As promised, Taylor Swift‘s The End of an Era documentary series gives a behind-the-scenes look at the Eras Tour — even when it gets dark. The series’ first episode chronicles the unimaginable horror that struck the tour during the European leg. In August 2024, Swift was forced to cancel three nights in Vienna, Austria after a terrorist plot was foiled.
“Never in my life did I think we would have a terrorist plot,” Swift says in The End of an Era. She is wearing a black shirt in a direct-to-camera interview and wipes her teary eyes. “We dodged a massacre,” Swift continues. She then explains how she copes with such life-altering events and continues to push forward to put on a show to millions of fans. “You block it off,” she says, comparing herself to a pilot who needs to reassure everyone that all is well, even when it’s not.
Less than a week after the thwarted terrorist plot in Vienna, Swift and her crew had a five-date run at Wembley Stadium in London. The End of an Era series’ first episode follows the singer as she returns to the stage, days after the Vienna tour stop put thousands of lives at risk.
“I have a weird feeling going into these last five shows in Europe,” Swift admits in the lead up. In the clip, it is clear that Swift is still very shaken by the calamitous events; her voice is raw and raspy, and she is wearing an oversized t-shirt. But Swift remains resilient.
“There’s not a challenge she isn’t going to conquer,” says Swift’s longtime bassist Amos Heller as the team revs up for the Wembley dates. (Heller would know; he’s been touring with the star since 2007).
So the challenge to provide her fans with the best comeback show ever begins. Swift calls up her longtime collaborator and friend Ed Sheeran to perform with her for the surprise song set. In an intimate moment backstage with Sheeran, Swift reveals that the filming crew capturing them at that moment were supposed to have started filming in Vienna. In that same clip, she admits to “feeling very hunted recently.”
Following the terror plot and Vienna show cancellations, Swift was admonished online for remaining silent in the immediate aftermath. The singer commented on the major news only after she wrapped her London shows. “Let me be very clear: I am not going to speak about something publicly if I think doing so might provoke those who would want to harm the fans who come to my shows,” Swift wrote on Instagram at the time. “My priority was finishing our European tour safely.”
The End of an Era episodes also show how Swift’s Wembley Stadium shows, which were filled with unique surprises and a resilient joy, were quite emotional for the singer. While in London, the star met with families affected by the stabbings at a kids’ Swift-themed dance studio backstage. The actual meet-and-greets are not shown, but afterwards, the singer breaks down in tears backstage as her mother offers comforting words. “You really helped them, I know it,” Andrea tells her daughter.
“It is my job to be able to handle all these feelings and perk up immediately,” Swift says at another moment in the documentary. After the safe execution and successful performance at the first Eras show in London, Swift is seen leaving, clearly relieved. But just before she gets into a black van, she can’t help but ask her tour manager Robert Aleen, “Did anything bad happen that I don’t know about?”
