After its release on Netflix on December 8, 2023, Sam Esmail‘s apocalyptic, psychological thriller Leave the World Behind rose to number 1 on the streaming platform. Although it has enjoyed mostly positive reviews from critics, many audiences have found its plot confusing. On Rotten Tomatoes, Leave the World Behind may have a Tomatometer rating of 75% (from 127 critics reviews), but its Audience Score has a rating of 35% (from over 2500+ reviews).
Based on Rumaan Alam‘s 2020 novel, director Sam Esmail’s Leave the World Behind follows a five-part structure throughout the movie’s 141-minute runtime. Much like the characters in the film, audiences spent most of the time wondering the cause of events. While certain revelations helped piece some pieces together, Leave the World Behind dropped its biggest cliffhanger with its ending. Here’s a possible explanation for the plot and ending of Leave the World Behind.
Leave the World Behind Plot and Theme
A better way to fully grasp the meaning of the movie’s ending is to understand what the plot hoped to achieve. At its core, the movie exposes human overdependence on technology and our natural distrust for each other. The five-part acts of Leave the World Behind followed a systemic breakdown of events that can help provide clues to the ending. In Part I (The House), all the film’s major characters are introduced. Although Amanda Sandford (Julia Roberts) is introduced as a misanthrope, the circumstances surrounding G.H. Scott (Mahershala Ali) and his daughter, Ruth’s (Myha’la Herrold) appearance at the house late at night only made it worse. From the onset, with a lack of trust, both families kept whatever information they may have from the other.
However, things get real for the characters (and audiences) after G.H. goes over to his neighbor’s home and discovers dead bodies and an airplane crashing, as well as a non-working Sat phone. Coupled with the shrill deafening noise, leaflet-dropping drone, and a frightening absence of people, the Sandfords and Scotts finally chose to trust each other. Summarily, Ruth comes to the realization that her mother may have died in a plane crash, Archie Sandford (Charlie Evans) loses his teeth, and Clay Sandford (Ethan Hawke) faces the reality that the world is at an end, especially after the confrontation with Danny (Kevin Bacon). However, in the end, only Rose Sandford (Farrah Mackenzie) seemed to find peace in the ensuing chaos. Not only did she find food at the Huxley home, she got to watch the final episode (“The Last One”) of Friends.
What the Deer and Flamingos Symbolize in Leave the World Behind
In the backdrop of everything happening in Leave the World Behind, the movie has an unusual presence of deer (and flamingos). However, a clue is given on the radio when Clay Sandford exits the car to search for a phone signal. The news on the radio states, “We’re now getting reports that the fallout from the ongoing cyber attack has led to a catastrophic environmental disaster in the south, impacting animal migration patterns.” While this may be a universally satisfying explanation, the deer’s presence around the Scotts’ home could have foreshadowed things to come to the uninformed Sandford family.
Although Clay Sandford perceived their presence as a good omen, citing Mesoamerican mythology, he still failed to connect the dots properly. If any of the adults were vigilant enough, they would have seen and known that having a herd of deer so close to their home indicates they were running away from danger. Deers have an amazing sense of smell, allowing them to detect danger miles away. For reasons best known to them, the deers deemed the Scotts’ home, or the woods around it, a safer place to stay. If that wasn’t obvious enough, flamingos in the home’s pool at night should have been another way to know these animals (known for their sensitivities) consider the home a safe space.
Later, when Amanda Sandford and Ruth Scott go into the woods searching for Rose, they encounter what seems to be a hostile herd of deer. Although deers are known to be docile creatures (except during rutting season) and would naturally avoid close contact with humans, their standoff with Amanda and Ruth was more defensive than seeking to harm them. For the deers, the woods have become the safest place, and the last thing they need while running from impending danger is a human trying to kill them off. If anything, the deers weren’t scared off by Amanda and Ruth’s screams but because they perceived they were not immediate threats.
The Cause of the Events in Leave the World Behind
G.H. Scott (Mahershala Ali) gave hints on what could have been happening in Leave the World Behind. G.H. explains the plan his friend, who works with the United States defense, said of the weapon – Isolation, synchronized chaos (attacks and misinformation), and a political coup d’état. The film’s Five Acts fully covers two of the three weapon plans. However, the final coup d’état plan is hinted at the end of the movie. Amanda and Ruth see what looks like an atomic bomb going off in New York City. In the Huxley’s bunker, in a blink-and-you-miss-it scene, an Emergency Alert System interceptor reveals the country is under attack from rogue armed forces.
Until that moment in the movie (ignoring Rose Sandford’s satisfaction of finding and watching Friends’ finale), all of G.H.’s three-plan weapons had taken effect. Citizens were isolated in several parts of the country by cutting off internet access and phone communication. Then came the flooding of misinformation, which at that point (even believed by the self-prepared survivalist Danny) assumed it was a cyber attack caused by the Koreans or Chinese. Interestingly, the Russians managed to escape being named this time (probably still too busy fighting the Ukrainian war). In the end, the United States is at war with itself, with rogue armed forces organizing a political coup d’état.
Leave the World Behind Ending Explained
With a better understanding of the cause of events in Leave the World Behind, it’s easier to offer a more logical, possible ending. The novel on which the movie is based also leaves a questionable ending, subject to the reader’s interpretation. Also, Sam Esmail’s film adaptation takes audiences through the immersive stages of confusion and misinformation like the characters. G.H. and Ruth’s one-hour alarm clock set off with neither back home. To keep his promise to his daughter, G.H. will certainly return home. Despite Amanda and Ruth’s new-found respect for one another after the deer confrontation episode, Ruth would always favor returning home to wait for her father rather than continuing the search for Rose.
Danny (Kevin Bacon) informed G.H. and Clay about the Huxley’s bunker. Knowing G.H., he’ll consider it safer than living above ground during a coup d’état. He’ll return home with Clay and Archie to meet a waiting Ruth. Ruth, who would have recognized the Huxley’s home before leaving Amanda, would lead them there in search of Amanda and Rose. However, reuniting at the Huxley’s home isn’t a happy ending. Citizens turning on each other is only the first part of the coup d’état plan. When Danny (the film’s only portrayed villain) realizes his home is no longer safe, he’ll move to take ownership of the Huxley’s bunker. Unfortunately for the Scotts and Sandfords, Danny, the survivalist, isn’t too keen on sharing things.
The Friends‘ theme song, “I’ll be there for you, like I’ve been there before,” offers comfort not just to Rose but to those who would inhabit the bunker. Friends represent the media and entertainment. Since there’s an overwhelming number of video tapes to watch in the bunker, the inhabitants should have something to help keep their minds off the end of the world. Leave the World Behind can be seen as an allegory, alluding to the fact that despite the United States making enemies all around the world, its greatest threat to its sovereignty and democracy will always be within.