Mr Robot season 4 drops twist that changes fabric of entire show

Creator Sam Esmail says revelation has been planned since the very beginning

Mr Robot dropped a twist in its final season that has stunned fans of the US drama series.

Throughout the show, viewers have seen lead character Elliot Alderson (Rami Malek) share headspace with a second personality named Mr Robot (Christian Slater) – but in episode two of the show’s fourth season, titled “402 Payment Required”, it was revealed that Alderson has had a secret third personality the entire time.

Viewers learn of the revelation at the same time as Elliot. When his sister Darlene (Charly Chaikin) reminds him of a conversation they had weeks before – one about drug lord Fernando Vera (Elliot Villar) returning to New York – both he and Mr Robot have no memory of the encounter leading him to ask one crucial question

“If it wasn’t you and it wasn’t me, then who was it?”

Cut to a scene showing a young version of the lead character speaking to his mother, Magda (Vaishnavi Sharma) in the same boardroom he would go on to meet Tyrell Wellick (Martin Wallström) at the end of the first season.

“That’s not your seat,” Magda tells her son, who wonders whether he’s sitting in Mr Robot’s place. Magda tells him it’s not Mr Robot's seat either, but one belonging to “the other one”.

The identity of this personality is still unknown, but creator Sam Esmail confirmed the twist has been in play since the very beginning, in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter.

“This is the beginning of that big final reveal of the whole series,” he said. “Honestly, it’s one where I haven’t quite… you know, I go on the subreddit, I read theories, I listen to podcasts. This is one that hasn’t been predicted yet.”

Mr Robot continues in the US on Sunday and is available to stream in the UK on Amazon Prime the following day.