Netflix’s The Perfect Couple was undoubtedly one of the streamer’s biggest hits of 2024. Following in the footsteps of the dysfunctional and filthy-rich Winbury family, the adaptation of the Elin Hilderbrand novel of the same name has quite a lot in its favor, from a deeply compelling mystery to thoughtfully fleshed-out characters. Throughout its tightly packed six-episode season, The Perfect Couple has many memorable and interesting scenes that perfectly capture the tone of the entire series and the dynamic between its characters. However, despite several moments of rousing chaos in the brief Season 1 of The Perfect Couple, one scene stands out among the rest.
In Episode 4, “Someone Could Get Hurt,” Billy Howle‘s Benji Winbury and Jack Reynor‘s Thomas Winbury get into a tussle due to Thomas’s insistence on eating the wedding cake prepared for Benji and Amelia’s (Eve Hewson) wedding — against Benji’s wishes. While the scene itself pans out quite comically, making it an interesting few minutes to watch, the timing and significance of the scene can only be understood once the entire mystery unfolds.
This scene not only captures the entire essence of this Netflix mystery series, but it also accurately reflects why The Perfect Couple became such a phenomenal success. Since its 2024 debut, the six-part murder mystery has amassed more than 481 million hours viewed globally and 94.3 million views on Netflix, according to FlixPatrol.
‘The Perfect Couple’ Works Best When You’re Not Looking Too Closely
The Perfect Couple drops many hints en route to the final reveal surrounding the murder of Meghann Fahy‘s Merritt Monaco, Amelia’s best friend and maid of honor. On a rewatch, these hints suggest how showrunner Jenna Lamia and director Susanne Bier have created a tightly wound whodunit that allows the audience to play detective alongside in-show investigators Chief Dan Carter (Michael Beach) and Detective Nikki Henry (Donna Lynne Champlin).
The wedding cake scene, featuring Benji and Thomas, as well as Thomas’s pregnant wife Abby, shows Benji and Thomas getting into a physical altercation over Thomas and Abby’s attempts at eating the wedding cake despite the wedding being called off, much to Benji’s distress. Naturally, Benji, who’s also emotionally vulnerable at this stage post-cancellation of the wedding, does not play along with Thomas and Abby’s small game and dunks Thomas’s face into the cake. Eventually, when the situation results in a wrestle between the two brothers, Abby intervenes to broker peace, even calling out Thomas for starting the fight. This scene is crucial for many reasons, particularly its timing and the character dynamics it slyly reveals. Most importantly, the involvement of Abby in this scene makes it all the more well-crafted once the full extent of the Winbury family’s secrets is revealed.
The Cake Scene Exposes the Fault Lines in the Winbury Family
Image via Netflix
Throughout the season, Thomas comes out to be the family jerk who loves to rebel against his family members for fun. Earlier in the season, he reveals Tag’s (Liev Schreiber) affair with his brother Will’s (Sam Nivola) French tutor at the dining table, knowing that it will strain Tag’s relationship with Will. He’s also maintaining an affair with Isabelle Adjani‘s Isabel Nallet, a family friend of the Winburys. It might seem that in the cake scene, Thomas simply wanted to satiate his and his pregnant wife’s hunger. However, knowing how emotionally vile members of the Winbury family are towards each other, Thomas and Abby’s actions can be seen as an attempt to poke fun at Benji and ultimately offend him. Clearly, despite their outward appearances, the members of this family act with a certain sense of hostility and disregard for each other.
As seen throughout the season, each character acts purely in service of their motivated interests. Importantly, the family overall seems unhinged by Merritt’s death on Benji’s wedding day and refuses to offer him any emotional support, exposing fault lines within their relationships. The scene between Benji and Thomas is also significant because it’s one of very few occasions where Benji takes a stand against his family. The character appears otherwise distant from them, as evidenced by his choice to marry Amelia from an entirely different social class. For obvious reasons, such a matrimonial alliance is rare in such families, which is partly why they do not take Benji’s wedding cancellation as seriously as they should.
Abby’s Presence in ‘The Perfect Couple’s Cake Scene Elevates It From Just Fun Banter
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Abby’s presence in this entire sequence makes Thomas’s actions more interesting, especially as the series continues to reveal more about their dynamic as a couple. In the cake scene, Abby can be seen slyly pushing Thomas forward and playing along with him during this situation, extending motivation to her mischievous husband while allowing their argument to escalate. Her involvement makes what seems like an insignificant family squabble more meaningful in hindsight as more secrets about the Winburys begin to surface.
Although she initially fuels this situation and enjoys watching it unfold, Abby also swoops in as a peacemaker. She even calls out Thomas despite being equally culpable in this scenario. Abby’s ability to shift from participant to observer is particularly telling, considering how frequently she positions herself on the outskirts of Winbury family chaos. Even when she plays a role in stirring things up, Abby knows exactly when to distance herself from situations and allow other family members to take center stage.
Earlier in the season, she advises Amelia on how to survive within the Winbury family by staying on the periphery — a modus operandi she employs herself. On most occasions, Abby would rather remain outside of attention while allowing Winburys’ dysfunction to command focus. To some extent, it’s plausible that Abby realizes how important it is to stay off Greer’s radar (Nicole Kidman), who wouldn’t hesitate to remove her from consideration if she ever posed a threat to family dynamics directly. Moreover, Abby acknowledges multiple times that her best interest lies in being part of Winbury family due to their influence and wealth.
While this cake scene appears as fun banter between two brothers gone wrong due to its crass nature, it outlines internal dynamics between involved characters. The innuendos within this scene specifically hint toward larger storylines surrounding Merritt’s death mystery. Fanning’s wicked presence elevates what might otherwise seem like a random moment when considered within broader contexts.
The five-tiered wedding cake carried by Thomas should be quite heavy for someone like him despite Reynor’s remarkable build. In terms of overall narrative within The Perfect Couple,the cake scene in Episode 4 serves as a meticulously crafted piece within this puzzle, demonstrating how Netflix balances comedy with an engrossing mystery thriller — justifying its massive success since release.
The Perfect Couple is available for streaming on Netflix in the U.S.
