X Movie Ending Explained (detailed)

Ti West's Killer X introduced Mia Goth's Pearl and showcased the broader horror genre in its gory finale, but what happened to the end of the X movie?

The X-Movie's ending crescendos into a bloody spectacle of finale that also raises several lingering questions for viewers. Director Ti West's 2022 slasher X follows a film crew to a secluded Texas ranch to shoot a late 1970s porn flick that idealistic fictional adult director RJ (Owen Campbell) thinks will be "a movie" . Young X-movie characters seem so blinded by their ambitions to capitalize on the burgeoning home video porn industry that they're largely unaware of the rapacious presence in the farmhouse next door - old lady Pearl in X (also played by Mia Goth) . As night falls, however, Pearl's lustful intentions turn violent, and Maxine (also Mia Goss), Lorraine (Jenna Ortega), Wayne (Martin Henderson), Jackson (Scoo Temescudi), Bobby Lynn (Brittany Snow of Pitch Perfect), and RJ are forced to deal with the horrors of Pearl's jealousy.

Ti West's X-Movie got horror fans everywhere hyped for a number of reasons, not the least of which was the finale of the X-Movie series. Yet while Ti West's X ending is a definite love letter to the horror franchise, it's far from straightforward. between several The deaths of big characters and hidden clues point to an entire canon of unexplored movies, and X's final scene is a roller-coaster ride. The X-movie ending also spawned a prequel titled Pearl, which follows the killer as a child as she explores her origins, as well as an upcoming sequel, MaXXXine. Since it has wider significance in hindsight as the start of the X/Pearl series, here's a detailed explanation of the X-Movies, including what the movie's ending really is and how it relates to Pearl and MaXXXine.

What Happens At The End Of Ti West's X?

The ending plot of the X movie closes the narrative loop of the Ti West movie, taking the audience back to the bloody scene in the first act of X. There are only two surviving porn crew members in the X ending, with Maxine hiding under the beds of Howard (Stephen Ure of the Lord of the Rings trilogy) and Pearl, while Lorraine is locked in the basement of the farmhouse. Pearl and Howard, excited about the savage murder they just committed, have sex, allowing Maxine to sneak away and find Lorraine.

However, when Mia Goth's Maxine frees Lorraine from her basement prison, Lorraine reacts flippantly, unfairly accusing her of promiscuity For the horrors that happen when the X runs. Panicked, disoriented and hysterical, Lorraine tried to escape the farmhouse on foot, but was shot by Howard. The X-movie finale ensued, with Lorraine's dying hiss terrifying Howard, triggering the heart attack he'd always dreaded. Enraged by the death of her husband and confidante, Pearl (also Mia Goss) tried to shoot Maxine with Howard's shotgun, but the force of the weapon's explosion pushed her back, breaking her hip. As Pearl lies on the floor in agony begging for help, Maxine decides to avenge her slain friend by flipping the elderly Pearl's head upside down in RJ's van before driving off the farm at breakneck speed, This is a particularly disgusting scene.

The next morning, Sergeant Dantler (James Guerin) and the rest of his officers arrive at the house at the end of X to retrieve the crew's bodies, which they still believe to be after Howard called the police earlier is an intruder. However, police soon find RJ's film camera and speculate what the footage is, suggesting that the homicide hoax of aging Pearl and Howard will soon be unmasked. X 2022 film then ends with Shockingly, Maxine is the daughter of a conservative Christian, and Pearl and Howard's television plays local televangelist-style speeches throughout the film.

Why Pearl Is A Killer In X

Ti West's horror movie X ends with Pearl killing RJ and his porn crew in the film, and Mia Goth perfectly portrays Pearl's jealousy of the team's hedonism as X reaches the climax of his murderous rage. Pearl's jealousy of their open sexual lifestyle is also the reason Howard rants to keep everyone away from the farmhouse itself, knowing full well that his wife will not react well to a pornographic film being filmed on their property.

However, the X-movie ending doesn't do a good job of explaining Pearl's previous kills so many times, especially considering that Howard admits halfway through the film that he has cleaned up Pearl's messes in the past (as evidenced by the car in the film ) lake and chained corpses in the basement, then expanded in the prequel Pearl). In the 1970s, it's unlikely that there were many itinerant groups of pornographic writers looking to use Howard and Pearl's farm, leading viewers to rightfully question Pearl's specific motive for the killing in this case in reality.

The prequels established that Pearl was already a killer before the X 2022 movie, but her rationale for the final orgy in X itself is best explained by her greedy nature, which is revealed when she looks at a sleeping Maxine stand out. Pearl's self-assurance as she swaggers around the farmhouse and her "glory days...before the First War" talk reveal her unique longing to return to her formerly beautiful self. In this way, X deduces that Pearl kills out of jealousy and resentment of her own mortality, rather than being triggered purely by sex, as X's story initially suggests. It also echoes Mia Goth's role as Maxine and Pearl, with Maxine resembling a young Pearl, an overt nod to her lost youth that was mocked in Ti West's film.

Who Is Maxine's Father (& What It Means)

As previously mentioned, the end of the X-Movie shockingly reveals that Maxine's father is a local televangelist, barking at his assistant on Howard and Pearl's old TV. On screen, the Christian missionary reveals that he is Maxine's father, before praying for her to return to family and to God. This biblical connection to Maxine's not-so-religious life is subtly Repeated throughout X, the film's final girl often repeats "I won't accept a life I don't deserve"—a sentiment drawn from the Bible's Mark 10:15.

Bible verses are of course a long-standing horror trope, used in classics like The Exorcist all the way to modern shows like Servant, but X-Movies use them particularly well to emphasize themes of their narrative (rather than simply adding A little bit of gothic horror, like some movies and shows). Finding that her heritage affirms a mantra she herself often uses, Maxine now uses her father's success gospel as her new motivation. The somewhat ambiguous ending of Maxine's X leaves one open to interpretation of whether or not Maxine chooses to find her family, but her most likely destination seems to be Hollywood, with Maxine speaking of being "successful" in Los Angeles before the bloodshed at Howard's farmhouse began. No doubt the sequel MaXXXine will iron out this ambiguity, but for now, Maxine's reaction to her father after the events of X is unknown.

The Real Meaning Of X's Ending

While on the face of it, the X Movie ending is a classic kill scene, as the girl at the end triumphs over the killer, Run away, Ti West's new terror is woven with more symbolism than Maxine's backing off Pearl's head with the van might suggest. The symmetry of the Maxine killing Pearl (both played by A Cure For Wellness's Mia Goth) represents the natural life cycle, where new things outlast old things. Pearl longs for what she no longer has, youth and beauty, and despite her best efforts, can never achieve it - Maxine rejects her courtship before defeating her in the final scene. In this way, Pearl represents routine and Maxine represents change, and the two inevitably clash, but change is an unavoidable advantage, both in the real world and in X's final reckoning.

The X Movie Ending Set Up A Franchise

Ti West's X 2022 film has essentially established a full-fledged film franchise, with prequel film Pearl and X sequel MaXXXine currently in the works. While the X-Movie ending added a touch of closure to Pearl's story, it fully opened up Maxine's world, and she'll be the frontrunner in the upcoming sequel. The story and origins of the X Killer are explored in the prequel film Pearl, which was released 6 months after X. these two What the movie does is answer the two main questions that X's ending sets up. First of all, why does Pearl become a killer?

Pearl's story takes place in the same farmhouse in 1918, when Pearl was a young girl with big dreams. She lives with her overbearing mother and ailing father, whom she has to care for while Pearl waits for her husband Howard to return from World War I. During this time, Pearl also discovered that she had a penchant for torturing and killing farm animals. X-movie killer Pearl dreams of being a chorus girl one day, and she gets a chance when she goes to audition, unfortunately, she doesn't get it. One by one, her family members were killed, and Howard was shocked when he returned home. Pearl's bloody ending rivals that of X, and also sheds light on why Pearl has such an uncontrollable bloodlust when RJ and Maxine arrive in the 1970s.

The second question at the end of the X movie is what happens when Maxine is free - especially when she is revealed Priest's daughter. Horror film director and fan Ti West will answer that question in the upcoming X sequel, MaXXXine. MaXXXine has yet to set a release date, but has confirmed that it will be coming soon. Based in 1980s Los Angeles, MaXXXine will follow the exploits of Mia Goth's titular character as she tries anything (and everything) to advance her path to stardom. The trailer reveals the fun and flair of 1980s pop culture as X did to the 70s and Pearl in early 1918. Period horror director Ti West brought his A-game with X to such an extent that this bizarre film established an entire franchise filled with grisly Easter eggs.

What Ti West Has Said About X

Ti West used the X-Movie ending to build an entire franchise, including the prequel Pearl and the upcoming sequel MaXXXine. The thing about the X-Movie is that he always planned for it to be part of a larger franchise. In an interview with Men's Health, the horror director opened up about X's pitching process and how A24 allowed him to continue working on an entire trilogy rather than just one standalone film. Initially, he had The idea for the sequel MaXXXine, but later realized it would only work with the prequel Pearl. He reportedly sold the idea to A24 by using a "Back to the Future" reference, "We have to go back to the Biff Tannen timeline and fix it before we can go on and make the '80s movie you imagine," West said. .

He also talks about how X and Pearl inform each other, and later jokes, such as Pearl saying she doesn't like blondes in the X movies, only make more sense after watching the prequels. West had this to say about this little Easter egg, "I wrote [Pearl]'s script even before shooting X. I don't remember if the blond thing she was talking about was in the X, because everything is blurred. That might be there. Then I might retrofit it into Pearl." All in all, the ending of the X movie perfectly sets the stage for both the prequel and the sequel. Viewers will have to see what final girl/villain Mia Goth is up to in the sequel, MaXXXine.