Robbie Amell Breaks Down ‘Upload’ Series Finale After Polarizing Ending, Why [Spoiler] Had to Die

Robbie Amell has a feeling that Upload’s final season might be a polarizing one — but he couldn’t be happier with how the series is saying goodbye.

“I don’t think I got the script [for the series finale] until the day before the table read,” Amell, 37, exclusively told Us Weekly ahead of the season 4’s Monday, August 25, release. “And sometimes you’re trying to show the emotion of things while you’re shooting them, and other times you’re trying not to, like, sloppy cry while you’re reading a scene. And that was kind of the the series finale for for Upload. I thought that [showrunner] Greg [Daniels’] words were so beautiful. I couldn’t have thought of a better way to end the show.”

Amell, who has portrayed main character Nathan — all versions of him — on the Amazon Prime Video series since its 2020 premiere, said it was “incredibly satisfying” to see how Daniels chose to wrap up the story. “That’s not to say everyone will be happy,” he added, “but I think that it’s beautiful, and that it feels real. It just feels right.”

Warning: Spoilers below for Upload season 4.

Upload is set in the future and follows Nathan after his girlfriend Ingrid (Allegra Edwards) uploads his consciousness into a digital afterlife called Lakeview. While there, he meets his “angel” helper Nora (Andy Allo) and the pair form a friendship that quickly turns into something more as they uncover secrets surrounding the reality behind the evil company behind Lakeview, Horizon.

While Nathan eventually finds his way back into a human body throughout the series, season 3 ended with him disappearing. Season 4 picks up with Andy on a desperate quest to find him. While she discovers that he’s still alive, things quickly take a turn for the couple, who realize their time is about to run out.

Season 4 of Upload is now available to stream on Amazon Prime Video. Below, Amell breaks down the shocking finale, from major character deaths to spinoff potential and more:

Why Did Nathan Have to Die in Season 4 of ‘Upload’?

That’s right, Upload fans, season 4 ends with Nathan’s physical death. As his body begins to fail, he decides that he cannot go through the process of being downloaded — or uploaded — dies naturally. But before he says goodbye to Nora, the couple exchange vows in a virtual reality wedding ceremony.

For Amell, Nathan’s arc felt fitting as the character entered Lakeview self-centered and vain, eventually becoming a selfless person thanks to Nora’s influence in his post-death life.

“The show starts with Nathan being a little egotistical and selfish, and then you have this season of romance between him and Nora, and then the audience and Nathan find out at the same time that he’s maybe not as great a guy as he thought he was,” Amell explained to Us. “I always thought that was an interesting question of, ‘Are we our worst mistakes? Are we the mistakes we’ve made in the past, or can people change?’ And I think that Nathan battled with that for a couple seasons and spent time learning from Nora and living a harder life and becoming a different person.”

Amell added that it was important Nathan learn how to be “selfless” and “empathetic” by the end of his story.

“I thought that Greg did it in a way that felt real and felt earned,” he said. “And this is a guy who would have done anything to save himself in season 1, and in season 4, the thing that matters to him is the happiness of the person he loves.”

Why Couldn’t Nora and Nathan Get Their Happy Ending?

The series ends with Nora, still wearing her wedding ring, turning down a coffee date with a stranger seemingly some time after Nathan has died. In the show’s final moments, a ping on her iPad reveals that Nathan’s stored memories of the pair are now available to download.

Amell told Us that Daniels actually explored “every different ending” before settling on the one that he believes feels most “true to the story” Upload has been telling.

“Look, it’s hard, because some people want the happily ever after,” Amell admitted. “And I think that the show was never black and white. It was kind of this gray area in regards to everything. It was a comedy, it was a satire, it was a drama, it was a romance, it was sci-fi, and I think that this just kind of felt like the most real version of an ending.”

Amell said people he’s spoken to about the ending have gone through “stages” of emotions — from “mad” to “sad” to “happy” and beyond — which feels like a “satisfying” way to go out.

“It leaves people in a place with closure, and you’re happy for the people who are left,” he added. “But I think everybody gets their moments, whether they’re sad moments or happy moments or triumphant moments. Everybody gets that thing. And I love it. I’’m such a fan of the show and such a fan of Greg’s, and I just love the series finale.”

As for Allo, she exclusively told Us that she would have “loved” a happily ever after for Nora, but the ending chosen was a “beautiful” way to wrap up the series.

“Because it’s also in the beginning, [Nora] was all about uploading and trying to get her dad to upload,and then falling in love with an uploaded guy. And so then, now at the end, to be like, ‘Oh, I don’t want to upload you again and go through this. And actually, I’m OK with you dying for real. I think it’s such a beautiful arc,” she said.

Why Did Nathan and Ingrid Get Their Happy Ending?

While “real” Nathan and Nora were torn apart, “clone” Nathan — a second version of the character brought back pre-emotional growth — got his HEA with Ingrid. The pair are revealed to be living in a beach house and starring on their own reality show after getting married.

“I mean, I guess one Nathan needed to be happy, right?” Allo said when asked why “clone” Nathan got to survive. She noted that Ingrid went on a “journey” to “do everything to save” Nathan, who ultimately fell in love with Nora, so it’s satisfying to watch her find him again in some capacity.

“She has to move on, and then she gets her version of Nathan, who is all about her,” she explained. “I think that’s just perfect. We all kinda got what we needed, not necessarily what we wanted. And I love that.”

Why Did Luke Need to Die?

Another shocking finale death was Luke (Kevin Bigley) a Lakeview resident, former military officer and Nathan’s post-mortem BFF who sacrifices himself to save the fellow uploads from the evil A.I. bot.

“I’ve heard Kevin talk about this,” Amell explained of Luke’s shocking demise. “Luke is an Army veteran … that’s a bit of his backstory, and he is the ultimate best friend. And is there any way, or any more brave, heroic way for his character to go out then sacrificing himself to save his friends? It’s such a beautiful, full circle moment.”

Amell told Us that Kevin wasn’t “even mad” finding out about the character’s fate because of how “beautiful” the moment was. “This is how this goes and he’s so good, and he’s so likable, but that’s one of those moments where you’re gonna have some people be like, ‘No, no,’ but at the same time you’re like, ‘But that’s my guy!’” Amell said.

Nathan and Nora’s Romantic Goodbye Almost Got Destroyed by ACDC

Despite Nathan and Nora having a bittersweet ending, the pair get a few romantic moments together before they say goodbye. After tying the knot, they virtually travel to Montreal, Canada — a place Nathan has wanted to go the entire show — and sit on a bench having various everyday conversations married couples would typically have throughout the years.

“It was one of those scenes that I read, and I texted Greg right after and I was like, ‘This is one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever read. I love it,’” Amell told Us of the heartfelt moment.

The scene, however, kept getting pushed back in production due to weather issues. Amell said he was already “worried” the words would get “stale,” but things really took a turn for the worse when a man on a nearby boat started blaring ACDC during filming.

“I spent, like, two hours in the sound booth trying to remake every single note of that scene [in ADR],” Amell recalled with a laugh. “I’m grateful to our sound department. They did such an incredible job. You can’t tell [in the final cut], but that was a total nightmare. I wanted to sink this guy’s boat so badly.”

Will Nathan and Nora Ever Reunite?

Although Nathan and Nora don’t end up together, Nora does receive the downloaded files of Nathan’s memories on her iPad. When asked if Nora might ever try and re-download Nathan into a new body in the future, Amell was doubtful — seeing it more as a touching tribute to the couple.

“I pictured it more as this is a thing she can use to go back and look at the best times,” he said, before considering that things actually could go another way. “I also think it’s open for interpretation. If I’m in Nora’s shoes and I have this thing and I’m missing that other person and I have a few cocktails, I might try and put together a new person. Let’s just try. Let’s just try it again. I’ll just Frankenstein myself. But I think that would probably end in a bad version.”

Allo, meanwhile, thinks there’s a chance Nora could bring Nathan back after she’s lived a life on her own.

“ I imagine Nora goes on living her life, whether she becomes like a lawyer that advocates for the less fortunate, and she’s this activist. I imagine her having a full life, maybe she has kids and finds love again, and then at a certain point in her life, her husband is gone,” Allo said. “She lived her whole life. She’s still alive. She’s by herself and she decides to rebuild Nathan and and now they both get to end their life together, and live those final moments of  whatever time she has left.”

Could There Be an ‘Upload’ Spinoff?

When it comes to Upload living on in some capacity, Amell joked that “real” Nathan and Luke, now both dead, could have a “buddy comedy in real heaven.”

‘We’ve done the digital afterlife. Now let’s see what the afterlife is, and they get to reconnect,” he said with a laugh. “Look, I will say, it’s Greg. If Greg were to come to me and be like, ‘I have this idea for a spinoff?’  Great. I’m in. If it’s Greg, no question.”

Allo had a similar perspective. “Oh, I’m there. Listen, Greg calls me, I’m anywhere that man wants me. He has my heart,” she said. “He’s changed my life, so I’m forever grateful, and it’d be such a dream to keep working with him and bringing his writing to life.”