Duster season 1 finale ending explained: Who is Xavier and how is he related to Joey Ellis?

Duster season 1 finale brings an intense closing for the 1970s Southwest-set HBO Max series. The show has brought mystery after mystery leading up to the finale, but the final moments bring a worthy closure to some of its biggest questions: Xavier's real identity and who really killed Joey Ellis.

The finale is something of a mixed bag, combining tense, action-packed scenes with a surprising emotional reckoning. One key character dies, while another returns from the dead. Duster season 1 finale also drops a major double-punch revelation: Jim Ellis' brother, Joey, is alive, and he and Xavier are the same person.

Saxton most likely knew where he was or how to find him, but he never told Jim the truth, and after the finale, he never could. While the Duster season 1 finale closes some of this season's mysteries, it also leaves a few loose ends dangling, begging for a continuation.

Disclaimer: This article contains major spoilers for the Duster season 1 finale. Reader's discretion is advised.

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Duster season 1 finale answers questions about Xavier's identity and what happened to Joey Ellis

Nina tells Jim about Joey (Image via Max)

Duster season 1 finale delivers a double-punch twist that no one saw coming. It turns out that Jim's brother, Joey Ellis, is alive, and he's now going by the codename Xavier. This means Joey didn't die in the explosion, and the mystery man who kept coming up in Nina and Awan's investigation is Jim's brother.

All of this is revealed offscreen after Nina tries to resign. While Nina doesn't pull the trigger to kill Saxton when she could have, the Duster season 1 finale still ends with her feeling like she has found justice for her father, which is her only goal in Phoenix. With that done, her job in Phoenix is finished, so she decides to resign.

However, her FBI superior doesn't want to accept it, as she opened a top-secret case where she could be a huge asset in the future. He admits that the FBI conspiracy is real and they have a few leads about it, which Nina Hayes also relays to Jim during what was supposed to be their last goodbye.

It turns out the mysterious Xavier has been Joey all along. Saxton didn't kill him but instead helped him go undercover. Xavier's face is still not revealed in the Duster season 1 finale, but his identity is now out in the open. It's an intriguing surprise, and while it answers two of the biggest questions that have been circulating in season 1, it also brings up a lot of mysteries and conspiracies.

The 'Joey is Xavier' reveal opens another mystery box about his connection with Cowboy and how they all connect to D.C.

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Duster season 1 finale kills off Ezra Saxton, plus all who die in the end

Saxton dies in the Duster season 1 finale (Image via Max)

Ezra Saxton bites the dust in the Duster season 1 finale, but not before a surprising, although also not-so-surprising emotional reckoning. After Nina is found, along with her connection to Jim, Saxton plans to give Jim to Greek Sal in exchange for the Nixon tape he intercepted in Duster season 1 episode 7.

But just as Saxton walks away with Nixon's tape, he makes a shocking move and kills Greek Sal, sparking a shootout between their two groups. He does it because he knows Jim's father is going to kill Genesis if something happens to Jim. As much as Saxton doesn't trust Genesis with his business, giving all his favor towards Royce, family is still what matters to him.

In another shocking move, Saxton jumps in front of Royce to save him when one of Greek Sal's men aims and fires at his son. He uses his final words to tell Royce that he loves him and Genesis, too. During the shootout, Saxton's right-hand man, Billy, also dies.

Meanwhile, another character who dies in the Duster season 1 finale is Agent Grant, whom Cowboy has sent to kill Nina. Awan comes to Nina's rescue, knowing he can't trust anybody at the office, and Grant has been snooping in their business ever since. Before Grant can kill Nina, Awan pulls the trigger that kills Grant.

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Is Jim leaving Phoenix in the Duster season 1 finale?

Izzy reveals her cancer (Image via Max)

In the aftermath of Saxton's death, Jim wants to leave Phoenix and tells Izzy about his plan. However, he receives bombshell news that forces him to stay. Izzy doesn't outright say that she has cancer, but she tells Jim that her new boyfriend, David, is not just an oncologist—he's her oncologist.

She's going to get treatment soon, but she implies that her sickness is as serious as it gets, and it's the worst time for Jim to leave. With Izzy getting treatment, Luna needs Jim beside her more than ever. However, the Duster season 1 finale ends with Luna's paternity still a secret. Caring for Luna and being with her more than he used to could be another complication for Jim.

Knowing that his brother is alive and probably wants to work with Nina to find him would invite danger to his doorstep. That's the main reason why he wants to leave Phoenix in the first place. All of this would put Jim in a tough place, and it's exciting to know how he plans to balance being a father to Luna and continuing to solve the mysteries that his brother left behind.

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Where does Richard Nixon's tape end up in Duster's finale?

During the shootout between Saxton's team and Greek Sal's men in the Duster season 1 finale, the Nixon tape ends up in the hands of Mad Raoul's goons. Given that he's described as volatile and incredibly dangerous, having Nixon's tape that can obliterate the White House only makes him extra deadly.

That said, the finale ends without any clear indication of what he plans to do with the tape. Whether he decides to exploit it or leak it remains a mystery, but with Mad Raoul now holding that evidence, it means there's more story audiences can expect from his character beyond the Duster season 1 finale.

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Catch all episodes of Duster season 1 streaming on Max.