After six seasons of navigating a frenzied and frequently depressing life as a has-been celebrity, BoJack Horseman ended with an impressive run in February 2020. The critically acclaimed animated series was set in an alternate reality version of Hollywood that featured human and anthropomorphized animals and followed a washed-up former television star named BoJack (Will Arnett) who was looking to reinvent his career while also dealing with his declining mental health. In the end, he finally allows other people into his life and subsequently accepts when it's time for them to leave.

Updated June 4th, 2023: This article has been updated with additional information regarding the end of BoJack Horseman.

The creator of the show, Raphael Bob-Waksberg, spoke about wanting to end the show in a manner that provided some sort of closure to BoJack's perennial loneliness.

"I think, for me, I will say that I wanted the last moment to be about BoJack and Diane together in that last moment. And more than even about Diane, I wanted it to be about BoJack and somebody else, because there's a lot of times when you have a show with a strong central character like BoJack Horseman. The show is called BoJack Horseman. It's in some ways it's an ensemble show, but in most ways, it's really centered on him and his experience. And a lot of times when you have shows that are built like that, the final moment is on that character alone. And I felt like it was... And we've ended almost all of our seasons on BoJack alone. But for me, it was really important that the last image the audience was left with was not BoJack alone. I wanted it to be BoJack and somebody else."

The question of BoJack's isolation and why he pushes people away has been one of the central themes of the show through all its seasons. That theme was explored once again in the series finale, with BoJack and his long-time flame Diane (Alison Brie) having one last heart-to-heart before seemingly moving on from each other, maybe this time for good. Diane had moved on while BoJack was in prison, marrying her previous boyfriend.

Related: HBO Max's Fired on Mars: How This Show Mixes Bojack Horseman with the Hero's Journey

However, she speaks about how she isn't sorry she met BoJack or anyone else, even going as far as to thank him. But, at the start, Diane doesn't sound like she ever intended to keep BoJack in her life after that night. They speak about how sometimes you can be glad to have someone in your life, but they were never supposed to be there forever. Of course, the couple does end up continuing to speak with each other until they eventually resign themselves to sitting in silence.

BoJack's Fate

Bojack Horseman Moon
Netflix

The open-ended nature of their final conversation has led to much speculation among the show's fans, and for his part, Raphael Bob-Waksberg has no desire to influence the speculation one way or another.

"I want to be very careful when I talk about the ending, because I feel like what I like about it is that it's open to interpretation, and I worry that if I share too much about my interpretation, that will be read as the correct interpretation. I don't want to shed new light on the end of BoJack, because I want people to have their own interpretations. Those kinds of examinations really frustrate me."

However fans choose to interpret the show's finale, one source of relief for everyone was the fact that BoJack did not die in the end, despite plenty of hints being dropped beforehand that it was where the series was heading. But according to Bob-Waksberg, BoJack dying was never really on the cards for the Netflix show's ending.

"I don't think BoJack dying at the end was ever seriously discussed at any point, making the show. I don't think... That wasn't something I was interested in. We kind of knew the ending as we were going a little bit in this last season specifically. And I think if we were doing one episode at a time and kind of figuring it out as we went, maybe after 15, we would have had a real conversation of like, "Well, you know, do we want him to die? Maybe now that we've we told this story, maybe this is the correct course of action." But we always, in my mind, knew he wasn't going to die."

What Does The Finale Mean?

BoJack Horseman balcony
Netflix

After seeing the finale, it makes sense that BoJack was never going to die in the series. His character arc and the theme of the finale center around moving on with the weight of your mistakes but not letting them overtake you. In his last conversation with Princess Carolyn (Amy Sedaris), she clearly holds no ill will towards BoJack and wants him to be happy, but there is also a silent understanding between them that BoJack has to stand on his own. This sentiment is mirrored in his conversation with Diane when she says she felt guilty for being happy instead of helping BoJack. In this emotional moment, BoJack immediately tells her that it isn't her responsibility.

Related: BoJack Horseman: Every Season, Ranked

While it's hard to say who stayed with BoJack after the wedding, the bittersweet finale faced audiences with a harsh but fair reality. BoJack accepts that he pushed his friends too far. They were willing to be there to help him, but they never owed him anything. It was finally time to be there for himself instead of putting pressure on them to fix him.

This new story originated from Collider.