Beyond the Gates Recap for Tuesday, March 11, 2025: Bill and Dani appear at dueling press conferences

Here's what happened on the March 11, 2025, episode of

Beyond the Gates:

On Beyond the Gates, Eva complimented the wardrobe of the arriving Nicole, who was nervous about being interviewed on television for her service award. Nicole couldn't find her “good luck” bracelet; Eva helped her look for it as Nicole admitted she wasn't as comfortable in the spotlight as her mother and father, given their careers in show biz and politics. Eva amplified Nicole's contributions to the mental health field, making Nicole realize she should be proud. Still, Nicole was sure most of the attention would end up on Vernon. “And your sister,” came Eva's harbinger about Dani.

After Nicole left, Eva stared at a picture of the Richardson family and imagined herself in it. Ted caught Eva gazing at the frame; she admitted that she'd always wanted a brother and sister. When Ted asked if she was an only child, Eva answered that she was – as far as she knew. Since she hadn't known her father, she could have a dozen siblings who didn't know she existed. Ted apologized for opening up old wounds, but Eva let Ted know he could ask anything he wanted.

Ted was amazed that no one had looked for Eva's biological father. Eva relayed that “Leslie” had raised her well, and that Leslie's husband Alan, while not fatherly, was “okay.” Eva pointedly added there was no point in looking for her bio dad after he had already rejected her. Ted spoke of how Andre had lost his own parents in a plane crash and how he and Nicole had tried their best to be parent figures, but no one could fill that monumental void. Ted confessed that it had made him think about how his children would fare if something happened to him and reminded Eva that if she needed an ear or a laugh, he would be there for her.

Vernon confirmed with Anita that she'd talked to Dani about letting Nicole be the focus of her own interview and letting the elder Duprees handle any tough questions. As Vernon asked if Anita thought Dani had listened, Dani strolled in and cooed, “Don't I always?” Dani swore she didn't want to go on camera and pledged that she wasn't there to steal Nicole's shine, commenting how mortifying it must have been for the family to watch Dani being arrested for attempted murder. Nicole empathized, realizing how terrifying the experience had to have been for Dani. When Anita and Vernon brought Nicole's interviewer in, Dani made herself scarce.

Caroline informed Bill that the reporters for his own press conference had arrived and told Tomás that he was doing some counterprogramming since the Dupree interview inevitably wouldn't just be about Nicole's award; they would use it to further defame Bill and Hayley.

Bill assured the dubious Hayley that they would be able to leave for their honeymoon that evening, to which Hayley griped it was getting old watching him go up against his ex-wife and her family. Bill claimed he was trying to protect Hayley from slander, but Hayley felt that this time Bill was instigating things, which he denied. Bill said he knew how the Duprees thought and worried that they'd seize the narrative once he and Hayley were out of the country, so he intended to flip the script.

Hayley wanted to stop the tug-of-war with the Duprees, but Bill said letting one's guard down with the cutthroat dynasty didn't work. Bill meant to send them the message that they couldn't come for him and his wife. Hayley pleaded with Bill that this be their last tangle with his ex's family. Bill promised they would start their happily ever after as soon as the conference was over.

After Caroline sent for the reporters, Tomás remarked that Bill having a flair for the dramatic was what made him a beast in the courtroom. Caroline hoped Bill's presser wouldn't backfire. “Like it already has with Hayley?” Tomás observed. He worried that if Bill and Hayley's marriage went south and threw off Bill's “million dollar game,” it could affect Tomás' chance for growth at the firm, telling the flinching Caroline that there was nothing wrong with looking out for himself.

Naomi and Jacob exchanged small talk about how they'd slept apart. Naomi shut Jacob down and reminded him that he knew how hard it was for her to trust men after being raised by Bill, yet Jacob had executed Bill's sneak attack on Dani. Naomi no longer recognized the man she had married.

Jacob didn't appreciate Naomi casting him as the villain when he was just doing his job like he always had. Naomi flippantly asked Jacob if he wanted a gold star for treating someone he had wrongly arrested with respect. Jacob wanted to know why Naomi kept skipping past Dani's responsibility in the situation; she had brought a loaded weapon to a public place and fired it. Naomi insisted that Dani had been provoked and wasn't some kind of hardened criminal.

Jacob noted that lawyer Naomi would have brought up all the facts in court, thereby doing her own job. Naomi snarkily asked if Jacob would have arrested Rosa Parks if that had been his duty, then challenged Jacob to say if he would arrest her. “You're unbelievable,” Jacob replied, shaking his head as Naomi stormed out.

Leslie entered Orphey Gene's, where Mona and Jan mentioned that Leslie was doing a lot better than a few weeks earlier. Leslie announced that she was starting to recover from Alan's passing and was feeling optimistic. Mona asked if Leslie had a new man; Leslie replied that she didn't – yet.

Bill told his assembled reporters that he had tried to settle things privately with his former wife, but he couldn't let Dani's violence and slander toward him and Hayley go unaddressed. He had invited Dani to his wedding for Chelsea and Naomi's sake, and the Duprees as moral support for Dani. Bill implied that his former in-laws were in denial about the deterioration of Dani's mental state.

Meanwhile, Nicole's interview began, which Jan, Leslie, and Mona caught live on the TV at Orphey Gene's. Nicole felt her award was Vernon's as well and that she wouldn't be where she was without the sacrifices Vernon and other champions for civil rights had made.

The interviewer, Linda, brought up Dani's arrest and asked for comment, but Vernon would make none; Anita only added that the cruelty of Bill and his secret mistress had driven Dani to do what she did. Linda got wind of Bill's press conference in her earpiece and wanted the Duprees to react to Bill's words about Dani's mental state. “I can respond to that,” Dani said as she sauntered in to the shock of her family. “Oh, my God, this is gettin' juicy,” Mona piped up from her seat at the diner as Eva watched from Nicole's office.

The scene went back and forth between the Dupree presser and Bill's. Bill raged about how Dani had come to his house and threatened him after firing a shot at his wedding; Dani said she was full of remorse about what she had done out of hurt. Bill called the Duprees an arrogant clan who considered themselves above the law; Dani took responsibility for her behavior and professed shame for the example she had set for her daughters. Bill called Dani a serpent and wondered what would stop her from committing another criminal act towards him; Dani swore she would never have actually hurt Bill or Hayley. Bill described Dani as a monster while Dani expressed gratitude for Bill and Hayley dropping the charges against her.

Once the event was over, Naomi praised her mother for the way she'd handled herself. Dani asked her daughters what they'd expected, and Chelsea chimed in that with Dani, they never knew. Dani apologized for what she'd put her daughters through and reiterated that she was ready to move on from Bill, as she'd avowed before she was arrested. Dani encouraged Naomi to kiss and make up with Jacob, whom Dani concurred was only doing his job, and to stop pushing Jacob, “one of the good ones,” away.

Dani told Anita that even though she had promised not to horn in on Nicole's interview, she couldn't let Bill's voice be the only once that was heard after finding out about his own press conference. Anita beamed that Dani had shown the world that the Duprees were a force to be reckoned with, while Vernon acknowledged that they should have had more faith in Dani's ability to hold her own.

Afterward, Vernon joked that he needed to call the NAACP because when Dani had walked in, Anita had crushed his hand like it was 1973 Birmingham all over again. The Duprees laughed and agreed they both had been concerned that Dani would pop off in public again. Vernon was glad that Dani had risen to the occasion, though Anita worried that the repeated indignities visited upon Dani by Bill might be too much for Dani. Vernon declared that they had at least won the current round.

Jacob met his new partner, Marcel Malone, the veteran cop whom Jacob deemed legendary. But Marcel burst Jacob's bubble by demanding that Jacob bring him coffee; when Jacob said Marcel could get his own coffee, Marcel responded, “Good answer,” but informed Jacob he had neglected to address him as “Detective.” Marcel went on to flatten any thoughts Jacob might have had about them becoming buddies and instructed Jacob to stay out of Marcel's business, or “you gon' wish you never met me.” Jacob said that he would have to be the good cop while they were on the beat.

Marcel wondered whether their lieutenant was all right with Jacob's overtime, or if Jacob just wasn't welcome at home after jailing his wife's mom. When Jacob retorted that they were supposed to be staying out of each other's personal lives, Marcel said he didn't give a “rat's ass” about Jacob's unless it pulled Jacob's focus and put Marcel's life on the line. Marcel cracked that Jacob didn't seem excited about working with a “legend” anymore; Jacob left and called Marcel a smart ass.

Jacob came home and thought back to the time Naomi had found out that he already knew about Bill's affair with Hayley. Naomi lamented how she, Dani, and Chelsea had lied to each other for years, tolerating Bill being a manipulator at work but certain he wouldn't pull such tricks at home. Jacob argued that he hadn't trusted Bill from the start because Bill was like him – as a cop, Jacob had been trained to spot weaknesses and use them against people.

The difference, Jacob insisted, was that he used that skill to get at the truth while Bill was only out for himself. Naomi asked what was to stop Jacob from acting like her father, prompting Jacob to assure Naomi he would always do his best to be honest with her...unless his job didn't allow it. Jacob recalled that there were times Naomi had to keep details about court cases from him and half-jokingly said that Naomi could check his phone and GPS if she wanted to. Naomi said she trusted Jacob but was concerned about how things would go if Jacob ever had to choose between her family and his job. Jacob swore that would never happen. Their worlds would never collide.

Jacob packed up to move to a hotel, but Naomi didn't want him to leave. “But you won't listen to me, either, so now what?” Jacob asked. Naomi didn't know and apologized; the Hawthornes fell into an embrace. Naomi made it known that Dani had sided with Jacob but that Naomi had already realized before that she had come at Jacob too hard. Jacob understood how let down Naomi had always been by Bill, but reinforced that he wasn't Bill and would never treat her the way Bill had. Naomi knew, and noted that was why she had fallen in love with Jacob back when he was testifying in cases she was trying — he was a man of integrity. And he didn't need to leave...or sleep on the couch. The Hawthornes kissed and fell onto the bed.

Later, Eva happened upon Nicole's errant bracelet, saying to herself that her mother had never had anything that nice. Eva handed it to Nicole when she came in; Nicole was relieved and attested that Ted had given the trinket to her as an anniversary present. It made her think of how different her life would be without him. Nicole and Eva discussed the Dupree Q&A and Nicole lauded Dani for being accountable, which was not something every parent could do. Eva nodded carefully.

Nicole and Ted discussed the briefing; Nicole was sure there hadn't been a dry eye with Dani's daughters hugging her at the conclusion. Ted divined that Bill wouldn't like his daughters siding with their mother. “Bill can go to hell,” Nicole declared. She added that Bill trying to pit Naomi and Chelsea against Dani was “next-level selfishness.” Ted offered to mediate between Naomi and Jacob, but Nicole didn't know what Ted could say to them. After Ted recalled that he and Nicole had faced their own set of challenges but had never thrown in the towel, Nicole hugged him, but he looked off worriedly, thinking back to telling Leslie he would destroy her if she came after Nicole.

Eva met Leslie at Orphey Gene's; Leslie wanted an update on the Richardsons. When Eva reported that Nicole was excited about her awards gala, Leslie purred, “That makes two of us.” But, upon hearing that Eva had talked to Ted about her father, Leslie warned her daughter that she was playing a dangerous game. “Says the woman who introduced herself to Nicole under a fake name and pretended she was suicidal,” Eva countered. “That was different – I had a plan,” Leslie maintained.

Eva thought that Leslie's plan could have left her alone in the world and asked if it was so wrong for her to get to know her father a little. When Leslie said that Ted's abandonment was all that Eva needed to know about him, Eva decried his action as “forever ago” and proffered that people could change. Leslie crossly notified Eva that trusting Ted Richardson was the biggest mistake she had ever made.

Kat ran into Chelsea at the country club and gushed over the meeting she was about to have with a venture capitalist regarding their planned purse empire. Chelsea wanted her and Kat to do things on their own but accepted that it wouldn't hurt to hear the pitch. Kat shelved the subject in favor of them going out to celebrate, but Chelsea disclosed that she had other plans. Kat decried another one of her cousin's “random situationships” and wondered why the living-her-life-online Chelsea was suddenly choosing secrecy. Chelsea admitted that “the people” she was seeing liked to keep things on the down-low. “People? As in more than one? Again?” Kat asked. Chelsea's expression was sheepish.

Kat couldn't believe Chelsea was sleeping with two guys, but Chelsea corrected that it was one guy...and his wife. Chelsea, who had been with women before, had been playing with the same couple for a while and was into them. Kat asked if Chelsea was “bi-leaning,” but Kat eschewed labels and professed that she liked what she liked. Kat was cool, especially having a gay brother; she just couldn't relate to a throuple situation since she was “a Michelle looking for her Barack.” Kat asked Chelsea what a throuple was like, and when Chelsea whispered her answer in Kat's ear, the cousins fell over laughing.

Bill handed Tomás a case to handle while he was out of the country. Tomás affirmed that he had everything on lock, exhorting Bill to go enjoy his Roman holiday. Tomás commented on meeting Kat at the wedding and asked Bill's permission to pursue her since she was part of the Dupree family. Bill didn't want to police Tomás's life and suggested he go for it if he didn't mind playing with fire.

Kat received a call from Tomás, who said he couldn't get her off his mind and asked to see her. Kat replied that she had to go out of town, but when she came back, she would cook for him so they could get to know each other better. Tomás pronounced that Kat was full of surprises. She smiled.

Hayley enthused to Caroline that it seemed she would finally be able to go on her honeymoon. Caroline had to admit that most maids of honor didn't have bullets flying past their heads and celebrated Hayley finally getting alone time with Bill. “Don't hurt him,” Caroline advised with a wink. “I make no promises,” Hayley giggled.

Hayley unknowingly interrupted Bill googling Dani to let him know their car was ready to take them to the airport. Bill promised that their honeymoon would be worth the wait, but went back to his search engine full of pictures taken of Dani stating her case to the press. For Dani's part, she watched the end of Bill's presser on her phone; when Bill kissed Hayley, Dani crowed, “Kiss this baby,” and dunked her phone in her drink.

Beyond the Gates airs weekdays on CBS and streams on Paramount Plus.