‘Animals’ Ending Explained: Does Mark Pay The Ransom?

Ben Affleck’s sixth directorial has just debuted on Netflix and it harks back to Affleck’s thriller origins as a director, following a kidnapping, a ransom, and an election. Read the Animals ending explained below.

Animals is the latest directorial outing from Ben Affleck and his latest collaboration with co-producer Matt Damon. Produced for Netflix, the film follows a Los Angeles mayoral candidate who, amid his campaign, is forced to reckon with the kidnapping of his child. With help of his wife, campaign advisor and a mysterious fixer, he must do what he can to make things right. Read the synopsis below:

In Animals, Los Angeles mayoral candidate Mark Kimball (Ben Affleck) faces those very questions. When he receives an ominous phone call, Mark and his wife Abigail (Kerry Washington) scramble to respond to a threat that could upend their carefully constructed life.

‘Animals’ Ending Explained

Meeting to deliver the cash and take Hector back, Mark finds himself in a drainage canal with the seven million dollars. The kidnappers meet him there, with bunny masks, and push Hector in a wagon down the steep edge, forcing Mark to run and catch him. The assailants then grapple down the wall and are sniped by Bradford’s (Gillian Anderson) assassin who Mark hired to kill the mystery men. As Bradford pulls into the canal in an SUV getaway car to get Mark and Hector, her assassin is killed, and she is promptly shot by a third person.

This is a callback to Bradford saying she believes that its a two-person team, and the moment proves that Bradford made a flawed judgment call. Just as the mystery sniper is set to shoot both Mark and Hector, Ramón appears in the canal and shoots the assailant from 200 yards away.

Mark goes on a press tour, including holding a conference, where he reveals that he and Ramón exchanged places in the story to fit the media narrative, with Mark benefiting from the good coverage for his election and Ramón being voluntarily deported to Mexico with his wife and Hector, with the money Mark borrowed from the now-deceased Bradford, and not serving any jailtime. Mark is sentenced to probation, community service and a $10,000 fine. Mark wins the election.

Does ‘Animals’ Have A Post-Credit Scene?

No. Ben Affleck’s Animals does not have a post-credit scene. This means that audiences did not find out the identities of the kidnappers.

Who Stars In ‘Animals’?

Animals stars an A-list cast consisting of:

• Ben Affleck as Mark Kimball
• Kerry Washington as Abigail Kimball
• Steven Yeun as Sam
• Gillian Anderson as Bradford
• Adriana Paz as Cecilia
• Luis Gerardo Méndez as Ramón
• Christopher Woodley as Danny
• Mark Kassen
• Ray Fisher

Animals is Ben Affleck’s follow-up to Air, and is now streaming on Netflix. The film stars Ben Affleck, Kerry Washington, Steven Yeun, Gillian Anderson, Adriana Paz, Luis Gerardo Méndez, Christopher Woodley, and Mark Kassen. Watch it below:

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