Spoilers · the ending
The Ring: the ending, explained
Gore Verbinski · 2002
This page gives the ending away. Not seen the film yet? Its spoiler-free guide is here.
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Spoilers · the ending
Gore Verbinski · 2002
This page gives the ending away. Not seen the film yet? Its spoiler-free guide is here.
What happens
Rachel frees Samara's body from the well and thinks the curse is over, but Noah is killed when Samara climbs out of his television. Rachel realises she survived only by copying the tape, so she must make another copy to save Aidan.
The last image
Rachel is left racing to copy the tape and show it to someone else, passing the curse on to save her son.
What it says
The ending shows images as contagious: pain survives by being copied and handed on. Freeing Samara's body doesn't free her, because she was never really heard. The film ends on a bleak choice, your survival or a stranger's.