Every 'The Diplomat' Season 4 Character, Ranked
Jessica is a young writer from Brisbane, Australia. An avid consumer and lover of all things Film and TV, you will never tear her away from a screen. A tendency rooted from childhood, she once had dreams of becoming a member of the famed kids-band 'Hi-5'. Perhaps that's what pushed her to secure an education with a theater background. But now, as dreams evolved, her passions have turned to admiring performances from afar. Frankly, she's just grateful that she can put her binging skills to good use. Outside of work, Jessica recently completed her undergraduate double degree in Arts/Communications. Other than that, she spends most of her free time with family and friends, probably never forgetting to talk about the new movie or show she watched the day prior.
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This article contains spoilers for The Diplomat Season 4.
With The Diplomat back for Season 4, the political maneuvering is messier, the personal loyalties are shakier, and just about everyone in Washington (and London) seems to have an agenda of their own. As Kate Wyler finds herself caught between her principles and the administration she's working for, the people around her are forced to decide just how far they're willing to go to hold on to power — and perhaps when it's finally time to walk away.
Some characters rise to the occasion, others reveal just how much their egos get in the way, and a few make you wonder how they landed in government in the first place. So, with alliances shifting, tempers flaring, and plenty of shocking moments leaving us desperate for another season, let's rank the major characters of Season 4 in this epic political thriller.
10 Grace Penn
Let's be honest: Grace Penn (Allison Janney) was a problem before she even became the president. In previous seasons, she was clearly willing to manipulate events to protect her ambitions, and Season 4 simply showed what happens when those instincts are met with ultimate power. Of course, much of this was heightened given that she survived an assassination attempt, as from then on, Grace leaned into her aggression — especially when it came to her geopolitical strategies.
From orchestrating the HMS Courageous plot, covertly stealing the nuclear Poseidon, and threatening to ruthlessly attack her own nation's allies, Grace is a character who has weaponized her fear of vulnerability. The more people question her judgment, the harder she lashes out and doubles down, until even her closest advisers can no longer defend her decisions. Her marriage isn't much healthier either, as she keeps Todd at arm's length and often dismisses his concerns with spite. More awards need to be given to Janney, as she brilliantly showcases the dangers of unchecked political power.
9 Nicol Trowbridge
Yes, Nicol Trowbridge (Rory Kinnear) has never been the most measured politician. Pompous, narcissistic, and wildly volatile, the British Prime Minister seems like the last person you'd expect to show any meaningful growth in Season 4. But grieving the loss of Austin Dennison (David Gyasi) forces Trowbridge to confront the consequences of his own behavior, even as the Poseidon crisis threatens to expose his past crimes. And while he remains as theatrical as ever (just look at that bizarrely operatic sequence), something shifts: rather than fighting tooth and nail to cling to power, he ultimately chooses to relinquish it.
Of course, Trowbridge can't resist turning his resignation into one last grand spectacle as he uses the opportunity to deliver a pointed and creatively veiled insult to the Americans. Yes, some things never change. But for a man who has spent so much time putting his ego ahead of his country, acknowledging that his time is up is a surprisingly significant step. That said, never forget that he's hardly a model of political integrity. We're happy to see him go.
8 Todd Penn
Todd Penn (Bradley Whitford) has never seemed entirely comfortable being known simply as the president's husband, and Season 4 makes that awkwardness even more apparent. Sent over to London to supposedly become a special envoy, it's clear this move was done not only to give him a purpose, but also to keep him occupied as Grace deals with crises at home. And while he seems to bumble around from room to room, many can see he's just trying to do his best. After all, he's kind of being dragged along in this political ride.
Is he a charming man? Yes. Is he a supportive husband? Absolutely. And we can see this as he grew increasingly concerned about Grace's behavior after the assassination attempt. He was one of the few people willing to outright confront Grace over her growing erraticism. That said, his unwavering loyalty to her is also a little unnerving. Even when she uses him to deliver a threat to the new British Prime Minister — a job he is spectacularly ill-suited for — he continues to support her wholeheartedly. It's a great trait for a life partner, but not for an advisor whose leader is steering their country into a major global conflict. Sorry, Todd.
Collider Exclusive · 8 Questions · 2 Minutes Which Netflix Character Would Be Your Best Friend? Dustin · Emily · Wednesday · Gi-hun
Some friends drag you out of the house. Some sit with you on the worst night of your life. Netflix has written both, plus the one who tells you the truth you have been avoiding all week. Answer eight quick questions about how you actually do friendship, and find out which of them was always going to end up in your corner.
🧢Dustin(Stranger Things)
🗼Emily(Emily in Paris)
🕷️Wednesday(Wednesday)
🟢Gi-hun(Squid Game)
01
How do you usually end up making a new friend? The origin story says a lot about the friendship that follows it.
02
What is a perfect Saturday with your best friend? Friendship is mostly built out of very ordinary hours.
03
You call them at two in the morning. What happens? This is the real test of a friendship, and everybody knows it.
04
What do you want from them when you are clearly wrong? The best friendships are the ones that survive being corrected.
05
What do your friends actually value about you? The friend you attract says something about the friend you are.
06
You have a falling out. How does it go? How a friendship repairs itself matters more than how it breaks.
07
What do you actually need a best friend for? Everybody is missing something. The right friend fills that gap.
08
Ten years from now, what keeps the two of you close? Eight questions in, this is the one that decides who you get.
The Group Chat Has Spoken Your Best Friend Is…
Four Netflix characters, four completely different ways of showing up for somebody. This is the one who fits how you actually do friendship, and what having them in your life would be like.
Dustin Henderson
You do not do friendship at half volume, and neither does he. What you want is somebody who says yes to the plan before you have finished describing the plan.
- Dustin is the friend the entire show runs on: loyal past the point of sense, enthusiastic about everything, and incapable of leaving anybody behind.
- You have the same instinct. Your friendships are loud, specific and slightly ridiculous, and they last for decades because of it.
- He is also the one person who would take your strangest interest completely seriously, which is far rarer than it sounds.
- You would have a group chat. It would never once be quiet.
Emily Cooper
You are the friend who makes things happen, and so is she. Together you would be mildly exhausting to everyone around you and completely delighted with yourselves.
- Emily treats an ordinary Tuesday as something that could be turned into an occasion, which is either the best or the worst quality in a friend depending on your energy levels.
- You share her refusal to sit still. Neither of you has ever accepted a night in when something was happening somewhere else.
- She is far more loyal than people give her credit for. She defends her friends loudly, publicly, and occasionally before checking the facts.
- She would post the photo without asking. You would forgive her, because it is a very good photo.
Wednesday Addams
You have no patience for pleasant lies, and she has no ability to tell them. What looks like coldness from the outside is the most reliable friendship on this list.
- Wednesday never says a kind thing she does not mean, which makes the rare ones count for an enormous amount.
- You would rather be told the truth than be made comfortable. She is constitutionally incapable of offering you anything else.
- Underneath all of it she is ferociously protective. She simply refuses to make a performance out of caring.
- Do not expect a birthday message. Do expect her to ruin anyone who wrongs you.
Seong Gi-hun
You look after whoever is having the worst day. So does he. It is the least strategic way to move through the world and the best possible quality in a friend.
- Gi-hun is not the strongest player in Squid Game, or the cleverest. He is the one who keeps choosing to protect somebody else, over and over, at genuine cost to himself.
- You have the same instinct. You notice who is struggling and you stay with them, long after anybody would blame you for leaving.
- He is a flawed friend, and that is part of why it lands. He lets people down, then comes back and tries again, which is more than most manage.
- He would give you his last chance and never once mention that he had done it.
7 Miguel Ganon
Miguel Ganon (Miguel Sandoval) has been part of Washington's political machinery since Season 1, and he's never really been the most enthusiastic supporter of the Wylers. As Secretary of State, he's a pragmatic person who understands how power works, having spent years navigating the compromises that come with it. That's what makes his position in Season 4 so interesting: he's not someone who walks away from power or his ambitions lightly. But as Grace grows increasingly reckless, even he reaches a breaking point and joins his colleagues in walking out of the G7.
So yes, while Ganon could be described as a real "buzzkill," his final decision becomes incredibly significant. He's a veteran political operator, making his resignation feel less like a sudden moral awakening and more like a calculated recognition of an abuse of power. And as Season 4 showcases the dangers of unchecked power, his action speaks volumes.
6 Billie Appiah
As Chief of Staff, Billie Appiah (Nana Mensah) has kept the White House functioning while its occupants make increasingly questionable decisions. Representing the cold reality of politics, she understands the importance of loyalty, timing, and recognizing how the line of morality is often mobile. But Season 4 puts that loyalty under considerable strain. Billie has spent years navigating Grace's ambitions and managing the fallout from her decisions, but as global peace is repeatedly threatened, Billie ultimately finds the courage to walk away from an administration she no longer believes in.
Measured, strategic, and usually several steps ahead of the people around her, Billie's actions are not those of an impulsive idealist. Similar to Ganon, she's a seasoned political operator who knows exactly what she's giving up. And while she has enabled some questionable cover-ups, her final act of defiance at the G7 highlights her principled nature, and we couldn't be prouder.
5 Bethan Vaughn
Bethan Vaughn (Jodie Whittaker) arrives as a very different kind of British Prime Minister from Nicol Trowbridge. Cool-headed, sharp, and considerably less prone to emotional theatrics, she has little interest in being dazzled by the Americans or allowing their political problems to become Britain's responsibility. Even when faced with a brutal ultimatum, she remains unwilling to be bullied and instead turns to multilateral channels to offset Grace Penn's act of aggression.
In this sense, Vaughn earns this spot partly because she hasn't done anything particularly offensive yet — a low bar, admittedly, given the company politics keeps. But she also harbors a refreshingly strong sense of character. As a leader, she understands that being America's ally doesn't mean blindly following their orders, and she's willing to stand her ground even when the consequences could be catastrophic. Though a relatively new presence, Vaughn is already a welcome change from Trowbridge's brand of political chaos, and we hope we get to see more of her in the future.
4 Hal Wyler
Hal Wyler (Rufus Sewell) has always been one of the show's most frustratingly fascinating characters, but this season makes a surprisingly strong case for him as both a politician and a partner. Becoming Vice President has given him access to the kind of power he's spent his entire career chasing, and he's clearly relishing the bigger stage — even as his ambition puts him at odds with Kate, especially when his professional (and personal) relationship with Grace starts blurring some very uncomfortable lines. But beneath all the ego and familiar maneuvering, there's a more capable, occasionally more considerate side to Hal that makes him harder to dismiss as a simple scheming opportunist.
That doesn't mean he's suddenly stopped playing games or that it's always easy to tell where his ambition ends and his genuine feelings begin. That ambiguity is part of what makes him so compelling. His relationship with Kate remains a messy, fiercely loyal tug-of-war, but this season offers more moments that suggest he's learning to be a better partner, even when the two aren't on the same page. And then there's the finale. For all his love of power, Hal ultimately chooses to publicly break with the president and stand alongside Kate and his colleagues. Sure, there may be some self-serving revenge mixed in, because this is still Hal Wyler we're talking about. But walking away is no small thing. More than a political statement, it feels like a declaration of just how much Kate means to him, and a reminder that — for all his faults — Hal is finally learning that being on her side can matter more than being in charge.
3 Kate Wyler
Kate (Keri Russell) enters Season 4 still trying to navigate the complications of being married to the Vice President while maintaining her own identity as a skilled diplomat. She's increasingly concerned about Hal's closeness with Grace Penn and frustrated by his habit of making major political decisions behind her back. But Kate's own judgment becomes harder to defend as she tries to protect her marriage alongside the US-UK alliance, even when those goals start pulling her in opposite directions. She participates in the Poseidon cover-up, blackmails Trowbridge, and lies to the president (and her husband), convincing herself that she can manage the damage from within. At this point, Kate becomes the very thing she's always despised: a political lackey willing to compromise her principles in the name of the job.
What makes Kate so compelling, though, is that she eventually remembers who she is before she crosses the point of no return. Aghast at Grace's growing aggression towards international allies and crushed over the illegal punishment of Stuart, Kate's willingness to tolerate the administration's tyranny is finally shattered. And she doesn't do so quietly. Standing in the middle of the G7 conference, in front of powerful world leaders, she removes her lanyard, resigns directly to Grace's face, and walks out. It's a thrilling moment of defiance that transforms Kate into a person willing to challenge the system outright, with her actions inspiring others to follow suit. So while Season 4 had Kate frustratingly caught in her own calculations, that final act reminds us why she's the show's center.
2 Stuart Hayford
While the show is largely dominated by flashy, volatile, and highly manipulative political players, Stuart Hayford (Ato Essandoh) often remains the moral anchor of any room. Levelheaded and immensely competent, he spends Season 4 navigating his professional role and his increasingly serious relationship with Eidra. And just as the two begin planning a future together, Stuart discovers the corruption of Grace Penn's administration and decides to take a stand by formally registering his dissent — only for Grace to recall him immediately to Washington.
It's a brutal consequence for a man whose decency has always been one of his defining qualities. But if this proves anything, it's that Stuart is a character who isn't chasing power or looking for a way to advance his career. He simply speaks up for what he believes is morally right. Sure, he can be a little rigid and naive at times, especially when boundaries of protocol are pushed, but this is what humanizes him. Hopefully, with the crumbling of the Penn administration, we'll get to see Stuart back in office where he belongs. He is, after all, the kind of person in service we all want: one of true ethical character.
1 Eidra Park
As the London CIA Station Chief, Eidra Park (Ali Ahn) doesn't hide behind a mask of politeness. Intelligent, witty, competent, and honest to a fault, she's great at her job and is refreshingly confident about it. And while past seasons have wonderfully showcased her professional drive, Season 4 gives her personal life some much-needed attention. Her relationship with Stuart takes a big step forward as she suggests living together, only to then follow this with an even bigger romantic gesture as she proposes that the two of them consider marriage in their future.
In this sense, Eidra takes the top spot because her growth feels so natural. She's still dry, perceptive, and hilariously difficult to impress, but she's finally allowing herself to lower her guard and be emotionally vulnerable without losing her edge. Just look at that gut-wrenching ending where she's packing Stuart's things after he is recalled from his post. True to her driven nature, it doesn't even cross her mind to abandon her career for a man. Yes, she's distraught, but she isn't a character that's written to be warm or fuzzy. She's refreshingly realistic and takes pride in securing her high-stakes career. And we can't fault a woman for striking a balance and knowing what she wants. It's what made her so formidable in the first place.
The Diplomat
- Release Date
- 2023 - 2023-00-00
- Network
- Netflix
- Showrunner
- Debora Cahn
- Directors
- Alex Graves, Andrew Bernstein, Simon Cellan Jones, Tucker Gates
KioskNews shows a cleaned-up reading view extracted from the publisher’s page — the original always lives on their site, not ours.