Five Nights At Freddy's Ending Explained (2024)

Five Nights at Freddy’s ends with a twist that shocks Josh Hutcherson’s Mike. Adapted from the video games, Blumhouse's Five Nights At Freddy's centers on Mike taking a night job at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, where the animatronics – Freddy, Chica, Bonnie, and Foxy – come to life. Desperate to catch his brother Garrett's kidnapper, Mike agrees to give up his sister to the animatronics in exchange for the truth, but changes his mind. Meanwhile, Mike discovers his new friend, Vanessa, is William Afton's daughter – and Afton is Freddy's Fazbear's child-killing owner.

The ending of Josh Hutcherson's Five Nights at Freddy’s also reveals that William kidnapped and killed his brother Garrett when Mike was 12. Mike fights William to save Abby from being his next victim, and Vanessa joins him but gets stabbed by her father. Abby shows the animatronics the truth about William, and they finally turn on him, dragging him away while his spring-lock suit malfunctions. The fast-paced Five Nights at Freddy's plot includes multiple twists that keep viewers on the edge until the end.

William Afton's Yellow Rabbit Villain In Five Nights At Freddy's Explained

Spring Bonnie Is A Sinister Version Of The Animatronic

In the Five Nights at Freddy's ending, it is revealed that serial killer William Afton previously dressed in a yellow rabbit suit called Spring Bonnie to lure in children that he wanted to kill. He's finally shown wearing the suit at the movie's climax when he tries to kill Abby. The suit furthers the horror themes by turning something that appeals to kids – a bunny rabbit – into the source of their demise. Afton wearing the suit to kill Abby also makes him more daunting because Spring Bonnie is distressed enough to seem dangerous.

William Afton's yellow bunny suit is also extremely important if the franchise wants to continue expanding in film using the existing lore. In the FNAF video games, William's disguise changes from Spring Bonnie Springtrap, a sinister and possessed version of the animatronic. The movie shows Afton getting slashed open when his spring-lock suit malfunctions.

A real doctor explained that the injuries of Afton in Five Nights at Freddy's would be fatal. This puts him on track to become Springtrap in future movies.

The Animatronic Ghosts Explained: What Really Happened At Freddy’s?

They're Possessed By Kids Who William Killed

The animatronics are actually possessed by the ghosts of the kids William killed in the 80s. It’s not that the kids’ ghosts simply animate the robotic creatures, but William put their remains inside where no one would bother to look. The kids’ physical attachment brings the animatronic ghosts to life in Five Nights at Freddy's. Freddy’s has been closed since the kids’ deaths, and their ghosts follow in William’s footsteps by manipulating, terrifying, and killing anyone who trespasses.

Why William Kept Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza Open After His Kills

It Was Meant To Conceal The Crimes

Despite being defunct, William Afton keeps Freddy Fazbear's Pizza open instead of shutting it down and selling the property. This choice is for one reason. Closing Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza would uncover the children’s remains, and William wouldn’t allow that to happen because it would implicate him in their deaths. Leaving the kids in animatronic form gave William control, and leaving Freddy’s abandoned meant fewer people would come looking for any evidence. It helped that Vanessa was watching over the place, essentially doing her father’s bidding as well.

The Deeper Significance Of Mike Giving Up Abby To The Animatronics

Explaining Mike's Relationship With His Siblings

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Mike is preoccupied by nightmares of Garrett’s kidnapping, using Dream Theory in Five Nights At Freddy's to learn what he can about the event. Mike that he wasn't able to save his younger brother, and he is so desperate to discover the abductor's identity that he isn’t living in the present. This shows in nearly all his interactions with Abby. Though he's her guardian, Mike has little patience or care for his little sister, viewing her as something for which he's responsible, rather than a little sister he loves.

Mike chooses to give Abby up in exchange for changing what happened to Garrett, which reveals the character's obsession with absolving himself of his guilt. When he agrees to exchange Abby for Garrett, he makes an active choice that speaks to the depth of his pain. Realizing he had given up on Abby made Mike snap out of his grief and gave him a path forward to be there for his sister. It was a wake-up call, leading him to truly see and be there for Abby in a way that he hadn’t before.

Will Vanessa Ever Wake Up From Her Coma?

If The Film Wanted Her Dead, She'd Have Died On-Screen

When Vanessa finally stands up to her dad, William stabs her. She is still conscious when Mike and Abby drag her out of Freddy’s, but Five Nights at Freddy’s ending reveals Vanessa falls into a coma. Considering she doesn't die from her stab wound, Vanessa will likely wake up from her coma. It might take her a while to recover, but if Five Nights at Freddy’s wanted to kill her off, it would have. Vanessa is integral to the fight against William, and her knowledge of the past is essential to any future film.

Is Aunt Jane Still Alive At The End Of Five Nights At Freddy’s?

She Might've Been Killed By Freddy

Aunt Jane is a menace throughout Five Nights at Freddy’s. She is adamant about taking custody of Abby and even hires a group to ransack Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza to get Mike fired. However, she all but disappeared after being attacked by Freddy Fazbear himself. When Abby is taken from her home, Jane is seen on the floor of the living room, but there’s no close-up or confirmation regarding what actually happened to her.

It’s possible Freddy killed her like he did with Max and her brother. However, the fact that Mike and Abby don’t mention her at the end of the film suggests she probably survived. It would have been interesting to see how she perceived the events and whether it terrified her enough to drop the custody case against Mike, but if she isn’t dead, then it means she could be gearing up to continue the custody battle when she’s feeling less rattled. Either way, her survival, like Vanessa’s, is likely.

What Five Nights At Freddy's Changed From The Game

The Movie Had Different Characters & A Later Reveal Of William Afton

Despite small changes in Five Nights at Freddy’s, the movie follows the first game rather closely. Mike is still a night security guard who takes a job looking after the abandoned restaurant and the animatronics’ backstory is similar as well. The biggest change is the introduction of Abby, a character created for the film. While the ghost kids wanted to shove Mike into a spare animatronic suit in the game, Abby is the one they want in the movie adaptation.

Abby being in Five Nights at Freddy’s gives Mike more character development, pushing him to fight off the animatronics.

What’s more, William’s role as the serial killer is revealed early on in the game, but his involvement is kept a secret throughout the film. In the games, William is already dead, and his ghost possesses Springtrap. However, the Five Nights at Freddy’s movie keeps him alive until the end of the film. Elizabeth is the name of William’s daughter, but the film swaps her out for Vanessa, a security guard in the games.

The film adaptation doesn’t introduce William’s son Michael, though it’s worth noting that Five Nights at Freddy’s doesn’t actually reveal Mike’s last name.

How William’s Ending Sets Up Five Nights At Freddy’s 2

It Could Follow The Video Game History

The ending of Five Nights at Freddy's teases the return of William Afton as Springtrap in Five Nights at Freddy's 2. Because Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza remains intact, it stands to reason that William could return regardless of whether he lives or dies. If he lives, he'll undoubtedly try to kill more children. If his ghost possesses the spring-lock suit, he could come after Abby and Garrett as revenge for the pair taking him down.

Mike and Abby’s involvement in the Five Nights at Freddy's sequel remains nebulous; however, they could be drawn back to it if Abby decides to check in on her animatronic friends. Additionally, the question remains where Garrett's ghost went if Afton killed him like the others. All of these storylines could be explored further in Five Nights at Freddy's 2.

What Director Emma Tammi Has Said About Five Nights At Freddy's Ending & Future

The Future Is Bright For Five Nights At Freddy’s

Three months after Five Nights at Freddy's release, Josh Hutcherson confirmed that the sequel was officially happening with Emma Tammi at the helm again. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Tammi discussed the movie's ending and future films in the franchise. She refrained from denying the speculation about Garrett's ghost, saying:

I feel like that could also be a nice thing for the fan base to mull over. I’d love to not shut down anyone’s theories.

She mentioned that they would need to wrap up loose ends like Aunt Mary possibly dying in the sequel. Tammi also confirmed that everyone is on board to make Five Nights at Freddy's 2. Read her statement below:

We’re all, including myself, very excited to keep making movies in this universe if we’re lucky enough to do so and this first one does well.

Between the official confirmation of Five Nights at Freddy's 2 and the excitement of Tammi and the rest of the production team, the sequel looks more promising every day. Now, it's just a matter of waiting for more news about the upcoming project.

The Real Meaning Of The Five Nights At Freddy's Ending

The Story Is Seeped In Childhood Trauma

The entire meaning behind Five Nights at Freddy's is a story of trauma and how it can destroy a person's life. Throughout the story, Mike suffers from PTSD and the trauma of watching someone kidnap his little brother. He couldn't save him, and he blames himself for the disappearance, even though there was nothing he could have done. As a result, he neglects his surviving sibling and beats himself up regularly as he obsesses over what happened to his brother that fateful day.

It all ties together with the Five Nights at Freddy's ending, where Mike doesn't find his brother, but he learns what happened to him all those years ago. He now has other children that William Afton killed as possessed, murderous animatronics, and he has a chance to finally avenge his loss and save his sister at the same time. It is a way for Mike to absolve himself of the blame he lives with while doing for his sister what he never could before — save her from the boogeyman child killer.

However, there is also a final twist. Mike saves his sister and helps turn the animatronics against William Afton. Once they kill him and drag his body away, Mike and his sister can finally live the life they deserve, with Mike finally acting as the responsible caretaker for her and the two moving past all their tragedy. However, if the children's spirits live on in their animatronics, William Afton's spirit should also live on, and he might become deadlier than ever, meaning Mike's peace might be short-lived in Five Nights at Freddy's sequel.

Five Nights at Freddy's

R

Horror

Thriller

Where to Watch

*Availability in US

• stream
• rent
• buy

Director

Emma Tammi

Release Date

October 27, 2023

Studio(s)

Blumhouse Productions , Scott Cawthon Productions , Striker Entertainment

Distributor(s)

Universal Pictures

Writers

Scott Cawthon , Seth Cuddeback , Emma Tammi

Cast

Josh Hutcherson , Matthew Lillard , Elizabeth Lail , Piper Rubio , Mary Stuart Masterson , Kevin Foster , Jade Kindar-Martin , Jessica Weiss , Roger Joseph Manning Jr.

Runtime

109 Minutes

Franchise(s)

Five Nights at Freddy's

Budget

$25 Million