MovieChat Forums > Ozark (2017) Discussion > Ending: Did [blank] really shoot [blank...

Ending: Did [blank] really shoot [blank], or did [he/she] actually shoot [blank] (SPOILERS!)

posted 2 years ago by grhqofb5 (327)
15 replies | jump to latest

At the end when Jonah popped out with the rifle and aimed it at Mel, the screen goes black at the end and about 2 seconds later you hear the single gunshot. Assumption is that he shot Mel.

However, I think the writers wanted to leave some ambiguity there. Jonah probably knows that Ruth is dead (or being hunted), and he thought very highly of her. Mel is sitting there holding the lamb jar talking about what's in it, so that's a good indication that may be dead, and Jonah had the jar so probably knew what was in it. He may have blamed his mother, and rightfully so. Remember, he was at the point where he was ready to leave town to go live with grandpa, but Wendy somehow convinced him to stick around. Did Jonah shoot Wendy and not Mel??

[–] BicD (91) 2 years ago

Not that it matters but Jonah was holding a shotgun not a rifle and Mel was holding a Goat urn not a lamb jar.

With that said...I kind of feel like the accident with the mini van brought them all back together as a family in a sense that nothing or no one was going was going to kill them and they were going to finally be able to "get out"

As a bonus, Marty and Wendy know that Ruth is most likely dead so they know that loose end of a cannon has even been taken care of as well.

Lastly they are met with the persistent "mel", right beside the trampoline where most family things are decided. Jonah, realizing that he has one final job to complete before he goes "legit" He checks mom and dad who both signal their sign of approval, closes his eyes, slowly pulls the trigger hitting Mel center mass ending his life and beginning the new chapter of the Byrde family.

[–] Bloodshot77 (9956) 2 years ago

and Mel was holding a Goat urn not a lamb jar.

It was a cookie jar

[–] BicD (91) 2 years ago

Once the remains/ashes were placed inside, it became an urn.

[–] Iffy762 (1331) 2 years ago

I don't think Jonah would have shot Wendy since she's his mom. Tempting, though!

[–] joej2923 (2959) 2 years ago

Jonah has been a wildcard over the last couple of seasons. He has not been loyal to his family at all. He is a capable shot BUT he may not want to be a murderer.

My theory is that Jonah was more likely to turn the gun to the side and shoot away or into the ground. He would then enjoy watching his parents get locked up. He's just as likely to shoot his parents since he is the wildcard.

I don't like the ending since there are so many unanswered questions. Ozark is one of the few Netflix original shows that I actually like even though the last couple of seasons were uneven.

[–] fzane (1004) 2 years ago

maybe he shot himself?

[–] grhqofb5 (327) 2 years ago

Yeah maybe he shot Charlotte…. Absolutely no reason he’d shoot himself.

[–] fzane (1004) 2 years ago

don't they say that about a lot of suicides though? "he seemed so normal".

[–] grhqofb5 (327) 2 years ago

Good point. It was either a suicide or Jonah shot the neighbors golden retriever.

[–] onlydamnnameleft (11) 2 years ago

Im confident he shot Ben (goat urn) since he was molested when Ben went off his meds.

[–] whatwazdat (379) 2 years ago

I think that scene was the final transformation of the Byrde family turning into truly a twisted family. We've all seen those scenes in other movies where a kid grabs a gun to protect his crazy villainous family. In those scenes, what happens when the villain sees that his kid has the gun? They all smirk or smile, cuz they know their kid has been raised their way. BREAKDOWN 1997 comes to mind, the movie with Kurt Russell and JT Walsh. Kurt is rescuing his wife, he has a gun on JT Walsh and his family, then we hear a gun cock from behind, it's a little kid protecting his crazy dad. So when Jonah is pointing the shotgun at a man just doing his job, good parents, normal parents would be shocked, they would be encouraging their kid to put the gun down. Not the Byrdes, what you saw in their face was relief, as well as murderous intentions. The detective didn't even point a gun at them.

But yeah, I would hope that Jonah shot Wendy to stop all the madness.

[–] dpeterg (22) 2 years ago

I think the final scene doesn’t makes sense in the context of the entire series. When were we ever left to wonder what happened? In fact the series was in some ways about the logistics of everything. What people did, how they did it and why they did it.
The Sopranos left us with a non-event.
Ozark left us with a hidden event.
Why? So we can wonder what happened and never really know? Mad libs…
The only thing that actually makes sense is at some point there will be a continuation.

[–] spurtle467 (1509) 2 years ago

I'm pretty sure they want us to believe that Jonah shot Mel, as if to say this corruptible family can't stop finding new ways to stoop lower and become more dysfunctional, even when it looks like they might finally be able to move on.

[–] asom (6557) 2 years ago

Shooting Wendy in front of Mel is murder and straight to jail.

He is not dumb so no. Shooting the urn makes no sense, Mel would be on them till the edge of the earth.

The only logical thing: he shot Mel, completing his transformation in a full fledged criminal.

[–] Bloodshot77 (9956) 2 years ago

He shot [blanks]