WARNING: This contains spoilers for Upload season 2.
The reveal of who killed Nathan Brown in Upload may have come as a surprise to viewers, but the show had laid out a few clues here and there throughout its two seasons. Nearly two years after season 1 was released, Upload season 2 has finally brought back the Amazon dystopian comedy produced by Greg Daniels. As funny and thought-provoking as it was in its first year, Upload season 2 continued the mystery surrounding Nathan's death and closed many of the loose ends that still existed on the show.
Upload season 1 had made many believe that Ingrid was to blame for Nathan's death. By the end of that season, the show's focus shifted to Ingrid's father, Oliver Kannerman. The businessman had bribed Nathan to gain access to the programmer's app, and Nathan's ensuing death appeared to be Kannerman’s way of eliminating all possible loose ends.
Upload season 2 surprised viewers with David Choak being revealed as the person behind Nathan's death Nathan's billionaire neighbor in Lakeview always seemed above suspicion, being used more as a joke than in the serious moments of the show. There were, however, some clues and hints that David Choak was the person behind Nathan’s death.
David Choak Was Nathan's Neighbor — But Why?
It was always curious that a person like David Choak, one of the richest people in the country, lived across the hall from someone like Nathan. The programmer wasn't exactly too wealthy and was only in Lakeview thanks to an adjacents plan from Ingrid's family. It didn't make much sense, therefore, that David Choak would own a room on the same level as Nathan’s limited resources could afford. Likely, Choak had already installed himself on that level to keep an eye on Nathan all the way to the Upload season 2 ending.
David Choak Was The First To Suggest Nathan Was Murdered
In Upload season 1, David Choak seemed interested in the circumstances of Nathan's death. It was thanks to David Choak's questions that Nathan realized that he couldn't remember the name of the very app he had worked on all his life. It was David Choak himself who suggested to Nathan that the programmer might have been murdered by someone in the digital afterlife industry, something that opened Nathan's eyes to the conspiracy surrounding his death.
It seems contradictory that David Choak, the very person who had ordered Nathan killed, was the one who helped the character realize that his death had been accidental. However, there was a reason for this strange move made by Choak in season 1. Choak needed to know how much Nathan remembered about the app he was working on, and whether Nathan could eventually mention to other Upload characters about the Beyond project.
David Choak Was Supportive Of Poor People Uploading
It came out as a surprise that someone like David Choak, who enjoyed all the privileges that money can buy and didn't care about extinguishing entire species just to eat exotic foods, had such a strong opinion about the access to the digital afterlife by the poor. Contrary to all expectations, David Choak said he agreed that poor people should have the right to upload. However, this was all part of Choak's elaborate plan to influence the results of the election. For millions of people in key states have access to a fast and cheap digital afterlife plan as Nathan had created, they would have to upload right away and thus lose their right to vote. Nathan didn't manage to connect those dots during Upload's "Dinner Party" and believed Choak had good intentions.
There weren't many clues pointing to David Choak as Nathan's killer, but it can't be said that Upload hadn't hinted that Choak was the person behind the crime. The surprising reveal was one of the highlights of Upload season 2 and will continue to have consequences for the next season. As David Choak's plan is still moving forward, Nathan and Nora will have to act fast to stop him in Upload season 3.