The following contains spoilers for Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, now playing in theatersMission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning‘s ending gives Ethan Hunt a perfectly fitting final mission, even as he resolves the present danger of the Enтιтy. Building off the events of 2023’s Mission: Impossible – ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Reckoning Part One, Tom Cruise’s Ethan finds himself facing off against various nefarious forces across the planet. This ranges from the machinations of the unpredictable Gabriel and the intentions of the digital Enтιтy to the desperate world governments hoping to use the chaos for their advantage.

Ultimately, Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning‘s characters resolve the dangers of the Enтιтy and even give Ethan Hunt a quietly fitting send-off that would allow the character to be retired. Along the way, the franchise also lays the groundwork for the current roster of the IMF to carry their own adventures going forward, even without some of the veteran members of the team. Here’s how the critically acclaimed Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning gives Ethan Hunt a potential way to ride off into the sunset.

Where Does Ethan Hunt Go After The Ending Of The Final Reckoning?

Ethan Is Officially Going Into Hiding After Beating The Enтιтy

Ethan Hunt effectively goes into hiding at the end of Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, tasking himself with one final vital mission that also allowed the character to easily be written out of the franchise. Ethan is still being targeted by his own government in The Final Reckoning, barely convincing the President of the United States to let him contain the Enтιтy. Rather than turn over the technology to Kitridge, Ethan doubles down on his belief that no one can be trusted with the Enтιтy and takes it into hiding with him.

This could be seen as a fitting ending for Ethan Hunt, who gets to take on one last mission by becoming the guardian of the Enтιтy. The ending of the film implies that Ethan has accepted this mission with a certain amount of peaceful recognition of what it means. Given that many world governments will likely still want the Enтιтy, Ethan will potentially have to go on the run for the rest of his life. This could be the perfect way to write Ethan out of the franchise, allowing him to survive unseen but still crucial to society’s survival.

What Happens To The Enтιтy & Gabriel After The Final Reckoning’s Climax?

Gabriel’s Fate Is Unexpectedly Brutal

The two main threats of The Final Reckoning are the Enтιтy and Gabriel, who were working in concert in the previous film. However, following his failures in the that storyline, Gabriel has splintered off from the Enтιтy and now seeks to control it. Their hope is for Ethan to either adhere to the Enтιтy’s plans (which would result in nuclear war across the Earth) or to hand control of the machine to Gabriel (who would maintain the current society but have control over every major government).

By the end of the film, the IMF has found ways to counter the Enтιтy, leading to the successful capture of the artificial intelligence within a 5D flash drive. This is the drive that Ethan is given at the end of the film, suggesting the Enтιтy is still technically “alive” but contained. While it could easily return in future entries of the franchise, this could also be a handy resolution for that plot. By contrast, Gabriel is rather bluntly dispatched while trying to jump out of a plane during the climax of the film, making his return far more unlikely.

Which Members Of IMF Survive The Events Of The Final Reckoning?

The New Members Of The IMF Could Carry The Franchise Forward

For the most part, the IMF escapes the events of Final Reckoning in one piece. The team even expands in some surprising ways, such as the induction of former enemies like French ᴀssᴀssin Paris and US Intelligence agent Theo Degas. The biggest casualty in the film is Luther, who has been a consistent presence in the series for decades. Luther’s health is already failing by the opening sequences of the film, with his hospital scrubs and medical equipment suggesting he’s contending with a serious illness.

As part of his efforts to break Ethan, Gabriel arranges for a bomb to be placed within a caged room with Luther. Luther is able to disarm the megaton bomb to save London above them, but is forced to activate enough of the explosives to cause a cave-in that slays him. Luther’s memory lingers with Ethan for the rest of the film, with a final message from his longtime ally playing over the success of stopping the Enтιтy. This underscores the sad reality that Ethan and Benji have lost many of their allies to their cause.

What Is The State Of M:I’s World After The Final Reckoning?

A Tense Earth Could Easily Fall Back Into Armed Conflict

The world is in a fragile but enduring state at the end of Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, hinting at how easily things could escalate back into chaos. Despite the efforts of the United States and Russia forces, the Enтιтy remains out of their grasp. While this has seemingly settled a tense peace between the world governments, the tensions set into motion by the Enтιтy’s nearly successful nuclear war could leave the world governments on the brink of overt conflict.

Potentially helping deal with all that could be the IMF, who effectively been rebuilt by the end of the film. While Ethan is implied to go into hiding to keep the Enтιтy safe, Benji has survived his injuries and embraced the role Ethan gave him as team leader. Meanwhile, new recruits like Grace, Paris, and Theo mean the team still has the talent and means to protect the world in case of emergencies. The IMF may not be a formal organization anymore, but its mission could be reactivated with a new generation of agents replacing Hunt on the world stage.

The True Meaning Of Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning

Ethan Hunt Beats A.I. In More Than One Way

Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning is as happy of an ending for Ethan Hunt as there could be. Ethan doesn’t get to die in one final blaze of glory or get to ride off into the sunset. Instead, as Luther’s goodbye message tells him, it was his destiny to be in a situation where his choices could impact the world. Ethan taking the Enтιтy and seemingly going into hiding with it gives him a way to gracefully leave the series with the idea that the mission never really ends, even if it remains unseen and unknown by the general public.

The ending of the film could also be taken as a celebration of Cruise’s views on filmmaking. A champion of stunt work and a vocal critic of over-reliance on A.I. in the film industry, it’s no coincidence that Cruise is determined to bring down an A.I. that uses algorithms to dictate the future of the world. Hunt’s victory is a celebration of the humanist (if chaotic) heroes who risk life and limb for the world. It’s an interesting secondary meaning to the ending of Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning and is a clear tease of Cruise’s thoughts on the industry.