The Killing Of A Sacred Deer’s Ending Explained

Many viewers may be left looking to see the ending of The Killing Of A Sacred Deer explained due to the film’s enigmatic nature, including its ties to Greek mythology. Yorgos Lanthimos has already earned a reputation for his distinct, unsettling filmmaking style. His movies, such as The Lobster or The Favorite, mix genres and bake in elements of comedy, drama, tragedy, or horror without ever fully landing on a specific genre typing. In 2017’s The Killing Of A Sacred Deer, heart surgeon Steven is seemingly cursed by the son of a deceased patient, who first infiltrates his life and family before seeking some karmic justice for what happened to his father. The Killing Of A Sacred Deer includes Colin Farrell as Steven and a compelling Barry Keoghan as Martin, the unreadable teen who sets about dismantling his life until Steven makes an impossible choice.

It’s clear from the offset through The Killing Of A Sacred Deer’s strange dialogue isn’t going to end well for everyone, with events escalating around the film’s midway point. Martin tells Steven that to balance out his father’s death, Steven must choose one of his own family to kill. If he refuses, Steven’s family will suffer through different stages of illness, like paralysis or bleeding from the eyes, before death. The movie sees Steven become increasingly desperate as his son Bob and daughter Kim fall ill to these myriad symptoms, ultimately leading to him and his wife Anna (Nicole Kidman) debating the impossible choice of killing one of their children. As for why the movie finished on this note, here’s The Killing Of A Sacred Deer ending explained.

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What The Ending Of The Killing Of A Sacred Deer Really Means

The Killing Of A Sacred Deer can be explained by its title, which comes from the Greek myth of Iphigenia, a daughter of King Agamemnon. When the latter kills a sacred deer belonging to goddess Artemis, in the Greek myth that inspired Sacred Deer, he is told to sacrifice Iphigenia to make things right. This story is referenced in the film itself, with director Yorgos Lanthimos being anything shy about the central thesis of his story here. Throughout the movie, there is also a running theme of the family pretending everything is fine — even when it clearly isn’t — and Steven refusing to take responsibility for his actions. This is typified by the death of Martin’s father, which may well have been an accident, but the fact that Steven had been drinking on the day of the operation muddies the waters of responsibility.

The Killing Of A Sacred Deer ends with Steven tying up his family when Bob starts bleeding from the eyes — the last stage before death. Steven then blindfolds himself and spins around with a rifle, firing randomly, so he still doesn’t have to make a choice. This eventually results in coming-of-age drama star Sunny Suljic’s character, Bob, dying, and The Killing Of A Sacred Deer’s ending scene has the family seated at dinner sometime later. Martin comes in and stares at them from the counter, and they all get up and leave, with each taking turns to look at Martin, highlighting the unworthy nature of his sacrifice (as he did not choose which child to offer).

The Killing Of A Sacred Deer’s Weird Dialogue And Reactions Explained

The Killing of a Sacred Deer features offbeat dialogue coupled with bizarre emotional reactions, but it’s purposeful. It elevates the movie from a regular drama to psychological horror, and the dialogue choices are incredibly narrative-focused. Each line of dialogue heightens the tension and lays the chilling nature and themes of the movie bare. The choice in wording packs more emotional heft into Steven and Martin’s dealings and overall relationship, explaining The Killing of a Sacred Deer‘s ending and its impact. It’s designed to make the plot of the A24 horror movie unsettling, and it does so successfully.

Strange turns of events, like Martin trying to set Steven up with his mother despite being married already, are punctuated by this asynchronous speech which adds more color to the situation. Another strange moment happens when Kim dispassionately tells her father that Bob is dying. Cold moments of interaction like this are what justify the difficult decision that Steven must make at the end of The Killing of a Sacred Deer. The movie would display fewer interesting psychological horror/thriller elements without the seemingly bizarre dialogue.

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Was The Killing Of A Sacred Deer Too Weird?

The Killing of a Sacred Deer received a generally positive response from critics, including an 80% Rotten Tomatoes score and the award for best screenplay at the Cannes Film Festival, but some of the general audience was confused or turned off by the film. Lanthimos’ style may be closer to experimental and arthouse directors like David Lynch than even “prestige horror” creators such as Ari Aster or Jordan Peele, creating a disconnect with audience expectations due to the movie being marketed as an A24 horror film. The Killing of a Sacred Deer also doesn’t explain explicitly why such a curse has befallen Steven’s family, or how Martin is connected to it, instead operating in a purely symbolic fashion. The Killing of a Sacred Deer uses its stiff dialogue and unusual plot to create a very distinct and unnerving atmosphere, but it’s understandable if some audiences may feel it’s just too weird for them.

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