In Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, Benoit Blanc’s sharpest weapon has always been certainty. He sees patterns before others notice the pieces and once the board is laid out, his checkmate is usually inevitable. But this third chapter in Rian Johnson’s whodunit saga dares to ask a more unsettling question: what happens when Blanc realizes that being right might not be enough?Blanc’s much-discussed “road to Damascus” moment marks a pivotal shift in the detective’s journey. While Blanc thrives on exposure, his latest case in Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery forces him to confront the cost of truth and whether delivering justice always means finishing the game exactly as planned.Since Johnson's latest murder mystery saga is rife with religious motifs and allegories, the road to Damascus (biblical event) is important. Like Paul, a persecutor of Christianity, who had a dramatic spiritual and personal conversion moment on the road to Damascus, Blanc experienced his own awakening, which compelled him to question the righteousness of his own brilliance.More on this in our story.Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery- Why did Blanc give up his Checkmate moment? View this post on Instagram Instagram PostSeasoned Knives Out fans know Blanc's love for his final checkmate moment, where he lays out the details of the murder and exposes the final killer to the audience. However, Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery subverts fans' expectations and swaps Blanc's signature checkmate moment for something more profound and fitting with the larger religious theme of the narrative. After Blanc deduced Martha as the real killer, who orchestrated Wicks and Dr. Nat's murders, all he had to do was expose her in front of Wicks' flock and earn his classic checkmate moment. However, as Blanc stands in front of Wicks' flock, ready to out Martha as the killer, he notices her numb lips and realizes that she has poisoned herself with a dose of Nat’s pentobarbital.This was Blanc's road to Damascus moment in Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, where he finally had a revelation. While our man of Science did not have a spiritual awakening like Paul on the road to Damascus, he understood that Martha deserves to confess to her own free will and earn forgiveness from the true priest, Father Jud. The road to Damascus allegory is beautifully woven in the film's narrative as Blanc's relationship with Father Jud evolves and he becomes a better person, a man who recognizes the human need to repent one's sins.In an interview with Netflix Tudum, Daniel Craig describes this moment as:“I don’t think it’s about him having any kind of spiritual revelation with the universe. It’s about realizing that having empathy for someone who least deserves it is worth sacrificing the thing that he values most and is the purpose of his life, which is this checkmate moment of solving the crime.”Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery- How does Blanc's sacrifice fulfill Father Jud's purpose? View this post on Instagram Instagram PostIn addition to an impressive closed-room murder mystery, Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery is also a story about Blanc's ever-evolving relationship with Father Jud. This unusual team-up between a man of Science and a man of God had a rocky start but Blanc's final act of sacrifice proves that he finally understood Father Jud's take on religion and became a better man, helping Jud fulfill his bigger purpose as a Priest.Unlike Paul on the road to Damascus, who had a loud and celebratory awakening, Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery featured a quiet awakening for Blanc, one where he became a better human. Craig summarized his character's relationship with Jud as:“Some things are bigger than the individual’s needs and wants, and he discovers that through Jud. His mind is expanded. It’s an exhilarating, thrilling feeling, and we all should try and do that occasionally.”Blanc's sacrifice to give up his checkmate moment in the Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery ending was a defining moment for Martha, who earned forgiveness for her sins from Father Jud. On the other hand, it helped Jud realize his true purpose and greater calling by taking Martha's confession. After a string of inappropriate confessions made by Wicks, Jud finally witnessed a true and honest confession made by Martha, one where she not only repented for her sins but also forgave Grace.This single moment reshapes Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, turning a classic checkmate into something far more complex and human. It is a bold evolution for Benoit Blanc, and a reminder that even the smartest man in the room can still be changed by what he uncovers.Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery is streaming on Netflix.For the latest scoops on your favorite TV shows and movies, follow SoapCentral.