{"id":9301,"date":"2026-09-21T16:36:51","date_gmt":"2026-09-21T15:36:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thetab.com\/filmshrine\/?p=9301"},"modified":"2026-09-21T16:36:51","modified_gmt":"2026-09-21T15:36:51","slug":"lioness-season-3-finale-ending-explained-why-does-aaliyah-want-joe-season-4","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thetab.com\/filmshrine\/2026\/09\/21\/lioness-season-3-finale-ending-explained-why-does-aaliyah-want-joe-season-4\/","title":{"rendered":"Why does Aaliyah want Joe in Lioness season 3? Taylor Sheridan already gave us a clue"},"content":{"rendered":"

*Warning: Spoilers ahead for the Lioness season 3 finale*<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Lioness season 3 episode 8 ended with a big twist: Aaliyah was the one who ordered Joe\u2019s kidnapping. What\u2019s more, it appears Aaliyah doesn\u2019t want her dead – instead, she wants to use her as bait. <\/span><\/p>\n

In season 3 episode 7 of Taylor Sheridan\u2019s<\/a> Paramount+ series, Joe McNamara (Zoe Salda\u00f1a)<\/a> is finally rescued after spending six days in captivity. But despite being physically safe, Joe is left with one massive question: who actually ordered her abduction in the first place?<\/span><\/p>\n

Joe and the CIA initially suspected her kidnapping could be connected to Russia or Ukraine, but their investigation points elsewhere. They find out in the finale that the job was put out to contractors, with $250,000 per person offered to capture Joe and move her to Houston before handing her over to another group. <\/span><\/p>\n

But arguably the most telling intel they uncover is that whoever put out the contract is acting out of revenge. And the final sequence pulls the rug out from under us as it reveals who\u2019s been pulling the strings all along: Aaliyah Amrohi (Stephanie Nur), a character we haven\u2019t seen since Lioness<\/a> season 1. <\/span><\/p>\n

And that\u2019s not the only twist. When she\u2019s told that the second attempt to take Joe out of the country has failed, Aaliyah replies, \u201cWe have to get her out. If we get her out, the others will come to save her. And then we have them all.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

In other words, Joe isn\u2019t the target – she\u2019s the bait. <\/span><\/p>\n

Why does Aaliyah want Joe in the Lioness season 3 finale?<\/h2>\n
\"Aaliyah
Credit: Paramount+<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Given everything that went down in season 1, the leading theory is that Aaliyah wants revenge for her father\u2019s death – and she\u2019s using Joe as bait to get to Cruz Manuelos (Laysla De Oliveira)<\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n

To refresh your memory, the first chapter of the show saw Cruz recruited into the CIA\u2019s Lioness programme and sent undercover to get close to Aaliyah. Her father, Asmar Ali Amrohi, was a billionaire businessman who the CIA believed to be a major financier of terrorism.<\/span><\/p>\n

Cruz initially befriended Aaliyah while posing as someone outside the CIA in order for the agency to get close enough to assassinate him, but their relationship soon became far more complicated. <\/span><\/p>\n

Despite Aaliyah being engaged to Ehsan, she and Cruz developed genuine feelings for one another and eventually slept together shortly before Aaliyah\u2019s wedding.<\/span><\/p>\n

Cruz was then invited to the wedding in Mallorca, where the CIA realised Aaliyah’s father would also be present. But Ehsan discovered Cruz’s true identity after having a background check carried out. <\/span><\/p>\n

After confronting her, Cruz killed Ehsan and Asmar, before escaping the compound and being extracted by Joe and the team. Aaliyah was left behind, having lost both her fianc\u00e9 and her father to a CIA operation carried out by the woman she\u2019d fallen for. <\/span><\/p>\n

Fast forward to season 3 and it makes sense why Aaliyah has a very personal reason for targeting the Lioness team. And her insistence that Joe must be taken alive rather than killed suggests revenge on Joe alone isn\u2019t the endgame. Her reference to \u201cthe others\u201d could very well include Cruz. <\/span><\/p>\n

Taylor Sheridan\u2019s original plans for Aaliyah and Cruz are very telling<\/h2>\n
\"Aaliyah
Credit: Paramount+<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Lioness hasn’t actually confirmed Aaliyah\u2019s ultimate target, but Lioness<\/a> creator Taylor Sheridan\u2019s instructions for Cruz star Laysla De Oliveira certainly hint that this could be the case given how much emotion went into her relationship with Aaliyah.<\/span><\/p>\n

Speaking to <\/span>Deadline<\/span><\/a> following the release of the season 1 finale, De Oliveira said she didn\u2019t know this romantic arc was baked into the script. \u201cThere were only two episodes written at the time,\u201d she explained.  <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cTaylor writes based on the people he casts, which is why I think he writes so brilliantly. He said I would have to kill her father, and that she would be the only friend I’ve ever had. So I knew it was going to be something deep. It’s such a tragic love story.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

At the time, De Oliveira had no idea if we\u2019d see Aaliyah again. \u201cI feel like this story can go in so many ways. What do you do when you kill someone\u2019s father?\u201d she added, an interesting response given we now know she\u2019s behind the kidnapping plot.<\/span><\/p>\n

Lioness editor Chad Galster similarly described Cruz and Aaliyah\u2019s storyline as a \u201clove story\u201d, with the season 1 finale marking its culmination. <\/span><\/p>\n

In other words, Aaliyah wasn’t simply the daughter of Cruz\u2019s target. They fell for each other, only for their relationship to end with Cruz killing her father and fianc\u00e9 and disappearing from her life.<\/span><\/p>\n

That certainly gives Aaliyah and Cruz a lot of unfinished business – and makes Cruz one very obvious candidate for whoever Aaliyah means when she says she wants \u201cthem all\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

Is Lioness season 4 happening?<\/h2>\n

Paramount+<\/a> hasn\u2019t officially renewed Lioness for season 4 just yet, but considering the season 3 finale only dropped on September 20, it\u2019s still very early days. And there are already some pretty promising signs that another chapter is on the cards.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n
@screenrantplus<\/a> <\/p>\n

#Lioness<\/a> star is so confident that the #TaylorSheridan<\/a> spy thriller series will be renewed for a fourth season that she’s willing to put her money where her mouth is! @liamtcrowley #lionessseason3<\/a> #jillwagner<\/a> #laysladeoliveira<\/a><\/p>\n

\u266c original sound – ScreenRant+ – ScreenRant+<\/a> <\/section>\n<\/blockquote>\n