Abandoned is a 2022 horror film directed by Spencer Squire in his directorial debut. The movie follows Sara (Emma Roberts) and Alex (John Gallagher Jr.), a couple who move to an isolated farmhouse with their infant son Liam after Sara gives birth. However, they soon discover the house’s dark history after the realtor reveals that a family was murdered there years prior.
Abandoned (2022) Ending Explained
1. What is the Plot Summary
Sara and Alex decide to leave the city for the countryside, hoping the change of scenery will help Sara with her postpartum depression.
When house hunting, they learn that a murder-suicide occurred in their chosen farmhouse years prior – a girl named Anna Solomon killed her baby and father before taking her own life.
Though unsettled, Sara and Alex purchase the home. Strange occurrences begin plaguing Sara, including cries from inside walls and visits from creepy neighbor Chris Renner (Michael Shannon). Sara grows obsessed with the home’s history and the Solomon family, beginning to see ghosts.
Her visions and paranoia increase, while her relationship with Alex grows tense over her declining mental health. Eventually, Alex arranges for a doctor to prescribe Sara medication, but she secretly avoids taking it.
One night when Alex is called away for work, Sara’s visions culminate when she sees the ghost of Robert Solomon and disappears into a hidden room after hearing Liam cry.
2. What Happens at the End? Ending Explained
In the room, Sara finds the couple’s missing belongings as two feral boys emerge holding Liam. The boys accuse Sara of being an unfit mother who hurts her baby, like Anna’s abusive father Robert.
When one boy threatens Liam with an axe, Sara desperately pleas that Liam is her child. The next scene shows Alex returning home to Sara happily making breakfast, the threatening encounter seemingly resolved.
In the final moments, the family enjoys an idyllic scene outside – however, Sara’s troubled expression as she rests her hand on her pregnant belly hints that darkness still lurks beneath the surface.
There are a few ways to interpret the ending:
Theory 1: The Haunting was Real
The boys and ghosts were actual manifestations of the house’s dark history haunting Sara. She defeated the spirits and saved her son, but worries the turmoil could return with her next pregnancy.
Theory 2: It was all in Sara’s Mind
Sara hallucinated the hauntings due to her worsening postpartum depression. She finally accepts motherhood in the climax confrontation with the boys. The ending shows Sara recovered on medication, but she fears descending back into psychosis.
Theory 3: An Ambiguous Blend
Actual ghosts plagued Sara, including Anna, exacerbating her postpartum depression symptoms. Sara vanquished her inner demons by accepting her role as Liam’s mother.
However, darkness still looms – from both the haunting and Sara’s mental state. Ultimately, Abandoned ending leaves the truth ambiguous. The haunting may have been real or just manifestations of Sara’s psychosis.
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Regardless, the conclusion shows the family safe – for now – but an unsettling tone persists about whether the tranquility will last. Sara likely still struggles with depression and anxiety about her maternal abilities and the house’s past.
