'Upload' Season 3 Ending Explained: Nathan's Secret Is Revealed (2024)

Editor's Note: The following contains spoilers for Upload Season 3 finale.

Prime Video’s Upload Season 3 takes Nathan (Robbie Amell) and Nora (Andy Allo) on a new journey. Now that he has been downloaded into his body in the real world, they begin to return the drives of those who perished in the Freeyond ploy to their respective families, which ultimately builds to the two assisting in a class-action lawsuit against Horizen. Additionally, they continue their romance, figuring out what exactly that means for them when they aren’t separated in two different worlds. Meanwhile, back in Lakeview, the copy of Nathan still in virtual reality – minus many of Real Nathan’s memories – and Ingrid (Allegra Edwards) put their romance on a new, serious course as they attempt to be honest with each other this time around. While things aren’t so serious in Lakeview, things become more dire by the day in the real world, especially going into the final two episodes of the season, as Nathan’s download must be kept a secret and they try to beat the clock to take down the billionaires responsible for Freeyond before Nathan expires and his head explodes. With so much on the table to explore, let’s break down the final two episodes of Upload Season 3.

Upload

A man is able to choose his own afterlife after his untimely death by having his consciousness uploaded into a virtual world. As he gets used to his new life and befriends his angel (real world handler), questions about his death arise.

Release Date

May 1, 2020

Cast

Robbie Amell , Andy Allo , Kevin Bigley , Zainab Johnson , Allegra Edwards , Owen Daniels

Seasons

3

Writers

Greg Daniels

Lakeview Hijinks Create Trouble in ‘Upload’ Season 3’s Penultimate Episode

Almost one month after his download, Nathan has prepared a temporary home for himself as he and Nora plan to upload him before his expiration. But, before they upload him, Nathan talks Nora into giving them one more day – his send-off day. Back in Lakeview, Ingrid is still incredibly jealous of Lakeview Nathan and Nora’s relationship (even though Nora is with Real Nathan). Nathan tries to comfort Ingrid and tells her that he chose her, but the revelation that he and Nora almost kissed the other day in the memory parlor sets her off. She sneaks off and calls Tinsley (Mackenzie Cardwell), who arranges for Ingrid to use Nora’s avatar temporarily. Once in Nora’s shoes, Ingrid goes to Lakeview Nathan to flirt, but she doesn’t do a very good job and Nathan almost instantly realizes she's Ingrid. Then, Ingrid is called to assist the other engineers, who subsequently treat her horribly, in fixing things around Lakeview. At the end of the day, this experience gives Ingrid a newfound appreciation for Nora and brings Nathan and Ingrid closer, even though Ingrid won’t admit to what she did (and Nathan lets it go).

Meanwhile, Aleesha (Zainab Johnson) confesses to Luke (Kevin Bigley) that she’s beginning to have doubts about dating Horizen exec Karina (Jeanine Mason) because of all the shady stuff Karina is involved with, like forcing Aleesha to trick Nora into thinking she was dead to interrogate her. Luke arranges for all three of them to have drinks in Lakeview, so he can get a better idea of who Karina is and whether Aleesha should put her doubts aside. When they meet, Luke (in true Luke fashion) shows off one of his Lakeview hacks, which Karina is impressed by. He goes on to tell her about his other tricks and how he finds them, seeming much cooler than he expected. When he and Aleesha return to his suite, he tells her that he loves Karina and thinks she should just try to put the shady stuff aside. But, when she leaves, and he goes to his balcony to appreciate his free lake view, a wall drops and demands he pays for the view, courtesy of Karina (to whom he confessed this hack), proving she isn’t the cool person she pretends to be.

The Pressure Rises for Real Nathan and Nora Before the ‘Upload’ Season 3 Finale

In the real world, a month after his download, Nathan and Nora convince themselves to take one more day together before they upload Nathan into an isolated digital realm he’s created for himself. But, his Upload Day doesn’t quite go according to plan. Holden (Kristine Cofsky) calls Nora into the office to talk with some of the clients who are having cold feet about the lawsuit. Nathan accompanies her and waits in the office, but Nora keeps getting called back when they attempt to follow Nora’s plans for the day. While there, they learn that the evidence they gathered from Choak (William B. Davis) is inadmissible, as uploads’ thoughts are company property. This means Nathan can’t testify either; however, there’s a new star witness that could potentially save the day.

While looking out of the office windows at the plaza below, they see the star witness: Dr. Kapoor (Ravi Kapoor). The leading download specialist who gave Nathan the fake pills a few episodes prior is going to testify against Horizen, as he was bribed to sabotage the first download experience and has numerous other secrets to reveal. Knowing this, Nathan and Nora take a moment to celebrate as this means that he doesn’t need to be uploaded again. His nosebleeds were just nosebleeds, not a sign of the download failing. Horizen and the other upload companies don’t want anyone to download, as they would have no reason to pay for centuries of upload time if they could be downloaded into a younger body. However, their celebration is cut short when a bomb goes off in the plaza, instantly killing Dr. Kapoor. How much further will these companies go to protect themselves and their secrets?

Nathan Plans for a Future with Nora in the ‘Upload’ Season 3 Finale

As Nathan and Nora watch from the public gallery, Holden questions Lucy (Andrea Rosen) on the stand about her decision to advertise Lakeview and other upload destinations to children, making her case against Horizen’s bad business policies. Leaving the courthouse, discussing their hopes for the trial, like allowing Uploads to be people again, Nathan mentions that he’s desperate to start making some money. When Nora questions him about this need for money, he goes on to say that he wants to take her to Montreal. Moments later, Nathan is alone and on the phone with Luke, going deeper into his plans for Montreal. He wants to marry Nora and asks Luke to be his best man.

Aleesha’s Doubts About Karina Grow and the Trial Almost Falls Apart

In Karina’s apartment, she and Aleesha are watching the trial on television. When Karina makes a harrowing comment about uploading Lucy’s child to teach her a lesson, Aleesha is stunned to see the dark side of Karina come to the surface. Later, after Luke and Nathan get off the phone, Aleesha reveals herself and continues wondering aloud about Karina and whether she should continue their romance. Aleesha thinks Karina is too icky to date, but breaking up with her creates concern about losing her job or her life. Thus, Luke and Aleesha come up with a plan to use their abilities for good, deciding to bring Tinsley and a more humanized A.I. Guy (Owen Daniels) in to assist with their risky mission.

After his walk, Nathan walks in on Nora and Holden discussing the case. Without Choak’s memories and with Nathan unable to testify, they are missing a link between Horizen and Freeyond, which could result in them losing the case. The only option is to bring in Ingrid as their star witness, to reveal her father’s connection to the upload companies, what she knows about Nathan’s murder, and everything else that has happened. So, Nathan and Nora take her out to a fancy dinner to convince her to cooperate.

Everyone Has Big Plans for Ingrid in the 'Upload' Season 3 Finale

While Nathan and Nora wait for Ingrid at the restaurant, he once again mentions Montreal, which Nora is not pleased with. They’re interrupted when Lakeview Nathan calls Real Nathan, who requests they not keep Ingrid out too long because he’s planning to propose, which somewhat puts a damper on Nathan’s surprise plans to propose to Nora. When Ingrid finally arrives, they quickly get down to business. They ask her to testify against the upload companies, but as she can’t do it anonymously, she refuses. Nora asks Nathan for a moment alone with Ingrid, where she ruthlessly breaks down how she intends to embarrass upload companies while getting justice for those who died and making sure uploads, like both of their Nathans, have their rights restored. Moments later, they’re all leaving the restaurant with Ingrid having agreed to take the stand. Then, in Lakeview, Nathan leads Ingrid to a special date he’s set up for her, immediately beginning a beautiful proposal with a speech about their unexpected connection. But, Ingrid freaks out, says no, and runs off.

Luke and Aleesha’s Mission Begins While Ingrid and Nora Bond Over Their Nathans

Aleesha pretends to be sick, asking Karina to stay with her. Meanwhile, Luke brings the two-gigs to flood the lobby, while Tinsley calls for help to lure Karina to the office (after Aleesha has stolen her login information from a cleverly placed mirror and camera in the apartment). Later, Karina sets Aleesha up with a Lakeview suite to make her feel better, but secretly, Aleesha is heading to the office. While Luke distracts Karina, Aleesha sneaks into Karina’s office and steals files off of her computer. When she leaves the office, she goes back into Lakeview to quickly celebrate with Luke and ends up kissing him. But, just as quickly, she leaves. On the bus, she begins to look through the files and finds shocking information that she immediately sends to Nora to assist with the trial. Her one condition is everyone knows it’s from Karina.

During witness prep, Ingrid breaks down to Nora about why she panicked when Nathan proposed. She cries about how she’s chased him for so long and freaked out, admitting that she felt that there must be something wrong with him if he loved her. Then, Nora confesses she’s having her own doubts, as Montreal isn’t exactly what she had in mind when thinking about her future with Nathan and what she wants moving forward. When it’s time to testify, Ingrid takes the stand and informs everyone about Horizen, Choak, and how Nathan’s code was stolen to create Freeyond. But, when it’s time for the cross-examination, Ingrid slips up (amid a beautiful speech about how uploads are still people) and reveals that there are two Nathans. After testifying, Ingrid returns to Lakeview and happily accepts Nathan’s proposal.

The Trial Ends Unexpectedly Early and the 'Upload' Season 3 Finale Delivers a Major Cliffhanger

After presenting the evidence Aleesha gathered to the court, the Defendants’ attorney calls for a recess. Then, the attorneys meet and come back to reveal that the plaintiffs have won their case. The families will receive one million dollars per loved one lost in the Freeyond scheme. Unfortunately, this isn’t quite the news Nora and Nathan were hoping for, as it does nothing to ensure uploads’ rights and doesn’t quite change anything about their current world. Plus, all of the evidence they found will be sealed. At Horizen, having just found out about this, Aleesha is called into Karina’s office, certain she will be fired for what she has done. Then, after losing their case, Horizen decides to rebrand to “Betta” to separate themselves from the consequences of their actions. Additionally, they’ve created a special class of uploads who can work.

As they’re leaving the courthouse, Nora and Nathan decide to focus on themselves and stop trying to make everything perfect. But, their happiness is cut short when Nathan is taken into custody. Meanwhile, Lakeview is raided by Horizen employees set on destroying any copies of uploads – namely, Nathan. He runs, trying to make it to the Grey Zone. However, he’s stopped and dragged away. After losing both Nathans, Nora and Ingrid go to see Nathan’s mother. Sick with worry, they finally get a call from Nathan. He explains that he watched the other Nathan be destroyed. Immediately, they assume it was Lakeview Nathan, but Nora frantically asks which Nathan is on the phone leaving a major question for Season 4.

All episodes of Upload are streaming on Prime Video in the U.S.

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