The second season of Peacemaker concluded with its hero in more danger than ever before. The finale, which aired on October 9, 2025, saw John Cena’s Christopher Smith betrayed and abandoned on a distant, dangerous planet known as Salvation. The emotional finale also finally answered the big question about Chris and Harcourt’s relationship while setting the stage for major new stories in the DC Universe.
The Final Betrayal and Imprisonment
The season finale, titled “Full Nelson,” seemed to be heading toward a happy ending for Chris Smith. After being bailed out of prison by his friends, he was convinced that he was not a curse to those around him. He and his team of friends even used their resources to start their own independent spy agency called Checkmate.
However, in the final moments, Frank Grillo’s Rick Flag Sr. enacted his revenge. A.R.G.U.S. agents kidnapped Chris and brought him to their headquarters. Flag Sr. revealed that Chris had been signed up, against his will, to be a test subject for a new metahuman prison. The prison is located on Salvation, a planet in an alternate dimension that A.R.G.U.S. discovered using the Quantum Unfolding Chamber.
As Flag Sr. closed the portal door, leaving Chris stranded, he told him, “This is for Ricky, you piece of shit,” a clear reference to Peacemaker killing his son, Rick Flag Jr., in the movie The Suicide Squad. Chris is left on the planet with nothing but the shirt on his back, and the episode ends with the sound of monstrous howls and growls in the distance, suggesting he is not alone.
A New DCU Organization is Born
Before Chris’s abduction, the main characters made a major decision. Losing faith in A.R.G.U.S. and its corrupt motives, the group decided to form their own organization. Using money that Vigilante had saved, the 11th Street Kids founded Checkmate.
This new agency will include Leota Adebayo, Emilia Harcourt, John Economos, Vigilante, and even former foes like Sasha Bordeaux, Langston Fleury, and Judomaster. In the DC comics, Checkmate is a spy agency, and this new version is positioned to be a force for good outside of government control.
Chris and Harcourt’s Relationship Revealed
Throughout the season, a major question has been what happened on the “night on the boat” between Chris and Harcourt. The finale finally provided the answer through flashbacks. The two shared a drunken, emotional night that ended with a single kiss, after which Harcourt quickly left.
In the present day, after Chris is convinced to rejoin his friends, Harcourt finally admits her true feelings. When Chris asks if the kiss meant anything to her, she replies:
“Of course it did, you fucking asshole. It meant everything.”
The episode concludes with them seemingly together, attending a Foxy Shazam concert on the same boat where they first connected. This moment of happiness makes Chris’s subsequent kidnapping an even more crushing blow.
Setting Up the Future of the DCU
The introduction of Salvation is a major setup for future DC Universe projects. The planet is directly adapted from the “Salvation Run” comic book story. In the comics, it is used as an inescapable prison planet for metahumans and villains, but it is secretly controlled by the New God Desaad from Apokolips, who uses it as a training ground for his Parademons.
Furthermore, the finale confirms that Rick Flag Sr. is working with Lex Luthor, who was introduced in the Superman movie. This alliance suggests that Luthor’s plans to eliminate metahumans are moving forward. This storyline is expected to connect directly to the upcoming Superman sequel, “Man of Tomorrow,” where Superman and Lex Luthor may be forced to team up against a common enemy, potentially on Salvation itself.
While the fate of Peacemaker is left hanging, creator James Gunn has indicated that the character and his story will continue in other DCU projects, though a direct third season of Peacemaker has not been confirmed.
Also Read: What Is The Secret Meaning Behind the Number 653 In Peacemaker Season 2 Finale
