Based on a True Story season 2 ending explained: Who was the Copycat Killer?

Based on a True Story season 2 certainly took us on a wild ride. Let’s break down the finale to explore the twists and turns and reveal the answers to our burning questions.

Caution: This post contains major SPOILERS from Based on a True Story season 2

The second season picked up months after the first. Matt was gone, and it turned out that he was with Ava’s younger sister Tory. On top of that, Ava and Nathan were struggling with their new lives as parents, and it took a woman named Drew (played by Melissa Fumero) to help Ava realize that being the “perfect mom” isn’t possible.

Drew was an intriguing character. At one point, we thought that she might be the Copycat Killer. However, a double twist for her revealed something much more exciting. That led to questions about who the real Copycat Killer was.

Who was Drew in Based on a True Story season 2?

Originally set up as a detective and then as the Copycat Killer, it took us until close to the end of the season to get the truth. Drew wasn’t even called Drew. She was Olivia, Matt’s ex-wife. There were certainly plenty of clues throughout conversations with Ava, even from the beginning, that led to the connection to Matt.

Sadly for Drew/Olivia, she didn’t make it to the end. It turned out that Drew wasn’t completely squeaky clean. When she and Matt were together, she ran scams and a credit card fraud scheme. However, she wasn’t a murderer, and she definitely wasn’t the Copycat Killer. Tory seemed to view her as a threat, though, so she killed Drew, surprising all of us about Tory!

Who was the Copycat Killer?

So, who did turn out to be the Copycat Killer? It turned out that it was Paige, Chloe Lake’s sister. Fans will remember that Chloe was one of Matt’s victims in Based on a True Story, and Paige was angry that Ava and Nathan used Chloe’s death for financial gain. She wanted to teach them a lesson.

She lures Ava and Nathan to the Lipinski Sisters’ podcast studio, where she intends to kill them. However, Matt turns up and knocks her out, saving Nathan and Ava. This is all a ploy, though.

Matt has managed to frame Nathan as the Westside Ripper. Matt flees, and so does Paige, leaving Nathan to take all the heat. Of course, this is going to set up issues for Nathan and Ava if Based on a True Story season 3 happens.

Matt took Paige, and the last we saw of them, Paige was tied up and Matt needed to talk to her. This is going to be interesting if there is a third season, because Paige surely wants revenge from the real Westside Ripper, while Matt needs to keep himself protected to keep the ploy up that Nathan is the man behind the killings.

Based on a True Story is available to stream on Peacock.

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