Lioness concluded its third season with a shocking breakup cliffhanger.
During the Sunday, September 20, episode of the Paramount+ show, Joe (Zoe Saldaña) finally returned to an empty home. Her husband, Neal (Dave Annable), had cleared out his stuff and took their two daughters with him as Joe came to terms with the unavoidable fracture in her marriage.
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“I thought it was spectacular. I think that [creator] Taylor [Sheridan] is an incredible writer and was able to get all of these moving parts into this one fluid episode of television,” Annable, 47, exclusively told Us.
Annable broke down Neal’s state of mind, saying, “Neal really has a very big decision on his hands and I think he’s done nothing but support Joe as best he can. But there’s a line where when your family’s lives are at risk, there might be a pivot involved at some point.”
Annable noted that it “was time” to address the divide between the couple, adding, “I think you know that it’s going to be something that I’m very interested to explore next season is what that looks like after the fact. He loves his wife but gotta pull the trigger. Gotta pull the trigger at some point.”
Earlier in the season, Neal and Joe shared a tense phone call that hinted at their issues.
“I think Neal is broken. I think Neal is really hurt,” he continued. “There was hope that she would be on that other line, saying, ‘I can’t wait to see you guys. I’m on my way.’ And when she says that she’s not coming home, that really paints a very clear picture for Neal about her priorities at that moment – and I don’t obviously think he and the children are at that moment.”
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Annable referred to the moment as “heartbreaking.”
“It was a very difficult scene to shoot – a lot of emotions and heartbreak,” he noted. “Like I said, it’s really it’s something that I think rocks Neal and we’ll see what he does [in the future].”
Lioness is a spy thriller that follows the leader of a CIA team that enlists female operatives – known as Lionesses – to go undercover in the war on terror. While the show hasn’t been renewed for a fourth season yet, Annable is “very curious” about what would come next in their story lines.
“I’m very curious of what Neal and Joe’s journey could be like in season 4. If we’re lucky enough to get one – which I certainly hoping we are – I think there’s a lot to play there,” he told Us. “I think this moment has really left an imprint on him and not necessarily a good one.”
Looking ahead, Annable hinted he still had hope for Neal and Joe as a couple, adding, “I’m certainly cheering for them because I want a job. [But really] I believe in their love story. I believe in Neal and Joe and I believe in you know these moments in marriage are most often the moments that will bring you closer together if you’re able to navigate and communicate through.”
He concluded: “Neal would certainly be happy if she was at a desk with a 9 to 5 type situation. I’m not quite sure Joe wants that and that’s really where we’ll come to this moment in their lives in the relationship.”
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Lioness is currently streaming on Paramount+.
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This story was originally published September 20, 2026 at 12:00 PM.