Nurse Jackie's Shocking Finale: Addiction, Overdose, and an Ambiguous Ending

In October 2025, the acclaimed Showtime series Nurse Jackie found a new audience on Netflix, attracting a whole new set of fans. The show, which aired from 2009 to 2015, earned 24 Emmy nominations and 5 awards, including Outstanding Lead Actress for Edie Falco and Outstanding Supporting Actress for Merritt Wever.

As the series came to a close in June 2015, all the doctors and nurses at All Saints Hospital prepared for the facility's closure, knowing they were just days away from losing their jobs. In the final episode, Jackie, the show's protagonist, was offered a nursing job at another hospital, but her protégé Zoey declined to join her, saying she needed to "make her own mistakes." Meanwhile, Jackie's boyfriend Eddie, who had been selling pharmaceutical samples, learned he would likely face a year in prison.

In the series' final moments, Jackie relapsed and overdosed, leaving her fate ambiguous. Showrunner Clyde Phillips and star Edie Falco both stated they wanted an "authentic and controversial" ending, with Wever saying she believed Jackie did not survive. However, in May 2024, it was announced that a sequel series was in development, with Falco set to reprise her role, suggesting Jackie did indeed survive.