The Monkey 2025 Ending Explained: Who Survives and What Happens to The Monkey?

The Monkey, the new Oz Perkins movie after Longlegs based on the Stephen King story. With Theo James, Tatiana Maslany, and Colin O’Brien. The Monkey, directed by Osgood Perkins and based on the Stephen King story, immerses us in the terrifying tale of two twin brothers, Hal and Bill, marked by a mysterious toy monkey with a dark curse. From their childhood, Hal and Bill discover that every time The Monkey drives its cymbals, someone dies macabrely. Years later, Hal (Theo James) tries to forget the past, while Bill (Christian Convery) remains obsessed with the toy and its power. But when The Monkey reappears, unleashing a series of brutal deaths, the brothers are embroiled in a cycle of terror from which it seems impossible to escape.

The Monkey 2025 Ending Explained: Who Survives and What Happens to The Monkey?

The Monkey‘s climax is a bloodbath in which the macabre toy charges one last series of victims before Hal tries to control it. After Ricky, the man who was looking to retrieve The Monkey dies dreadfully after being attacked by a swarm of bees, Bill despairs to see that the toy does not obey his orders and shakes him in an attempt to force him to kill. This unleashes a wave of deaths in the town. In a final showdown, Hal and Bill meet face-to-face. Bill, upon learning that Hal had wished for his death as children, hesitates between anger and reconciliation. Finally, Bill tries to help his brother up, but his fate is sealed when a trap that he had set is activated: a bowling ball from his late mother destroys his head, killing him instantly. Hal and his son Petey leave town, leaving behind the chaos caused by The Monkey. However, along the way, they see an enigmatic pale rider nodding at them before disappearing into the distance, leaving open the question of whether evil has been eradicated.

Why Does Hal Keep The Monkey?

Instead of getting rid of the cursed toy, Hal decides to keep it, aware that any previous attempt to destroy it has failed. He knows that leaving him behind would only put others in danger, so he chooses to put it away and make sure no one else uses it. As long as they don’t turn the key that activates it, The Monkey will remain silent … at least for now. Hal’s decision reinforces the message that evil cannot be removed so easily. More than just an object, The Monkey represents the uncontrollable fate and inevitability of death.

What Happened to Hal and Bill’s father?

Captain Petey Shelburn (Adam Scott), the twins’ father, mysteriously disappeared after a failed attempt to destroy The Monkey with a torch. Although his mother branded him as an “irresponsible father”, he may have left to protect his children. Their fate remains in the air, but their absence marks the life of Hal and Bill, conditioning the relationship between them.

Differences Between the End of “The Monkey” and the Story of Stephen King

The film takes several liberties from King’s original account:

• In the story, Hal and his son Petey manage to get rid of The Monkey by sinking it into a lake, killing hundreds of fish. In the movie, Hal decides to keep it instead of destroying it.
• In history there is no twin. Bill is an original character from the script that introduces brotherly conflict and the obsession with monkey control.
• Revenge plays a key role in the film, while in King’s story terror is more introspective and based on the chance of death.

These changes make the end of the film much bloodier and more hopeless than that of King’s account.

Will there be a Sequel to “The Monkey”?

Although there is no post-credit scene, the ending leaves open the possibility of a sequel. With Hal still in possession of the toy, the danger remains latent.

A possible sequel could explore:

• A new accidental monkey owner, triggering more deaths.
• The story of Hal and Bill’s father and his fight against the toy in the past.
• The origin of The Monkey and the possibility that there are more cursed objects with similar powers.

What is Bill’s True Plan in The Monkey?

Bill wants revenge on his brother by using the monkey against him, but the toy never points to Hal despite the numerous turns of the key. When Hal meets with Petey and Bill, the latter explains his final plan. He always knew what happened when they were children and Hal’s involvement in his mother’s death, so he sought to make his brother pay. Hal had tried to kill Bill with the toy, and Bill decided to do the same. However, the horrible animal chooses its victims, which explains the mother’s death. And despite Bill’s numerous key turns, Hal was never the target, while the rest of his surroundings fell like flies.

What Happens to Bill at the End of The Monkey?

Hal decides to forgive Bill and vice versa, and the two brothers reconcile. But his reconciliation is short-lived. As Bill accepts his brother’s help to get up, one of his tricks catches him: one of the bowling balls on the ceiling falls on him, brutally hitting him on the head and killing him instantly. His death, which produces a bloody explosion of flesh and blood, resonates with the ghost that young Hal had imagined when he contemplated the murder of his brother, earlier in the film.

Do Hal and Petey Survive?

Hal and Petey escape at the end of The Monkey taking the monkey with them. Together, they decide to take responsibility for the toy and hide it to prevent it from attacking again. For the father and his son, hiding the cursed object seems to be the only way to prevent it from making more victims. As they walk away, the two heroes discover the magnitude of the massacre in the city while the sun rises. It is quickly understood that they are among the few survivors, as the monkey has chosen them as witnesses and has saved them from their fury.

Hal proposes to Petey to go dancing, remembering an ancient custom of his mother, and the duo walks away to resume his life, despite the bloody destruction of a bus full of cheerleaders. The Monkey premiered in theaters on February 19, 2025. For more stories, you can also take a look at the most anticipated movies of the year or the ones that are streaming this month.