Foe

Summary

WARNING ! This clause contains spoilers for Foe ( 2023 )

WhileFoe ’s ending might seem pretty hard to decipher , the sci - fi movie ’s twirl is actually quite predictable for longtime writing style viewers . Paul Mescal and Saoirse Ronan whiz inFoe , an adaptation of the novel of the same name by author Iain Reid . Reid ’s earlier bookI’m Thinking of Ending Thingswas brought to aliveness onscreen in 2020 by director Charlie Kaufman , although that trippy psychological horror movie took numerous major indecorum with the source material . Foedirector Garth Davis offers viewers a more square adjustment of Reid ’s soph effort , but the assorted reviews received by this 2023 button shew that this scheme may not have been entirely successful .

AlthoughFoechanges the playscript ’s storyslightly , the sci - fi drama stick remarkably close to the novel ’s storyline . Both the book and the movie revolve around a couple named Junior and Hen who live on a bleak , distant farm in 2065 . When Mescal ’s Junior is selected to take part in a programme that will see humans colonise another satellite , Hen is informed by Aaron Pierre ’s Terrence that she will be provided with an AI knockoff to play along her during his two - class absence . In the months that follow , Terrence interviews Hen and Junior to ascertain Junior ’s clone is as accurate a recreation as possible before a pretty obvious Book of Revelation occurs .

Foe 2023 Movie Poster

Foe’s Ending Reveals That Junior Was A Clone All Along

Paul Mescal’s character was never Hen’s real husband

In a wrench that will be obvious to any viewers familiar with classic sci - fi beats , Foe ’s ending reveals that Junior has been a clone all along . Until the ending , it is implied that Mescal ’s character has not yet left Earth and his interviews with Terrence are designed to make his robot replacement unerringly exchangeable to his human self . However , Foe ’s end instead let on that Junior was actually the clone all along as Junior left before the movie commence , and his interviews with Terrence were submission checks to see whether his AI was still run and his relationship with Hen was successful . The veridical Junior returns and his clone is put in storage .

Why The Real Junior Replaces Hen With A Clone

Hen is replaced after Junior returns since she no longer loves him

A horrified Hen cries as Junior ’s clone is packed away , try out that she ironically favor the ringer to her real husband . This proves a problem for the pair in the ensuing weeks as Hen eschew the tangible Junior ’s attempts to reconnect with her after his two - year slip . In a twist that would have work better ifBlack Mirrorseason 6 did n’t beatFoeto this plot line , Hen pass on Junior after realizing that she loved his ringer more than him . She is then promptly replace by an uncanny Hen clone who reassure Junior that she wo n’t leave , although it ’s not decipherable who ordered this permutation .

Does Junior Know Hen Is A Clone In Foe’s Ending?

Junior doesn’t seem too comfortable around his new wife

Since Hen leave Junior , it would make sense if he quest an AI clone to replace her . However , Junior looks at her with an uncertain stare , though one that does n’t necessarily seem to be have-to doe with . Since she is uncannily programmed to pass for her old self , it is hard to tell whether Junior is cognisant that Hen has been replaced . Hen may even have ask Terrence to replace her with an AI without telling Junior , as opposed to Junior ask for an AI Hen from Terrence . Finally , Terrence might have create the new Hen without any intervention from the couple .

Why Junior Was Sent to Space in Foe

Junior was sent as part of a Climate Migration Strategy

InFoe ’s depiction of 2065 , the worldly concern is becoming uninhabitable due to climate change . This results in a Climate Migration Strategy that would theoretically transplant people to outer space colony , which is why Junior is sent into space for two twelvemonth . Foe ’s sundry reviews upon releasecould be attribute to the movie under - explaining this pivotal plot compass point . As the Revelation of Saint John the Divine seemingly encroaches alfresco , the reference are outstandingly uninterested in discourse the specifics of how the earth will be evacuate , when this will happen , and where the other space colonies are .

How Foe’s Ending Completely Changes The Opening Scene

Foe’s first scenes add up when viewers learn that Junior is a clone

When Terrence say Hen that Junior is proceed into space for two yr , he introduces her to Junior ’s ringer , not excuse this to her original married man . Junior is already gone , but viewers do n’t retrieve this out until the movie ’s final scenes . Thus , Foe ’s end completely re - contextualizes the first step scenes as it becomes clear thatnone of Hen ’s interactions earlier in the moving-picture show were with her existent husbandsince he was replaced much earlier than looker were lead to consider .

Foe Hinted At Its Twist Ending Earlier In The Story

Hen’s reaction to Junior proves he isn’t human

Hen is uncomfortable around Junior and treats him like a unknown at first , implying he is the clon and not her hubby . A cagy viewer could easily discern the rationality that Hen does n’t want to share a bed with Junior shortly after she meets Terrence , and this makes the ending twist less of a shock than it might have otherwise been . While this story could have felt like it was adopt fromThe Twilight Zone , this variety of foreshadowing make it bad forFoeto keep its liberal closed book under wraps throughout its almost two - hour runtime .

The Real Reason Terrence Keeps Interviewing Hen and Junior

Terrence isn’t designing Junior’s clone but rather maintaining it

Terrence lay claim that he is repeatedly interviewing Hen and Junior and spend time experience with them to avail hone Junior ’s AI clone . However , Terrence is really there to see whether Junior ’s clone knows he is a cloneand to supervise his performance in a serial of Turing tests . The dead ringer ’s green-eyed monster over Hen and Terrence ’s increasing closeness also makes more sensory faculty when viewers see that Hen is n’t last with her real husband , so she does not manage about the clone ’s response to her new relationship with Terrence .

What Foe’s Ending Really Means

Foe asks whether two people ever truly know each other

Foe ’s ending is about people essay out idealize versions of each other and relationships subsequently failing when they get to know each other better and their masks slip . Even Hen ’s and Junior ’s names are an abbreviation and a byname rather than average name , proving that the pair never saw each other as entirely veridical , distinct mass before they were replace . As such , it is no major seismic disturbance when both Hen and Junior decide to give up on their partners after experiencing the allure of AI option at dissimilar point inFoe ’s gloomy chronicle .

Cast

Paul Mescal’s disatrught Junior rests his head on Saoirse Ronan’s Hen’s shoulder in Foe

Saoirse Ronan as Hen looking upset in Foe

The real Hen leaving on the plane Foe

Terrence and the real Junior looking at the AI Junior in Foe

Paul Mescal as the AI Junior in Foe

Hen on the farm in Foe

Aaron Pierre as Terrence in Foe

Hen hugging the AI Junior in Foe

Headshot Of Saoirse Ronan In The  27th Palm Springs International Awards

Headshot Of Paul Mescal In The 77th British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs)

Headshot Of Aaron Pierre

Foe