Heading into the April 29 finale, fans had been hopeful that the title characters (played respectively by Jane Fondaand Lily Tomlin) may actually tie the knot with one another to close out the show and their seven seasons of madcap, girl-bonding adventures. What have Fonda and Tomlin said about that possibility? What other rumors out there have hinted at what happens in the finale? And more importantly, what actually happens?! Keep reading to find out how Grace and Frankie ends and whether Grace and Frankie end up together! But obviously, beware: Spoilers for the Grace and Frankie finale ahead!
Do Grace and Frankie end up together?
A Grace and Frankie marriage would certainly be a perfect bookend to the series’ beginnings when Grace Hanson and Frankie Bergstein became friends after learning that their husbands were in love with one another. “They love each other idc, that’s canon,” one fan wrote. “Enemies to roomies to best friends to lovers.” Another noted that “Jane Fonda saying that young people would watch Grace and Frankie with their grandparents,” another wrote. “Sure but a lot of us watch [because] we’re gay for [you] and Lily, miss ma’am.” “Grace and Frankie get married, okay bye,” another wrote. One user begged, “Please I just want Grace and Frankie to be together. Can you imagine how it would be like to have an elderly wlw couple give you hope that you can still meet and love someone at that age?” “I have not fully caught up with Grace and Frankie yet,” one wrote, “but y’all don’t even KNOW the person I will become if they get married for the end of the series.” Another posted a still of Fonda from the show and wrote, “Is this the part where Grace realizes she’s been dealing with comphet [compulsory heterosexuality] her whole life and declares her love for Frankie?” Others tweeted about how they believe it’s obvious that Grace and Frankie are lesbians, including one user who posted a hilarious image as a message to the Grace and Frankie writers that read, “Oh wake up and smell the lesbians”: Others pointed out that the final episodes of the series would debut during Lesbian Visibility Week: “No f***in way Grace and Frankie is out on lesbian visibility week,” another wrote. Going a step further, another fan wished that the title characters would be in polyamorous relationships: For her part, Fonda said before the finale that she’s been thrilled to show a strong friendship between two well-developed women on TV. “I was thinking, ‘How great to be able to say this on a show that’s being shown around the world,’” Fonda told ABC News. “Women loving on each other doesn’t have to be sexual. We’re not always fighting each other and competing. That made me so happy that I could be in a show like that.” Tomlin previously joked to Vulture, “After being Grace and Frankie for so many years, we often wound up sleeping in the same bed.” Series creator Marta Kauffman knows how badly Grace and Frankie fans wanted the women to be together, but remained mum in an interview with The Los Angeles Timesabout what turns and twists their relationship will take in the future. “The way people invested in their relationship is something you always hope is going to happen,” Kauffman said, “The show is about these two women. I think it’s no surprise that the audience wants them to be together, ultimately. I think making them a [romantic] couple is disingenuous. But they are a different kind of couple. They are best friends. They belong together. And I think there is something wonderful about finding that person who you want to be with in life.” Dolly Partonguest stars in the series finale. Tomlin told PEOPLE of reuniting with the country icon and 9 to 5 star, “She’s on the last episode. And that was one of our favorite episodes. We really loved doing that and having Dolly there. We’d done things together in the recent past, like presented on award shows and stuff like that,” she added. “It seemed right.” And what have Grace and Frankie fans thought Parton’s part would be? Their money was on a wedding officiant.
How does Grace and Frankie end?
In the series finale, Grace and Frankie don’t get married, but they do end up together as the BFFs that they are—and Parton played a big part in their happy ending. In the finale, Frankie forces her son to get married. While she’s officiating the ceremony, a drunken Grace heckles her, causing an argument. When they make up and hug, Grace spills her martini onto Frankie’s microphone, electrocuting and killing them both. The scene then flashes to a large white room and the ladies see pamphlets that say “So You’re Dead” on a table. Frankie accepts that her life has come to an end, but Grace isn’t ready to go yet. A buzzer rings and a door opens, revealing a hint of a blond beehive: It’s Parton! She rocks a white, rhinestone-studded suit, and Frankie sighs, “Oh God, you look exactly how I knew you would.” Parton’s character replies, “No, no, I’m not the Almighty… I’m Agnes, just a working-class angel … I haven’t had a promotion in 250 years, but the benefits are heaven.” Agnes is so moved by Grace and Frankie’s friendship that even though Frankie’s heavenly paperwork indicates that it’s her time to go, Agnes gives Grace and Frankie a second chance at life and a new beginning. Next, find out what Lily Tomlin really thinks of working with Jane Fonda!
