'The Revenant' ending explained: Did Hugh Glass survive after the fight with Fitzgerald?

The Revenant is a 2015 American epic Revisionist Western film directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu. The movie is based in part on Michael Punke's 2002 novel of the same name, which describes frontiersman Hugh Glass's experiences in the year 1823. The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hardy, Domhnall Gleeson, and Will Poulter and portrays Hugh Glass’s desperate fight for survival and revenge on the American frontier.

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The Revenant Ending explained 

According to a report by Cinema Blend, the Revenant is based on a true story and all the events that took place in Hugh Glass's life in the movie happened in reality too. The director and writer of the action-adventure movie set the tone early on in the narrative, staging an assault on a group of fur trappers by Native Americans, portrayed not just as enemies but a violent force of nature. The frontiersman Hugh Glass, portrayed on screen by Leonardo DiCaprio sustains life-threatening injuries from a brutal bear attack. When a member of his hunting team named Fitzgerald kills his young son and leaves him for dead, Glass utilizes his survival skills to find a way back to civilization. Grief-stricken and fueled by vengeance, the legendary fur trapper treks through the snowy terrain to track down the man who betrayed him.

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Ending of the Revenant 

Hugh Glass subsequently finds his way to Fitzgerald, the killer of his son, and corners him by a slushy creek. Fitzgerald and Hugh Glass get into a fight that is just as merciless and dangerous as his brawl with the grizzly bear. Both the men appear heavily wounded, Glass sends the bleeding and broken body of his opponent down the river. In his last moments, Fitzgerald manages to keep a brave face and mocks Glass till his dying breath. Before his demise, Fitzgerald says, "Well you enjoy it Glass because there ain’t anything that’ll bring your boy back." 

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Hugh appears frightened and far from safety when the ghostly visage of his dead wife appears. The closing images of the film are of Hugh Glass watching in utter despair as she turns away from his snow-encrusted beard and walks into the distance while he keeps breathing. He keeps breathing even after the credits have begun. There were doubts among the audience if Leo's character survives in the end or not but the answer to that lies at the beginning of the film when Glass tells his son, "It’s okay son, I know you want this to be over. I’m right here. I will be right here. But you don’t give up. Do you hear me? As long as you can still grab a breath, you fight. You breathe… keep breathing.” 

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Image Credits: 20th Century Studios Youtube Channel