down in a showdown against Marlo Stanfield (Jamie Hector), but, instead, was fatally shot by Kenard (Thuliso Dingwall ), a kid who worked for the gangster.

Adrian Solves Trudy’s Murder (Monk)

In the series finale of Monk, Emmy winner Tony Shalhoub's obsessive-compulsive detective, Adrian Monk, finally gets to the bottom of the case that has haunted him for years: the murder of his wife, Trudy (Melora Hardin). The car bomb that killed her was planted by renowned Judge Ethan Rickover (Craig T. Nelson) in order to prevent her from coming clean about their affair from years earlier, which resulted in a pregnancy.

Walt Poisons Brock (Breaking Bad)

One of the best episodes of Breaking Bad sees Walter White (Bryan Cranston) resorting to abhorrent measures in order to take down his most fearsome adversary, Gus Fring (Giancarlo Esposito). Jesse's (Aaron Paul) new girlfriend's son, Brock, winds up in the hospital, leading him to suspect the boy was poisoned by Walt, who insists that the poisoning was a manipulation tactic by Gus. Indeed, it was a tactic, but orchestrated by Walt, who is revealed to have poisoned Brock so he could pin it on Gus and get Jesse to help him kill the ruthless criminal.

Junior Shoots Tony (The Sopranos)

In the Season 6 premiere of The Sopranos, Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini) shows up at the home of his uncle, Junior (Dominic Chianese), who is suffering from dementia and immediately mistakes his nephew for a dead mobster who robbed him years earlier named Gennaro Malanga. Junior reacts by pulling out a pistol and shooting Tony, who passes out before he can call 911, but luckily, he is rushed to the hospital, where he is put in a coma.

Moriarty Takes His Own Life (Sherlock)

Early on in BBC's modernized reimagining of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's revered mystery stories, Sherlock, fans were introduced to Holmes' (Benedict Cumberbatch) arch nemesis, Jim Moriarty (Andrew Scott). However, in only the second season finale, their quarrel of wits came to an end when the master criminal ended his life right in front of the detective.

Love Is A Killer Too (You)

In Netflix's hit crime TV show, You, serial stalker and killer Joe Goldberg (Penn Badgley) believes he has found someone who can help tame his dark side in Love Quinn (Victoria Pedretti). However, he comes to discover that his seemingly sweet and innocent new lover has homicidal tendencies of her own.

Bones' Parents Have A Criminal History (Bones)

Emily Deschanel's eponymous forensic anthropologist from Bones, Temperance "Bones" Brennan, was abandoned by her parents when she was a teenager. Years later, she would find her mother's remains and, through subsequent investigation, discover that she and Brennan's father were career criminals.

Kristin Shepard Shot J.R. (Dallas)

One of the most iconic cliffhangers in TV history had America wondering who shot J.R. Ewing (Larry Hagman) in the Season 3 finale of Dallas. The mystery prompted an astonishing phenomenon that lasted the entire summer of 1980 before the primetime soap opera returned for its fourth season premiere, in which it was revealed that Kristin Shepard (Mary Crosby) attempted to kill the notorious oil baron.

Vic Kills Terry (The Shield)

Creator Shawn Ryan's intense, FX original police drama The Shield wasted no time in preparing audiences for what sort of startling twists and turns it had in store. The very first episode ends with the corrupt Det. Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis) murdering federal informant Terry Crowley (Reed Diamond) in cold blood.

The Trinity Killer Murders Rita (Dexter)

Most fans of Dexter would agree that the most wicked adversary Michael C. Hall's homicidal vigilante ever faced is Arthur Mitchell (John Lithgow), a.k.a. The Trinity Killer, especially for his final kill. Dexter manages to take out the sadistic murderer, but not soon enough to prevent him from killing his wife, Rita (Julie Benz), whom he finds in a blood-filled bathtub with his infant son, Harrison, sitting on the floor nearby.

Dana Lewis Is A Murderer (Law & Order: Special Victims Unit)

Academy Award winner Marcia Gay Harden appeared on multiple episodes of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit as Dana Lewis, an FBI agent who strikes up a strong bond with Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay). However, their friendship would come to an end when Lewis is arrested for murdering a woman her ex-boyfriend cheated on her with.

The Yellow King’s Identity (True Detective)

The first season of HBO's hit, anthological mystery drama, True Detective, follows Marty Hart (Woody Harrelson) and Rust Cohle (Matthew McConaughey) as they investigate the murders of a killer known only as The Yellow King. Ultimately, the criminal is revealed to be Errol Childress (Glenn Fleshler), who is the nephew of one of the case's prime suspects, Reverend Tuttle.

Opie Sacrifices Himself (Sons Of Anarchy)

One of the most heartbreaking moments from Sons of Anarchy comes when the imprisoned Jax Teller (Charlie Hunnam), Chibs Telford (Tommy Flanagan), Tig Trager (Kim Coates), and Opie Winston (Ryan Hurst) are forced to decide which of them will face four other inmates in a brawl to the death so that Jax and Chibs can be released as part of an agreement with Damon Pope (Harold Perrineau). Opie volunteers himself and, after uttering his final words, "I got this," bids his brothers farewell before suffering a brutal end.

Cooper Is Replaced With An Evil Clone (Twin Peaks)

While all David Lynch movies are known for raising many perplexing questions, the original CBS run of the filmmaker's hit TV series, Twin Peaks, especially left audiences with a lot to ponder in the Season 2 finale, which reveals that Special Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle McLachlan) has not returned from The Black Lodge, but has been replaced with a demented doppelgänger. More than two decades later, fans were finally treated to a continuation of the story with Showtime's 2017 revival.

The Reaper Is George Foyet (Criminal Minds)

One of the most notorious criminals that the Criminal Minds cast ever took on was an elusive killer known as "The Reaper," whose only surviving victim was a man named George Foyet (C. Thomas Howell). However, the FBI Behavioral Analysis Unit comes to discover that Foyet is The Reaper after all.

Beaver Assaulted Veronica (Veronica Mars)

The season 2 finale of Veronica Mars solves the long-gestating mystery behind the young, titular amateur investigator's (Kristen Bell) traumatic assault. The perpetrator is revealed to be Cassidy "Beaver" Casablancas (Kyle Gallner), who is himself a victim of assault, which has led him to become a violent person, causing even more destruction than what Veronica had suffered.

Elliott Has Been In Prison The Entire Time (Mr. Robot)

Creator Sam Esmail's USA drama Mr. Robot is the kind of series that always keeps you guessing, thanks to central character Elliott Alderson (Rami Malek) being an unreliable narrator. In fact, the seventh episode of its second season reveals that the hacker's entire life up to that point has been a delusion, and he has really been serving a jail sentence during this time.

President Logan Is Corrupt (24)

Corruption in the White House is a horrifying concept, which Fox's 24 boldly touched on with one of its most shocking twists. At the end of the 16th episode of Season 5, President Charles Logan (Gregory Itzin) is seen having a phone conversation with Christopher Henderson (Peter Weller) that reveals he was behind the deaths of David Palmer (Dennis Haysbert) and Michelle Dessler (Reiko Aylesworth).

Helen Is Killed (Ozark)

Few Netflix original TV shows have been as subversive as Ozark, which concluded its third season in an intense way. While it seemed that Marty Byrd (Jason Bateman) was doomed to suffer a grisly fate at the hands of Omar Navarro (Felix Solis), the cartel leader instead orders Nelson (Nelson Bonilla) to take out his lawyer, Helen Pierce (Janet McTeer), who attempted to frame Marty as an FBI informant.

Hank Realizes Heisenberg's True Identity (Breaking Bad)

The first half of Breaking Bad's fifth and final season came to a jaw-dropping end when DEA agent Hank Schrader (Dean Norris) arrived at a startling, long-awaited conclusion. He is sitting on Walt's toilet when he grabs a copy of Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass, signed to "W.W." by Gale Boetticher (David Costabile). This clues him in to the fact that the drug manufacturer he has been trying to find for more than a year has been his brother-in-law the whole time.

Ryan Killed Erin (Mare Of Easttown)

Near the end of the Emmy-winning HBO miniseries Mare of Easttown, it appears that Erin McMenamin (Cailee Spaeny) was murdered by her older cousin and lover, John Ross (Joe Tippett), but the truth is much darker. John's 13-year-old son, Ryan (Cameron Mann), learned of the affair and set out to intimidate her into backing out of the romance, but it ended up resulting in a fatal end for the young woman.

Cody Hoyt Dies (Big Sky)

It was heavily implied in the marketing for creator David E. Kelley's ABC drama Big Sky that Ryan Phillippe would be the star of the mystery thriller. Thus, seeing his character, a private investigator named Cody Hoyt, fatally shot by crooked Highway Patrol officer Rick Legarski (John Carroll Lynch) at the end of the pilot episode certainly caught viewers off guard.

Amma Killed Ann And Natalie (Sharp Objects)

In HBO's limited series adaptation of Gillian Flynn's Sharp Objects, Camille Preaker (Amy Adams) comes to suspect that her abusive mother, Adora (Patricia Clarkson), was responsible for the murders of Ann Nash (Kaegan Baron) and Natalie Keene (Jessica Treksa). However, in the final scene, it is revealed that Camille's younger half-sister, Amma (Eliza Scanlen), killed the young women and even used their teeth as cobblestones for her dollhouse's patio.

Hilde Is Imogene's Mother (Death And Other Details)

For years, the hero of Hulu's clever whodunnit Death and Other Details, Imogene Scott (Violett Beane), has been haunted by the murder of her mother, Kira, which the renowned Rufus Cotesworth (Mandy Patinkin) was never able to solve. However, while investigating a mysterious death on a private cruise, Imogene discovers that Kira actually faked her death all those years ago and has been hiding in plain sight on the ship, disguised as Interpol agent Hilde Eriksen (Linda Emond).

Boyd Crowder Escapes Prison (Justified: City Primeval)

Walton Goggins denied multiple times that he was involved with Justified: City Primeval, the 2023 miniseries revival of the hit FX crime thriller starring Timothy Olyphant as old-school U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens. However, he turned out to be full of it, as a post-credit scene shows his character, Boyd Crowder, escaping prison.

Chloe Is A Godly Blessing (Lucifer)

The pairing of the Devil incarnate, Lucifer Morningstar (Tom Ellis), with Det. Chloe Decker (Lauren German), as investigative partners, as well as lovers, would prove to be a match made in Heaven... literally. It is revealed in Season 2 of Lucifer that Chloe was created by God with the purpose of being the police consultant's perfect mate.

Sydney Wakes Up Two Years In The Future (Alias)

The second season of ABC's hit espionage drama Alias ends with a real gut-punch of a twist. Sidney Bristow (Jennifer Garner) wakes up in Hong Kong with no memory of how she wound up there and eventually discovers that she has been missing for the past two years. This leads her on a journey to piece together what happened to her during all that time.

Kima Greggs Is Shot (The Wire)

Kima Greggs (Sonja Sohn) was initially conceived as a smaller role on The Wire before creator David Simon was convinced by HBO executive Carolyn Strauss to keep her around longer. In other words, the shocking moment from the end of the first season's 10th episode, in which she is shot during a bust gone wrong, almost sealed the character's fate.

Peter Is From Another Dimension (Fringe)

In the second season of Fringe, Peter Bishop (Joshua Jackson) survives a deadly shockwave that leads him to realize that he was born in an alternate universe and was forcibly brought into this dimension by his father, Walter (John Noble). The twist completely recontextualizes the character's place in the show and brings to light the impact that his cross-dimensional transfer has on the world.

Paige Stays In America (The Americans)

In the series finale of The Americans, Paige Jennings (Holly Taylor) is seen exiting a train headed for the Soviet Union. This means that she has chosen to stay in the States, her true home, and that her undercover Soviet spy parents, Philip (Matthew Rhys) and Elizabeth Jennings (Keri Russell), will never see her again.

Georgia Trotman Is Thrown Out A Five-Story Window (Line Of Duty)

It seemed as if Detective Constable Georgia Trotman (Jessica Raine) was destined to be an important part of the second season (or, series, as they say in the U.K.) of the BBC's Line of Duty. However, the character's first episode also proved to be her last, in which corrupt DC Jeremy Cole (Henry Pettigrew) sends her plummeting to her death outside a hospital window.

Nina Myers Killed Teri Bauer (24)

By the end of the first season of 24, one of Jack Bauer's (Kiefer Sutherland) most trusted allies is not only revealed to be a mole, but the one who murdered his wife, Teri (Leslie Hope).