Who Merritt Grove Is In The Diplomat & What He Wants

Updated  Nov 2, 2026, 6:23 PM EST

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The Diplomat season 1 finale left viewers with uncertainty about who Merritt Grove is and what he wanted. Grove appeared halfway through the finale and only had brief on-screen appearances before an explosive closing scene. Grove was confirmed to be a former Member of Parliament in the United Kingdom, a detail that was told to Kate Wyler after she called the problematic Margaret Roylin asking for information on Grove's background. Kate instructed Hal not to meet with Grove since he is an unofficial and unverified source of diplomatic intelligence, a boundary that Hal had crossed before.

Grove originally wanted to speak with Kate, since she is the official US Ambassador in London but settled for Hal, who asked Stuart - Kate's deputy chief of mission and loyal assistant - for additional time to speak with Grove. Kate reluctantly told Hal to keep it under 5 minutes, but Hal, who was running late to the meeting, asked Stuart if he could push it to 30 minutes. Hal's lateness could have been the only reason for his survival from the explosion that killed Grove and likely Stuart's office clerk Ronnie, an event with big implications for The Diplomat season 2.

The Diplomat's Merritt Grove Explained

He's A British Member Of Parliament

Merritt Grove was most likely privy to the information that Kate and Foreign Secretary Dennison found out at The Diplomat season 1 ending, hence why he stressed the urgency of meeting with Kate. Grove probably figured he could offer Hal the sensitive information he was aware of, who then could transfer it to Kate.

Being a former Member of Parliament, Grove could still have had access to confidential information about the British government or connections that might have shared the sensitive information he was trying to convey to Kate and later Hal. The car bomb that killed him was blamed on Iraqi terrorists who looked to disrupt the government.

In the season 1 finale, "The James Bond Clause", Grove (Simon Chandler) attended Hal's Chatham House speech and urgently wanted to meet for dinner, a request Hal relayed to Kate in Paris by phone. Grove was furious when he realized Hal was not there, and he stormed out.

Did Merritt Grove Know About Trowbridge & Lenkov?

Grove Might've Been The Lone Whistleblower

Kate and Foreign Secretary Dennison arrived at the conclusion that Trowbridge was the one who hired Roman Lenkov, a Russian war criminal and mercenary, to attack the Royal Navy aircraft carrier, which took the lives of more than 20 of his own soldiers in The Diplomat episode 1. Grove was likely trying to leak that information to the Americans through Kate and Hal but was killed before he was able to transfer it.

Grove deciding to go to the Americans with the information, and not to Dennison, implies that he might have been acting as the lone whistleblower of Prime Minister Trowbridge's true intentions, and that Dennison might have known about it all along. When Kate and Dennison figure out Trowbridge must have been the one to hire Lenkov since he was planning to have him assassinated, Dennison appears surprised, stating that an assassination couldn't be authorized without his signature.

Grove was killed by Trowbirdge to cover his tracks, but Dennison could actually know much more about Lenkov than he's telling Kate.

Merritt Grove going around his own government to reach out suggests everyone on Trowbridge's side was always aware of his motivations, including Roylin and Dennison. It was unclear when season 1 ended but Stuart and Hal both managed to make it out of the explosive alive, ensuring Kate had some allies in season 2.

What Happens With Merritt Grove In The Diplomat Season 2

Merritt Was Crucial To The Story Despite His Death

Merritt Grove's death means that he's not really in The Diplomat season 2 but as expected, the explosion set the stage for some major story aspects. Season 2 picks up immediately after the explosion, which led to many theories and was used by the Conservative government to frame Iran as the attackers. The idea was to gain influence on the British citizens through fear and distract them from tensions within the government.

There was also the hint that Grove was planning to share crucial information that would've put him at odds with Hal and fellow members of his party. It was also implied that Grove's death stemmed from a call Kate put in asking about him, setting the events in motion. Grove's death was actually very convenient for those in power, making it unclear at first who was behind it.

Ultimately, The Diplomat revealed that Margaret Roylin was behind both the explosion and the HMS Courageous attack. First, she enlisted Merritt Grove to hire Roman Lenkov, a Russian mercenary, to attack the HMS Courageous. When it was discovered that Grove was planning to speak with Hal about the false flag operation, Roylin acted again. She got Lenny Stendig to set up the car bomb that ultimately killed Grove out of fear that the Americans would learn everything about the HMS Courageous attack. In The Diplomat season 2, episode 4, Roylin says she told Stendig to talk to Grove, but Stendig blew up Grove's car instead. The car bomb also killed foreign service officer Ronnie Buckhurst.

Roylin says it was all about saving the kingdom. Scotland's secession movement had been picking up, and the conspirators needed a tragedy to bring the UK together. Trowbridge had no knowledge of the plot, and the only ones in on the plan were Grove, Roylin and far-right MP Lenny Stendig.

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  Ambassador Kate Wyler

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  Rufus Sewell

  Hal Wyler

Career diplomat Kate Wyler is unexpectedly appointed U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom during an international crisis, forcing her into a public role she never wanted.