Nocturnal Animals ending explained: How does Edward seek revenge?

Nocturnal Animals took home the Grand Jury Prize after its premiere at the 2016 Venice Film Festival. It was written and directed by Tom Ford who adapted it from Austin Wright's 1993 book Tony and Susan. Ford, who is also a fashion designer, co-produced the film with Robert Salerno and it was released on November 18, 2016. The film was a success and Michael Shannon ended up receiving an Oscar nomination for best supporting actor.

Nocturnal Animals stars Amy Adams playing the role of Susan Morrow while Jake Gyllenhaal is Edward Sheffield. It revolves around Susan as she begins reading the novel by Edward, her ex-husband. As she keeps reading it, she realizes that there are parallels between his story and their relationship.

There has been much debate and curiosity on how this neo-noir psychological thriller ends. So let's explore its ending.

What is the plot of Nocturnal Animals?

Nocturnal Animals is about Susan Morrow who is the owner of an elite art gallery in Los Angeles. She is married to businessman Hutton Morrow who is unfaithful towards her. One day, she receives a novel written by her ex-husband Edward Sheffield which is dedicated to her. As she starts reading it, Susan realizes how it has echoes of her relationship with Edward. The official synopsis of the film reads,

A wealthy art gallery owner is haunted by her ex-husband's novel, a violent thriller she interprets as a symbolic revenge tale.

How does Nocturnal Animals end?

A still from Nocturnal Animals | Image via Focus Features YouTube

Towards the end of Nocturnal Animals, Susan finds out that her husband Hutton is cheating on her. She then resumes reading the novel and it reminds her of her rapport with her mother and how her relationship with Edward fell apart. We find out that she aborted their child and she ended up marrying Hutton.

After finishing the book, reflects on her life choices and also gets worried about her daughter because of the novel's horrific ending. She later on invites Edward for a meeting at a restaurant. However, Edward does not show up and Susan has to sit there all alone. This final frame signifies how Edward has taken his revenge on her for leaving him. During the last days of their relationship, he wanted her to stay and loved her, but Susan decided to walk away, only to get stuck in a soulless marriage.

The novel also made her reflect on how she took Edward's writing aspirations lightly. There are clear parallels between what happened to Tony in the novel and Edward in real life. Just like the protagonist in the novel, Susan is left and is on her own. While there is no way that Edward was aware of Susan's cheating husband, this scenario further makes the situation bleaker for her. Just like she had abandoned Edward, she is now sitting in a restaurant all alone and abandoned. While he is a successful writer, Susan can only reflect on her life choices. As the film's title and her nickname (given by Edward) suggests, Susan is a nocturnal animal as the curtains roll and Nocturnal Animals ends.

Speaking to Vox, Ford revealed that the main theme of the story is. He said,

"I read the book, and I couldn’t put it down. I absolutely loved it. ... The central theme of the story is really about finding people in your life that are important and not letting go of them."