Chris Hemsworth’s new Netflix thriller Extraction has been viewed approximately a bazillion times according to Netflix and the film’s producers, Joe and Anthony Russo. Netflix, which doesn’t release streaming numbers to the public, said the film is on track to becoming the biggest ever film premier for the service. Netflix is projecting about 90 million streams in the next four weeks, which is staggering.
Now, considering the film has been out for a little over two weeks and it seems like millions of people have already seen it, it’s time to talk about that ending. Again, if the headline of the post hasn’t already clued you in, there are massive spoilers ahead, so be warned.
At first, the ending of the film seems pretty cut and dry with Hemsworth’s character Rake meeting a watery demise after being shot approximately 8,000 times and throwing himself off of a bridge. But, in the final scene, the kid Rake was tasked with saving, Ovi (played by Rudhraksh Jaiswal), emerges from a pool and behind him stands a shadowy figure. Of course, that shadowy figure looks VERY MUCH LIKE RAKE. What could it mean?
Let’s explore the theories, of which there are three.
1. Rake survived and is still protecting Ovi
Is this theory plausible? Not really, but then again, action films like Extraction count on the implausibility of the hero’s survival to move the action forward. Rake should’ve died a million times over before they even get to the climatic battle on the bridge, but he doesn’t.
What makes this theory more credible is that in one of the first scenes of the film, we see Rake diving into a deep gorge and staying underwater for an extended period of time. The film has established early on that Rake is a champion at holding his breath underwater. So, there’s a slim possibility that Rake not only survived his many gunshot wounds, but that he fell into the river not to drown himself, but to swim to safety.
Outside of storytelling, there are much more practical reasons for Hemsworth’s character to live. In an interview with Collider, director Sam Hargrave mentioned that during early screenings audiences were split on whether they wanted Rake to live or die. Some hated that the hero didn’t survive. Plus, the movie industry loves franchises. It would make sense then, that regardless of how implausible Rake’s survival would be, there’s a very clear business reason to keep him alive.
2. Rake is dead, Ovi just has a vision.
It’s clear early in the film that Rake’s character is dealing with a ton of unresolved trauma stemming from his chosen profession. He’s also grieving the death of his son and the guilt over not being present when he passed. Rake has a ton of stuff going on in that old noggin’ and it’s indicated that he has visions and memories of his son quietly floating around in his brain. The visions are presented as almost ghost like, and it establishes that, even though his son has died, Rake still maintains a kind of emotional and spiritual connection.
Now, when Ovi emerges from the pool, it could be that Rake appears to him as a similar type of vision. Narratively, it makes more sense that Ovi would still feel connected to Rake after everything they went through, and see him hovering around, like some kindly paramilitary ghost, rather than be actually alive.
Hargrave has also said that the original ending of the film had Rake dying, but that it didn’t feel as emotionally satisfying, so they added a little more ambiguity.
3. That’s not Rake, but a new bodyguard
This is the least satisfying theory, though it is by far the most practical. Ovi is going to have a target on his back for much of his life, and, being the kid of a drug kingpin, he’ll need constant protection. Where Rake died doing his job, someone else is more than willing to step in. Again, this theory pretty much sucks because audiences aren’t interested in a new Tyler Rake, they either want Hemsworth or nothing at all. The film’s producer Joe Russo also didn’t lend any credence to this theory, saying they always thought of it as an either/or situation.
“It is meant to represent hope…but you can interpret it any way you want, you can interpret it that he’s alive and you can interpret it that he’s a figment of his imagination,” Russo told Collider.
Out of all of these theories, which one is likely going to end up being true? Well, it’s a good bet that Rake survived. It’s narratively implausible, but whatever, who cares. Let Rake live! Hemsworth has also indicated that he’d be “stoked” to jump back into the role, and with the massive numbers the movie did, the chances of us getting a sequel or prequel are pretty high.
Here’s some of the best scenes from the movie Extraction!