Jacques Audiard is one of the beloved global filmmakers working today. From Oscar-nominated “A Prophet” to Palme d’Or-winning “Dheepan,” he has earned the kind of reputation that will make cinephiles excited for any of his projects. His latest film, “Emilia Perez” (2024) is a striking addition to his filmography that explores grave real-life issues through a musical. Thanks to its dazzling set pieces and compelling acting performances, it has been making splashes since its Cannes premiere. Considered to be a frontrunner at the upcoming 97th Academy Awards, it is now streaming on Netflix. Find its gut-wrenching ending explained here.
Spoilers Ahead
Emilia Pérez (2024) Plot Summary & Movie Synopsis:
Set in Mexico, “Emilia Pérez” is a musical drama film on Netflix that revolves around three women, who find themselves in an interconnected web of love and crime. Driven by the pursuit of their authentic selves, they take actions that upend their lives.
What happens in ‘Emilia Pérez’ on Netflix?
“Emilia Pérez” on Netflix initially follows Rita Moro Castro (Zoe Saldana), an ambitious but underappreciated lawyer in Mexico, trying to find her footing in a world plagued by deep-rooted sexism. She started working for her boss, hoping it would provide her with the means to start her own practice. Unfortunately, she toils at this job for years, being underpaid, undervalued, and ignored. She has to overlook her morality to serve the clients of her firm, one of whom, happens to be a man responsible for the death of his wife. Rita helps her boss fight a case for this evil man by proving that his wife killed herself.
While trying to shed her sense of hopelessness, Rita receives a mysterious call from a stranger, who offers her a chance to get out of her miserable present life and fulfill her dreams. So, Rita meets this client, introduced as the cartel kingpin Juan ‘Manitas’ Del Monte, who asks her for legal help to undergo a gender-affirming surgery to start a new life as her authentic self. In exchange, Rita will get duly compensated with an exorbitant amount that can allow her to leave her wretched job. Despite her initial hesitation, Rita accepts the offer after hearing about the kingpin’s struggle with gender dysphoria.
Soon, Rita travels to Bangkok and Tel Aviv to find a surgeon and convinces Dr. Wasserman (Mark Ivanir). It allows Emilia Pérez (Karla Sofía Gascón) to begin living her life authentically. Back at home, Rita spreads the news of Manitas’ death and helps Emilia’s wife, Jessi (Selena Gomez) restart their lives.
Rita & Emilia’s Reunion
After receiving a huge sum from Emilia, Rita leaves Mexico and begins her new life, enjoying the life her wealth affords her to live. About four years later, she crosses paths with Emilia at a dinner party. Emilia wants her to reunite with her children. So, Rita is tasked with bringing Jessi and her children to Mexico City to live with Emilia, who claims to be Manitas’ distant cousin. Jessi or the kids do not recognize Emilia. So, after a brief hesitation, Jessi agrees to stay at Emilia’s house. While Emilia hopes to fulfill all her hopes as a woman, the shadows of her past loom darker on her present.
Rita reminds Emilia of her dark past and the cruelties she inflicted on others as a cartel kingpin. Emilia was responsible for several missing persons cases across the country, which has been Mexico’s institutional problem for several years. Now, she regrets those decisions and decides to make amends. So, she helps to locate the remains of a man that the cartel buried and returns them to his grieving wife.
It makes her feel good about herself. Being motivated by that emotion, she starts a non-profit organization with Rita to help people find their loved ones. It boosts her popularity as a conscientious woman and leads her to meet Epifanía (Adriana Paz) since her NPO helps identify the remains of Epifania’s late, abusive husband.
Emilia and Jessi’s New Lives
Jessi moves in with Emilia but finds it awkward to adjust to the new environment. She stays lost in the thoughts about her past lover, Gustavo Brun (Edgar Ramírez) with whom she had an affair while being married to Emilia. As it happens, Emilia grows fond of Epifanía and gets into a romantic relationship with her. Yet, things soon take a turn for the worse as the cartel sees Emilia as a threat to their crimes. While battling their opposing voices, Emilia also needs to face the reality of her marriage. Like her, Jessi is also madly in love with someone. So, it’s natural that she wants to start a life with him.
Jessi hopes to move in with Gustavo. This means Emilia can’t be with their kids anymore. Upon realizing that, she gets physically violent with Jessi and refers to their children as ‘mine.’ It confuses Jessi since she knows Emilia only as Manitas’ distant cousin. The next morning, she suddenly vanishes with their kids without informing Emilia about her plans. Emilia refuses to bow down to the pressure. She cuts the funds going to Jessi to pressure her into returning to her house. Instead, it fuels Jessi with rage as she cannot access what her late partner left her. It leads her to take a reckless step that causes a seismic shift in everyone involved in it.
Emilia Pérez (2024) Movie Ending Explained:
Does Jessi learn the truth about Emilia’s identity?
After Jessi flees with her children, Emilia gets furious. She cuts the financial support to Jessi and pressures Gustavo to leave her. Soon after, Emilia gets kidnapped by some unknown forces, who send her severed fingers to threaten Rita to meet their demands. Rita realizes that Jessi and Gustavo are behind the abduction, which they look at as an act of retribution to get what is theirs. She hires a group of assailants who join her at the designated location to negotiate a deal. There, a violent shootout ensues leading Emilia to reveal her identity to Jessi.
Emilia recounts details from their first meeting and their wedding that only she and Jessi could have known. Soon, Gustavo rescues Jessi, locks Emilia in his trunk, and drives off. Jessi slowly processes what she just heard and urges Gustavo to stop the car by holding him at gunpoint. He refuses to pull over and tries to snatch the gun away from her. That struggle leads him to lose control of his car, which falls into the ditch, killing the three of them. The ending of “Emilia Perez” shows Rita deciding to be the guardian of Emilia and Jessi’s children after their deaths.
The film closes with a stirring epilogue as Epifanía parades in a street singing about Emilia’s resilience and her fight for truth and freedom.
