‘The Shadow Strays’ Ending and Sequel Setup Explained

Timo Tjahjanto’s latest film The Shadow Strays released on Netflix on October 17th after making waves at TIFF. The ultraviolent, bloody and gory action flick has been lauded critically and by audiences alike and if its momentum continues, a sequel is more than likely. Find out what happened in the film and what might happen in the teased sequel in this article. If you need The Shadow Strays ending explained, then you’ve come to the right place.

This article contains spoilers for The Shadow Strays.

‘The Shadow Strays’ Film & Ending Explained

The Shadow Strays follows an order of secret assassins called Shadows. Agent 13 (Aurora Ribero) is a young assassin injured on the job and grounded by her superior, Instructor Umbra (Hana Malasan), while she recovers. Back home in Jakarta, she encounters her neighbors: a boy named Monji (Ali Fikry) and his mother, Asti (Jesyca Marlein), who works as a sex worker. One night, 13 witnesses a group of men harassing and beating Monji and Asti. They barge into their apartment and the next morning, emergency services arrive to take away Monji’s deceased mother. While the official report is that Asti overdosed, Monji tells 13 she was killed by her pimp, Haga (Agra Piliang).  

13 grows closer to Monji and begins to rediscover her humanity. She takes him to visit his mother’s grave, but the next morning, Monji is gone. 13 finds Jeki (Kristo Immanuel), a low-level thug trying to destroy evidence in Monji’s apartment, and forces him to take her to Haga. He reluctantly agrees and explains what she’s dealing with: a gang led by Haga, Prasetyo (Adipati Dolken), a corrupt police officer, and Ariel (Andri Mashadi), the son of a gubernatorial candidate. Jeki brings 13 to Moonrose, a club run by Haga and his sister Soriah (Taskya Namya). At the club, 13 learns Monji has been taken captive and she tries to ask Haga of his whereabouts but a fight breaks out and Haga is killed. Soriah tries to retaliate but is unable to get her revenge as the police swarm the club and 13 and Jeki narrowly escape. Prasetyo is wrecked by Haga’s death. He informs Ariel, who is then scolded by his father (Arswendi Nasution) for having Asti killed for being pregnant with his child, instead of making her get an abortion. Ariel beats Monji in his anger. 

Meanwhile in Cambodia, Agent Umbra is on her own mission. She fights her way through a forest, assisted by Agent Troika (Daniel Eka Putra). Umbra realizes the people she’s hunting are former shadows that have defected. She eventually reaches a small shack inside the forest and finds her target inside. The two fight and Umbra wounds the target and realizes she’s fighting her former comrade, Volver (Eva Celia). She notices Volver is pregnant and hesitates, allowing her to escape. Unfortunately before Volver can make her escape, she runs into Troika outside. Out of frame, we hear screaming; Troika seemingly kills Volver. Umbra’s moment of weakness is noted by her handler (Chew Kin-Wah) and he notifies her of 13’s unsanctioned activities. 

Back in Jakarta, 13 invokes Shadow emergency protocol and obtains a gun while Prasetyo leads an assault on Jeki’s house with a squad of police officers. Prasetyo starts interrogating and threatening Jeki, but before he can hurt him, 13 arrives and takes out the officers and eventually Prasetyo himself. However, she is captured by Ariel and Soriah. They are about to kill 13 when they’re interrupted by Ariel’s father who says they can use 13 to kill Kabil (Tanta Ginting), a drug dealer whose finances are required to fund Ariel’s father’s gubernatorial candidacy. They take 13 and Monji to the meeting location but Monji dies during the operation from his heavy injuries sustained during his captivity. Jeki starts to scream about Monji’s death and the ensuing commotion triggers a gunfight. Ariel’s father is killed and Ariel goes berserk. 13 and Jeki manage to kill Ariel and Soriah in the rampage, respectively, and leave the premises but are T-boned while making their escape. 

13 and Jeki find themselves tied up in a room being questioned by Agent Umbra, Agent Troika, and their handler. The handler tells Umbra to kill 13 but before she can do so, Jeki tackles her before being executed by Troika. Jeki’s tragic sacrifice gives 13 the few seconds she needs to escape the room. She’s tracked into a warehouse by Troika where the two brawl and 13 emerges victorious. 13 is then thrown into another duel with Umbra. Both women hesitate to fatally wound each other. After 13 uses Umbra’s own weapons against her, Umbra is seriously injured. The two reconnect in that moment of vulnerability and Umbra tells 13 her real name: Nomi. The beautiful moment is interrupted by the handler and Umbra gives her life to save Nomi, who then shoots the handler. A flashback reveals Umbra killed Nomi’s mother and took her when she was a child. Nomi walks away from the ordeal and leaves the past behind, carrying Monji to lay him to rest. Now with the The Shadow Strays‘ ending explained, onto the epilogue.

What Comes Next For ‘The Shadow Strays’

An epilogue sequence at Monji’s grave reveals Nomi is now being hunted by Agent 14 (Mawar Eva) and other Shadows. 14 has Nomi at gunpoint but before she can kill her, a mysterious man in a motorcycle helmet intervenes and kills her comrades. Instead of facing the man, 14 backs away vowing this isn’t over. The man takes off his helmet and reveals himself to be Master Burai (Yayan Ruhian), Agent Umbra’s trainer. Burai tells Nomi the Shadows won’t leave her alone and offers his help. 

Although there is no announced sequel, Tjahjanto has expressed his desire to make one, as well as a spin-off.

The possibilities for which character Tjahjanto is referring to are endless, however another tweet seems to imply Volver may still be alive. Though her death at the hands of Agent Troika was implied, interestingly, we didn’t actually see her die—a notable choice in a movie like this which loves showing every grisly detail. The spinoff could possibly be about Volver or she might show up in the potential sequel. There are a number of other characters that the spinoff could be centered around, possibly even an already dead character with the spinoff filling background details. The sequel will likely follow Nomi and Burai as they confront the remaining Shadows, with a face-off between 14 and Nomi being inevitable. 

Tjahjanto is eager to revisit the world of The Shadow Strays but makes it clear it’s on audiences to watch the film to let Netflix know there’s interest in it. If and when the spinoff and/or sequel is greenlit, it’s unclear when Tjahjanto would be able to make it. Although shooting for his film Nobody 2 just wrapped, he is also attached to remakes of Under Siege and Train to Busan. Although we haven’t heard anything new about either remake in a while, one of those will likely take priority. 

Timo Tjahjanto’s The Shadow Strays, starring Aurora Ribero, Hana Malasan, and Andri Mashadi, released on October 17th and is streaming on Netflix.

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