Greed ending explained · Cinespective

What happens

McTeague, fleeing with Trina's stolen gold, is hunted down in Death Valley by Marcus. They fight; McTeague kills him, but Marcus has handcuffed the two together. McTeague is left alone with no water, chained to a corpse.

The last image

McTeague stands on the empty salt flats, shackled to Marcus's body, with the bag of gold beside him.

What it says

The gold that cost three lives is now worthless, and the friendship it poisoned has become a literal chain. Stroheim offers no redemption: this is where wanting leads, and the title's meaning is made as harsh and physical as possible.