This Fool Me Once article explaining who The Child is contains spoilers.
Fool Me Once is Netflix‘s latest hit thriller series based on a novel by Harlan Coben. Much like previous adaptions of Coben’s books, Fool Me Once is packed full of twists. It also features plenty of mysterious characters. The show follows Maya Stern (Michelle Keegan) as she searches for answers following the murder – and apparent reappearance – of her husband Joe Burkett.
From the outset of the series, we are introduced to DS Sami Kierce (Adeel Akhtar). He is the detective leading the investigation into Joe’s murder.
It quickly becomes apparent that Kierce is suffering from some kind of neurological problem, causing random black outs. When Kierce passes out behind the wheel, he veers off the road and into a garden fence. This concerns his boss, who pairs him up with a more junior detective called Marty McGreggor.
Kierce takes an immediate dislike to McGreggor and conceals the details of his deteriorating health. Instead, Kierce confides in a woman named Nicole.
Where things may confuse viewers is when Kierce begins to take phone calls and receive messages from “The Child”. As there are so many characters to keep track of in Fool Me Once, having an unnamed person contacting one of the protagonists further complicates the show’s plot. So, who is “The Child” and are they important in Fool Me Once‘s wider storyline?
Who is The Child in Fool Me Once?
“The Child” is Marty McGreggor, the junior detective working with DS Sami Kierce. Kierce saved Marty’s number in his phone as “The Child” due to his somewhat childish behaviour and irritating jokes.
When Sami is partnered with Marty, his boss describes Marty as “young” and “bright”. Kierce responds by saying “So, I’m being babysat by a child?”
Kierce is immediately frustrated with the partnership, but McGreggor gleefully tells him he is “stoked” to be working together. Over the course of the series, Kierce gradually warms to McGreggor and the two become more friendly with each other.
They even share details of their personal lives, such as when Marty tells Sami that he is gay. Sami also confides in Marty that his neurological problems are being caused by unsafe medication made by the Burkett family’s Lambur Pharma.
It is unknown if Kierce ever changed “The Child” contact in his phone to reflect Marty’s actual name.
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