Sons of Anarchy saw many deaths, both of members of the club and outsiders, and one of the most dramatic ones was that of Gemma Teller-Morrow in the final season – but why did the writers decide to kill such a big character? Created by Kurt Sutter, Sons of Anarchy premiered on FX in 2008 and came to an end in 2014 after seven seasons. The series was a hit and got very good reviews throughout its whole run, with critics and viewers praising its story, themes, and the performances of the main cast.
Sons of Anarchy tells the story of Jackson “Jax” Teller (Charlie Hunnam), VP of the motorcycle club Sons of Anarchy in the fictional town of Charming, California. The events of the series begin when Jax finds a manifesto written by his late father, John Teller, one of the founding members of the MC, in which he shared his plans and vision for the club, which were very different from those of the current President (and Jax’s stepfather), Clay Morrow (Ron Perlman). This sends Jax on a personal journey that makes him question his path, role in the club, relationships, family, and more. Throughout the series, Jax witnessed many deaths, including those of many people close to him, among those his mother, Gemma (Katey Sagal), who he ended up killing.
There are two moments in Jax’s arc in Sons of Anarchy that can be considered turning points for him: Opie’s death and Tara’s murder. Tara Knowles (Maggie Siff) was Jax’s high school sweetheart with whom he reunited in season 1, and by season 6, they were already married and had formed their own family with Jax and Wendy’s son, Abel, and their son Thomas. In season 6, and after a lot of secrets and misunderstandings, Tara was killed by Gemma as she believed she had ratted on Jax and the club, when in reality, Tara was only doing what was best for her children and never betrayed the club. This led to a mountain of lies by Gemma that led to the deaths of many people who had nothing to do with the murder, among those SAMCRO member Bobby Munson (Mark Boone Junior). Jax eventually learned the truth, and knowing that his mother had to die, he pulled the trigger as Gemma told him she was ready to go.
As shocking as Gemma’s death was, it had been planned for a while and Katey Sagal was ready for it, though she didn’t always know how it was going to happen. Speaking to EW in 2014, Sagal shared that “the mounting of the lie was so just intolerable” and following Bobby’s death there was no way her actions could have been somewhat justified. In an interview with TV Line, also in 2014, Sagal shared that, before Sutter told her exactly what was going to happen with Gemma, she thought that “a living hell would be more torturous”, as Gemma didn’t know life outside the club and would have struggled to get a job, and killing her was “the merciful way to go”. Sagal was also asked if having Gemma commit suicide would have worked, so Jax wouldn’t have to carry that weight, so she explained that Gemma might have not been brave enough to do it herself so she would have manipulated someone into doing it and that ultimately, Gemma knew that having Jax kill her would have been somewhat healing for him as what he wanted was revenge for Tara’s death.
As for an in-universe reason why Gemma was killed in Sons of Anarchy season 7, it all goes down to all the pain she brought through her lies way before Tara’s murder, as she also lied to Jax about her involvement in John Teller’s death, and her web of lies even led to the death of one of SAMCRO’s most beloved members. Everything Gemma did in Sons of Anarchy led to that final moment with Jax in the rose garden, and whether it was a satisfying end or not is up to every viewer.