How does the series finale resolve Lizzie's fate?

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Plot ending

• Lizzie Borden is acquitted in her 1893 trial for the murders of her father Andrew and stepmother Abby. The legal verdict matches the historical record. - Despite her freedom, she remains haunted by the murders and the public's perception; her reputation becomes a prison in its own right. - Her sister Emma initially supports her during the trial but eventually grows estranged and leaves Lizzie. - Bridget “Maggie” Sullivan, the maid and Lizzie’s partner in the fictionalized version of events, vanishes during the trial but returns afterward. She abandons an unhappy marriage and comes to live openly with Lizzie. - Lizzie and Maggie adopt new causes together, notably becoming involved in the women’s suffrage movement—building a life that’s both political and personal in its reclaimed agency. - The final moments make a symbolic connection to Aileen Wuornos, a serial killer executed in the late 20th century. After Wuornos’s death, Lizzie and Maggie appear to her in a dreamlike afterlife and offer her forgiveness and understanding. The ending is symbolic rather than literal.

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Framing and themes

• The show depicts Lizzie and Maggie as the actual killers of Andrew and Abby—a dramatized version not supported by historical evidence. - The acquittal is shown as a legal victory, but not a moral absolution. Lizzie acquitted in court, but the series treats her actions as something she must live with. - The ending is less about solving the mystery of who killed the Bordens and more about exploring what it means for someone to live in the shadow of an accusation, guilt, and legacy. Forgiveness, identity, and women's roles are central final themes.

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If you want how this compares to what’s historically documented, I can show the differences too.

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Sources

• Netflix Tudum article: “What Happens to Lizzie Borden at the End… Ella Beatty Explains”
• TV Insider, ScreenReport, MacObserver, Radiotimes etc., multiple ending-explained articles