The following contains spoilers for Elio, now playing in theatersElio builds to a big emotional climax that lays the groundwork for new adventures across the cosmos. The 29th film by Pixar, Elio tells the story of a тιтular boy, reeling from the loss of his parents and feelings of loneliness. Desperate to venture into space where he can be accepted by aliens in a way people have never embraced him, Elio uses his Aunt Olga’s satellite monitoring position with the Air Force to send a message into space. This is recovered by the sci-fi inspired Communiverse, who pick up Elio under the ᴀssumption that he’s the leader of Earth.
This sets off a chain of events where Elio finds himself trying to convince an alien warlord to pursue peace, accept his son for who he is, and learning about himself in the process. Elio is a sweet movie with a good emotional core, with the predictable elements of the plot landing because of the heart of the characters. Here’s why Elio ends the way it does and how the film leaves enough lingering threads that it could easily justify a sequel.
Why Elio Returns To Earth Instead Of Joining The Communiverse
Elio Comes Back Home Because Of The People In His Life
Working with Olga (as well as ham radio enthusiasts Gunther Melmac and Bryce), Elio escapes Earth aboard his ship and rescues Glordon. In the process, though, he gains a new appreciation for humanity’s potential and the bonds that he can form with people. While Elio does tell the aliens “this isn’t goodbye,” his departure from the Communiverse allows him to return to Earth so he can fully build a life. Elio is a movie about feeling isolated and how bonds are the key to overcoming that loneliness, setting up the final sH๏τ of Elio and Olga holding hands.
What’s Next For Glordon & Grigon After The Communiverse Attack
Glordon And Grigon Get A Happy Ending In Elio
Grigon is the closest thing Elio has to a villain, even though the alien warlord ultimately also gets a happy ending. After sacrificing his honor to save his son’s life, Grigon acknowledges that he was wrong about Elio and pulls back on the attack against the Communiverse. Grigon and Glordon’s race seems to have made peace with the Communiverse by the end of the film, potentially even setting up Grigon to eventually reapply for membership among their ranks instead of trying to take over as a conqueror.
In the original teaser released for Elio, Grigon was portrayed as a member of the Communiverse and depicted as a comedic supporting character instead of being the film’s primary antagonist.
Glordon’s role as Elio’s first friend is one of the cutest beats in Elio, which makes the film’s mid-credits beat all the sweeter. The short scene features Elio and Bryce, who have seemingly become genuine friends since the main plot of the film, setting up a new radio. With it, they are able to communicate with Glordon. This suggests that Glordon and Elio remain close even with galaxies between them, as well as plays into the implication that alien life is a known quanтιтy going forward in the world of Elio.
Why Elio’s Clone Sacrifices Himself
Elio’s Clone Is Happy To Make His Inevitable Deconstruction Worthwhile
One of the most memorable aspects Elio is the clone of the тιтular character. Created to hide Elio’s absence, the clone is a pleasant fellow who acts “normal” on Earth. While this plays into the character drama when Elio seemingly witnesses the clone and Olga bonding in a way he never could with his aunt, it turns out she knows something is wrong and discovers the truth from the clone. However, the clone only remains alive until its objective is complete, as seen when it tries to dissolve when Elio returns.
This sets up the clone’s actual final moment, where it serves as a distraction for Elio and Olga so they can reach Elio’s spaceship. Retaining Elio’s body but moving in an unsettlingly disjointed way, the clone’s melting ends up being just the right distraction for Elio and Olga. The clone doesn’t seem to mind this fate, giving Elio a thumbs up as he “dies.” It’s a surprisingly dark beat but one that lands because of the sheer severity of the joke and the optimistic edge of the clone even as it collapses into a pile of goop.
How Elio’s Ending Sets Up A Sequel
Elio Establishes A Wider Universe That Could Be Revisited In Future Stories
Image via Disney+
Elio has a sweet conclusive ending for the тιтular character and his aunt, but the ending is also a potential game-changer for the world at large. Elio ends with Elio and his aunt being returned to Earth by the Communiverse. Their mᴀssive base of operations then appears over the Earth, hovering above the Air Force base that serves as the primary Earth-bound setting of the film. A quick series of cuts confirms that the rest of the humans on the island also see the ship, with Bryce and Gunther among the people who are shown directly witnessing the alien arrival.
[Elio] implies that Elio could easily return for future adventures.
This could set up plenty of follow-up stories, which could focus more on humanity’s interactions with the Communiverse and the fact that the alien society considers Elio to be their primary contact. There’s also Olga’s fate, given that she technically committed treason by stealing the spaceship. However, she could be accepted as the military liaison to the Communiverse, given her connection to Elio, giving her more opportunities to venture into space. Even Elio’s farewell to the organization, promising them it isn’t a goodbye, implies that Elio could easily return for future adventures.
The Real Meaning Of Pixar’s Elio
Emotional Bonds Are The Key To Enduring A Lonely Universe
Elio is very much a movie about feeling like an outsider and wanting to find acceptance — and the fact that it can come from anywhere. Elio is established early in the film as a self-centered kid. While he’s not aggressively mean or purposefully malicious, he only focuses on his wants and ignores attempts by Olga and Bryce to make connections. After Elio befriends Glordon, he comes to recognize his own struggles with Olga reflected in the tense relationship between Grigon and Glordon. This empathy with Glordon prompts Elio to save his friend, in turn convincing Grigon to spare the Communiverse.
Empathy and love don’t need to be fully understood to be enduring and meaningful. As Grigon tells his son, he may never understand Glordon, but that won’t change his love for him. Similarly, Olga and Elio come to see each other as family, and Elio’s big lesson is to open up and give the people of Earth a chance to foster connections with him rather than just shut it all out. Elio is a movie about the bonds that unite us in a vast and lonely universe, giving the star-spanning adventure a strong emotional core.
