Warning: The following article contains spoilers to Netflix’s Red Notice.
Red Notice has shot straight to the number one spot on Netflix—and it’s not hard to see why.
The film follows FBI agent John Hartley (Dwayne Johnson) and two “pro” thieves The Bishop (Gal Gadot) and Nolan Booth (Ryan Reynolds) who embark on a mission around the globe to find three invaluable eggs believed to have once belonged to Egyptian Queen, Cleopatra.
As the they seek out each of the eggs, unlikely bonds are formed. We, the viewers can’t help but root for them as the film barrels towards its end—but then comes a twist none of us could’ve predicted, and it throws everything into disarray.
If you’ve watched the movie to the end, we wouldn’t blame you for being a little confused by what happened and what that means for their future.
To break things down for you, we’ve unpacked the ending to Red Notice in its entirety—plus, the theory about what might come next in *that* unconfirmed sequel. Strap in, this is quite the ride.
What is the plot of Red Notice?
Red Notice begins with FBI profiler John Hartley apprehending thief Nolan Booth as he attempts to steal one of Cleopatra’s eggs.
Things get weirder when the egg goes missing while Booth is in custody—with only the viewer aware that The Bishop swiped the artefact while it was in police transit.
Hartley is blamed for the missing egg and is apprehended alongside Booth. While in custody, they both agree to hunt down the missing egg themselves in order to clear their names and take the priceless treasure for themselves.
Red Notice’s ending explained
The clues lead Booth and Hartley to the South American jungle where they hope to find the egg, but they’re are followed by the relentless Bishop.
There, Booth and Hartley capture the egg, but in the subsequent chase, the car they’re in plummets off a waterfall. Booth manages to make it to the surface with the missing egg, but Hartley is no where to be seen.
The thief shows his real side when he decides to sacrifice the safety of the egg by leaving it on the shore while he dives back into the water to try and save Hartley’s life.
Then, the shock twist—Hartley steps out of the jungle and grabs the egg, who then reveals to a shocked Booth that he and The Bishop are actually romantic partners and have been working together the whole time.
In a slew of flashback scenes where the couple recover the first and second eggs together, one in Bali, the other in Sotto Voce, Hartley explains they used Booth to lead them to the final piece of the puzzle.
They leave the thief tied to a tree, call the police on him and run away with the intention of living on a yacht for their rest of their lives and basking in the riches the eggs provide.
But Booth isn’t one to be messed around. In the second to last scene, Booth surprises the bandits on their yacht, revealing he escaped from the police’s grasp and he has a new job for all three of them.
“There’s a new score,” he tells them.
“Double the payout, triple the challenge, plus here’s the best part: it’s a three-thief job.”
In the final scene, Booth, Hartley and The Bishop are seen in front of The Louvre in Paris where we can only assume their next job awaits.
What happens to Booth, Hartley and The Bishop after Red Notice?
We’re hoping the cliff-hanger ending to Red Notice sets us up nicely for a sequel film, and fans already have theories as to what that might entail.
The fact they’re standing outside the Louvre in that last scene suggests the next challenge proposed by Booth will involve a heist within the iconic Parisian gallery.
The art inside the gallery is worth an estimated AUD$64 billion, so there’s certainly a lot to be gained if the three pro-thieves can manage to crack the landmark fortress (fictionally only, of course).
Will there be a Red Notice 2?
While a second film hasn’t been confirmed at this stage, it’s highly likely a sequel will get the green light soon, especially considering its success on Netflix.
The film’s producer Dany Garcia told Variety that a follow up film was definitely on the table.
“What we have planned is to let’s see how this goes. I think there is… it’s almost like ‘franchise’ is just part of our conversation. But we’re also smart enough to say, ‘Let’s see how everything goes.'”
We’ll just be over here waiting patiently!
You can stream Red Notice on Netflix here.
