The Witch ending explained

What happens

Alone after her family's deaths, Thomasin meets Black Phillip, who speaks and offers her a life of pleasure. She signs his book, strips, and walks into the woods, where she joins a coven and rises into the air.

The last image

Thomasin floats upward above the fire and the coven, laughing, as the camera looks up through the trees.

Two readings

1 · DamnedShe has given herself to the devil, and the family's fears were right all along.

2 · FreedAfter a life of blame and control, she finally takes power on her own terms.

What it says

The family's belief that Thomasin was dangerous becomes the one story left to her. The ending shows what a rigid moral order leaves available to a girl it has already condemned, and it keeps exaltation and dread together.