Industry’s Miriam Petche Plays Sweetpea in ‘Total Survival Mode’

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Sweetpea Golightly, also known as Miriam Petche, quickly proved herself to be a talented finance professional. We first saw her potential in season three of Industry when she joined Pierpoint as a young, Gen-Z trader. While she also earned money through social media platforms like TikTok and OnlyFans – something her former partner Rishi mocked – her true strength lies in financial analysis and uncovering complex dealings, much like a determined journalist. Last season, she accurately warned Eric about Pierpoint’s financial troubles. Now, in season four, she’s joining SternTao to bet against a questionable company called Tender, with one firm condition: she refuses to be in the same room as Rishi. She suspects he may have been involved in his wife’s death, based on online reports, and believes he exposed her identity on another adult content platform, Siren.

I was really gripped by the latest episode, especially seeing Sweetpea and Kwabena in Accra, Ghana. They were digging into whether Tender was still handling dodgy payments, and they actually found proof! It led them to this really suspicious CFO, Tony Day, and they uncovered that the whole acquisition by SwiftGC was a sham – basically just a fake company existing on paper. But then something awful happened. While Sweetpea was at the beach, a local man attacked her, which was incredibly disturbing to watch. Instead of dealing with the trauma, she ended up seeking comfort from Kwabena. The creator explained it wasn’t necessarily about wanting intimacy, but more about Sweetpea trying to feel in control of her own body again and reconnect with it after the attack.

Sweetpea started as a character defined by her Gen Z energy, but she’s become much more complex. While others initially see her as simply a product of her generation, she’s actually a highly capable and dedicated professional. As the show moves into its fourth season, we begin to understand the source of her drive: Sweetpea feels she must be exceptional to feel safe and worthy. Episode five particularly highlights the toll this belief takes on her. She excels at maintaining control through hard work, preparation, and anticipating problems, but despite all this, she doesn’t feel secure internally. She focuses on managing external threats while battling internal struggles.

Sweetpea is showing a lot more confidence this season, and she’s almost on par with Harper when they investigate cases – she’s often the one leading the questioning. Both women are highly skilled at their jobs, and they’re incredibly effective as a team. The show explores this dynamic, especially when Sweetpea interviews Harper at the end of season three, revealing her sharp observational skills. It’s suggested that Harper may not have encountered this level of professional insight from Yasmin, making Sweetpea’s perceptiveness more surprising. The possibility of their relationship deteriorating or them becoming rivals in the future would be a compelling storyline.

This season, Sweetpea is completely focused on the Tender investigation, acting almost like a reporter. It makes you wonder what’s really motivating her – is she as driven by career goals as Harper? Her ambition isn’t about success, but about self-preservation; she believes staying focused on the future prevents her from dwelling on past failures. However, she takes on too much responsibility, feeling like everything depends on her. This makes her incredibly effective, but also leaves her completely drained. It’s simply how she operates and survives in her world.

One of the things that makes the characters in Industry so compelling is how their backgrounds shape who they are. With Sweetpea, we learn more about her upbringing this season, particularly her mother’s reaction to her OnlyFans content. A key moment is when she and Harper visit Sunderland, and she remarks about growing up in a similar environment. From the start, it’s clear she doesn’t have a family to support her if things go wrong – her career really is everything. This creates immense pressure, and explains why she’s so critical of herself; she feels solely responsible for building her own future.

The attack in the restroom appears to be part of a troubling pattern of behavior towards Sweetpea, where men take advantage of or harm her. She was already highly anxious, and the incident wasn’t necessarily about the physical act itself, but rather the deep psychological impact it had on her—a loss of control. It triggered a complete survival response in her nervous system. Everything she did afterward was an attempt to regain that sense of control. She became extremely guarded, and it would take a significant event to break through that carefully constructed defense. The assault fundamentally changed her behavior, impacting her relationship with herself and her need to feel in control.

Harper briefly shows Sweetpea some understanding, but Sweetpea immediately shuts down and casually mentions the news about Kwabena. It felt like that moment when you’re on the verge of tears, and someone asking if you’re okay just makes you want to break down even more. Sweetpea is holding everything in, desperately trying to appear strong, especially around a coworker. It’s sad because her experience in Accra could have been a turning point, a chance to deal with her shame and self-doubt. Instead, she reverts to her habit of isolating herself, believing it’s the safest option. It’s heartbreaking to see her struggle with the idea that she needs to earn safety and love, rather than simply accepting them as a human being. She doesn’t seem to fully trust Harper, so she builds walls when she needs support the most.

The show presents Sweetpea’s suspicion that Rishi leaked the Siren information, but doesn’t confirm whether it’s true. This ambiguity is deliberate. As Sweetpea’s relationship with Rishi falls apart, she starts believing what she reads online, revealing a key aspect of her character. She’s exposed to rumors about his wife and financial problems, and she chooses to accept those narratives, framing her conclusion as a gut feeling rather than a proven fact. Ultimately, the show leaves it up to the viewers to decide if she’s right.

On the show Industry, each character approaches sex differently, and their personal struggles often manifest in their intimate lives. Last season, Sweetpea was very self-assured and open about her work as a sex worker. This season, however, she seems more conflicted about her body and how she feels about it. She rarely takes a moment to consider what she actually wants. Because she previously defined her worth through her work, the sudden loss of that income has understandably complicated her relationship with sex and her own body. She’s still in the process of understanding how much control she wants to have and how vulnerable she’s willing to be with others. Throughout the latest episode, it feels like she’s actively trying to reconnect with her body after the release of her video and reclaim a sense of ownership.

At the start of the season, I thought Sweetpea was handling work better than everyone else – she seemed to avoid the drama. But that’s clearly not the case anymore. From the outside, she appears completely put together, and that’s actually her problem. She feels like she needs to be perfect and incredibly capable, which is draining her. She looks like she’s doing fine, but after just a few minutes of talking to her, you realize she could really use some professional help.

In the last scene, we see her break down and cry, showing the weight of everything she’s been through. This isn’t a surprise; it’s the culmination of all the emotions she’s been suppressing throughout the season. While other characters deal with their issues through relationships or work, her emotional burden finally comes crashing down, and she needs to release it.

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2026-02-11 04:55