The Gorge: Does Bartholomew die? The fate of the character in the Apple TV+ movie revealed

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for The Gorge on Apple TV+. Reader discretion is advised.

Scott Derickson's The Gorge has scored a significant success for Apple TV+ since it marked the biggest movie launch in the streamer's history. This romantic mystery thriller was released on the 14th of February, making it a fine choice for a Valentine's Day watch. Considering these numbers, the film has certainly struck a chord with many viewers. It doesn't come as a surprise when the likes of Anya Taylor-Joy and Miles Teller were leading it. While they both have been in romantic films, The Gorge offered romance and a few things more.

One of these things was a mystery surrounding the titular gorge. Taylor-Joy's Drasa and Teller's Levi are put on the other side of a seemingly endless pit and are mandated to not interact with each other. However, they are also isolated from the outside world. It brings them closer, literally and figuratively. While the love blooms, they are forced to confront the truth about their missions. As they fall into the deep hollow, Levi learns a crucial detail about his American handler, Bartholomew (Sigourney Weaver), who hid her involvement in a clandestine operation. The same secret leads to her tragic death.

The Gorge: Levi & Drasa's love and discovery

The Gorge is designed in such a way that its romance is integral to its mysterious thriller. It begins when the US government sends Levi and the Kremlin sends Drasa to protect a secret location, inhabited by strange creatures. They are placed on opposite sides of a deep ravine and are expected not to communicate with each other or the outside world. Initially, they both stick to this protocol. However, they cannot resist the distance and start communicating in one or the other way.

Starting with placards, they eventually decide to be by each other's sides. So, Levi ziplines to Drasa's side to be with her. Their romance builds on a reunion between the east and the west sides of the ravine. Co-incidentally, the ravine holds a secret that connects the global east to the west. It traces back to the 1940s when the soldiers, who arrived at this location, never left. Levi and Drasa learn about the secret mission that did not go as planned. It led to strange mutations of people who couldn't escape the site.

Levi and Drasa are sent on this mission because they are considered dispensable - because of their troubled past. As Levi's Handler, Bartholomew saw him as a suitable candidate since he did not have anything he wanted to return to.

The Gorge: Bartholomew's Motive and Fate explored

Bartholomew hides her country's secret operation from Levi and expects him only to follow her protocols. However, upon falling into the gorge, Levi learns about that operation - to research genetic mutations in order to build super soldiers. He realizes that Bartholomew withheld this information since it would expose the country's dark history. She believed the less Levi knew, the better it was for both.

Bartholomew saw Levi as an expendable resource, considering his dark past in the Marine Corps that led to his severe mental health struggles. So, she decides to execute him when he catches his lie about never having been in the gorge. Toward the film's end, she shows up at the site with her armed forces and uses drones to do the deed. However, Levi and Drasa use a calculated set of measures according to the "stray dog" protocol, which leads to Bartholomew's death.