The Terminal List: Dark Wolf Premiere Ending Explained: Is Haverford the real villain?

The Terminal List universe expands with Dark Wolf, a prequel series that takes audiences deep into Ben Edwards’ past and the events that ultimately shaped his betrayal of James Reece. The premiere, which dropped its first three episodes, blends explosive action with covert geopolitics and moral dilemmas, ending on a cliffhanger that raises the question of whether CIA spymaster Jed Haverford might be the true antagonist.

The Terminal List: Dark Wolf Premiere Recap and Ending Explained

The opening episodes throw viewers into Mosul, 2015, where Edwards joins Raife Hastings, Boozer Vickers, and Farooq for a prisoner exchange. What should have been routine descends into chaos when ISIS opens fire, leaving Iraqi soldier Daran Amiri critically injured. Edwards saves him, but tragedy looms. Months later, Amiri re-enlists with a prosthetic leg—only to be manipulated by ISIS handler Hamid Al-Jabouri into detonating himself in a suicide attack that kills dozens and destroys his family.

The fallout is grim as the SEALs discover Hamid is a CIA asset, protected from retaliation. But when Edwards finds Amiri’s daughter in Hamid’s custody, his anger outweighs protocol. He executes Hamid, forcing both him and Hastings into dishonorable discharge. It seems like the end of their military careers, until they are recruited by Jed Haverford.

Haverford presents himself as their savior, covering up Hamid’s death and redirecting them into black-ops work with Mossad agents Tal Varon and Eliza Perash for their target, Massoud Danawi, a powerful arms dealer. The mission leads to violent confrontations in Austria, including Eliza’s near-death by poison and Danawi’s brutal takedown. Yet the capture of his phone reveals something darker: Danawi was only a middleman in Iran’s nuclear weapons program.

In the third episode, the danger escalates as Farooq impersonates Danawi to negotiate with Professor Molnar in Budapest. The revelation is chilling: Iran is funding proof-of-concept nuclear work, putting global security at risk. The mission is further complicated when Farooq realizes one of the contacts is his estranged daughter, whom he spares despite orders to kill. Meanwhile, Ish, the youngest member of the team, is killed by a shadowy “third party” trying to intercept the deal. Edwards avenges him in a brutal subway fight, but the larger conspiracy deepens.

This leads to the central question: Is Haverford the real villain? His secrecy, manipulation, and protection of compromised assets suggest a man willing to sacrifice soldiers for political leverage. He recruits disgraced operatives, covers up their crimes, and redirects them toward missions that blur the line between justice and exploitation. The fact that Ish’s killers may have been linked to the CIA raises even more doubt about Haverford’s true allegiance. While Iran and its proxies are clear threats, the premiere positions Haverford as the shadowy figure who may ultimately betray Edwards, just as Edwards once betrayed Reece.

The Terminal List: Dark Wolf Series Overview

The action thriller series The Terminal List: Dark Wolf is based on characters from Jack Carr’s 2018 novel The Terminal List. Created by Carr and David DiGilio, the series serves as a prequel to The Terminal List and follows Ben Edwards as he transitions from Navy SEAL to CIA operative, exploring the darker side of warfare and the devastating human cost of shadow conflicts.

Taylor Kitsch reprises his role as Edwards, starring alongside Chris Pratt as James Reece and Tom Hopper as Raife Hastings. The recurring cast includes Jared Shaw as Boozer Vickers, Luke Hemsworth as CIA contractor Jules Landry, Dar Salim as Farooq, Robert Wisdom as CIA spymaster Jed Haverford, Rona-Lee Shimon as Mossad veteran Eliza Perash, and Shiraz Tzarfati as Tal Varon.

With the season set to consist of seven episodes, viewers can expect new episodes of The Terminal List: Dark Wolf weekly every Wednesday. The next episode, titled What’s Past Is Prologue, is scheduled to be released on September 3, 2025, exclusively on Prime Video in the United States at 12 am PT/3 am ET.

Stay tuned with us for further updates.