The Uncharted movie ending might not be as straightforward as you were expecting. The final act of the Tom Holland-led video game adaptation sees several twists, turns, and sequel setups begin to take shape.
Throughout the final half an hour, names are dropped and revelations bubble to the surface. It comes so thick and fast that you may have a hard time keeping up. But we’re here to help map out the Uncharted ending, from *those* post-credits, to an in-depth exploration of certain characters’ motivations.
Spoilers inevitably follow but, to ensure we’re all on the same page, here’s a quick recap of the Uncharted ending.
Uncharted ending: the recap
The final act of Uncharted kicks into gear with Moncada (Antonio Banderas) giving a pep talk to his men aboard his cargo plane on the way to capture explorer Ferdinand Magellan’s gold in the Philippines. Unfortunately for him, that rallying cry is cut short by his henchwoman Braddock (Tati Gabrielle), who unceremoniously slits his throat. Braddock then takes control of the whole operation. Moncada’s men – being mercenaries, of course – are happy to go along with the new plan.
Fearing a double double-cross, Chloe (who was in league with Moncada) tries to escape. Unbeknownst to everyone, Sully and Nate have smuggled themselves onboard in the trunk of Monacada’s swanky red convertible.
Then, we finally catch up to the very first scene in the movie. Nate just about survives a hefty fall from the cargo plane, taking several of Moncada’s men on a one-way trip to a watery grave. Sully parachutes away, while Chloe drives Moncada’s car off the landing platform and rescues Nate.
The pair then retreat to a resort off the Banda sea. While Chloe sleeps, Nate figures out the coordinates of the Magellan gold. In a clever twist, he writes down fake coordinates and places them in the open for Chloe to see. When she wakes, she takes off with the coordinates and Nate uses the real coordinates (hidden inside a bottle) and heads towards the cave containing the pirate ships that hold the gold.
While on the ship, Nate bumps into Sully. The two stock up on gold but are quickly forced to hide due to Braddock and her forces entering the cavern and winching the ships onto a helicopter and lifting them out.
A fight ensues, Sully hijacks one of the helicopters, Nate destroys the other with a cannonball.
Sully puts on autopilot to go and get his bag of gold which is caught on the helicopter. Nate is stopped by Braddock, who throws the anchor overboard to halt the ship. Sully sacrifices his gold by throwing it at Braddock who falls into the sea. Nate and Sully get into the helicopter and the ship drops from the sky and on to Braddock, killing her.
Nate apologizes but Sully doesn’t hear him through the headset. Chloe is seen below in pursuit of Nate and Sully as they fly away. Nate reveals he’s kept some of the gold and gives it to Sully.
Why did Braddock kill Moncada?
The House of Moncada has fallen. In the movie’s big surprise moment, Braddock kills Monacada in cold blood right before he was set to accomplish his life’s work.
But why? The easy answer is usually the simplest: Braddock could never be trusted. Right from the get-go at the auction house, Sully told Nate to run a mile if his rival ever approached them. Braddock also clearly felt slighted by Moncada going in another direction in pursuit of Magellan’s gold by hiring Chloe. That, when coupled with Moncada seriously taking his eye off the ball in the inheritance-shaped spat with his father, probably gave Braddock all the ammunition (and opportunity) she needed to off him and keep the treasure for herself.
How did Nate find Magellan’s gold?
Nate finds a hidden message in one of the postcards that Sam sent him while he was off looking for the keys to Magellan’s gold. The pair of bejeweled crucifixes weren’t just literal keys. Alongside the ‘ladder’ shape from earlier in the film, they serve another purpose: Nate places them on a map as a joined-together ‘compass’ that point out the exact coordinates of the pirate ship o’ plunder.
Why does Nate ‘betray’ Chloe?
If Uncharted has a moral, it’s that thieves can never be trusted. Earlier in the movie, Chloe swipes the Cruz de la Hermandad from Nate’s bag. She’s later shown to be in league with Moncada. Whatever her current intentions when she joins forces with Nate towards the end of the movie, she was never going to play nice and split the loot.
Nate, then, applies his biggest lesson learned: always stay ahead of the game. His hunch was proven right, too, as Chloe heads off without Nate to the gold’s (false) location. Check and mate, Chloe.
Are Nate and Sully now thick as thieves?
Nate and Sully’s on-again, off-again partnership forms the core of Uncharted’s emotional tension. After finally spilling the beans on Sam’s ‘fate’, it appeared Sully was on the outs with a deeply upset Nate. The two eventually do begrudgingly reconcile to get one over on Moncada, though they clearly remain on shaky ground. That is, until the movie’s final minutes. Sully proves his worth by ditching his gold (and greed, a particular sticking point for Nate) and helps save Holland’s plucky young adventurer in the process. Sully bursting in to save the day in the second post-credits scene with Nate and Gage (Pilou Asbaek) all but confirms the two will be in cahoots for any future instalments.
What are the post-credits scenes setting up?
Did you stick around until after the credits? Let’s hope so; the Uncharted post-credits scenes aren’t mere throwaways. The first shows Nate’s brother Sam alive in a prison. If you’ve played Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End, you’ll immediately recognize this scenario. In the games, Sam was also presumed dead after being shot and ended up in a far-off prison. Expect Nate to discover Sam is locked up if a sequel gets the green light.
Perhaps more immediate, however, is the sticky situation Nate and Sully get themselves into in the second post-credits scene. Gage sits down with Nate to talk shop about a future opportunity. The details (Nazi map, Drake’s ring, a man named ‘Roman’) are all far too similar to the plot to Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune for it not to be a coincidence. If that’s the case, then Uncharted is setting the scene for a sequel that could bring in journalist/Nate love interest Elena, as well as the hunt for El Dorado, and the location of Panama.
Following that, discussions with Gage pretty quickly fall by the wayside and, as Nate and Sully make their escape, they are caught by an unseen figure. Who could it be? Chloe is the obvious guess, having been left high and dry in the movie’s ending. But don’t be surprised if Elena (or another villain) makes a surprise appearance too.
Where is Sam now?
If the Uncharted movie series is intent on following the games (and it’s certainly done its bit with the first movie’s grab bag of winks and nods to Naughty Dog’s series), it stands to reason that Sam is holed up in a Panama prison. Curiously enough, that is also looking like the next destination for Nate on his hunt for El Dorado. What a coincidence…
Who is Roman?
Granted, even some big Uncharted fans might not remember Gabriel Roman, the slimy criminal-turned-collector that proved a major thorn in Nate and Sully’s side in Drake’s Fortune. He’s likely going to serve in a Moncada-esque role in any potential sequel, with Gage providing the muscle.
What next for Uncharted?
That’s still unclear. If the movie makes bank (it’s hard to put a ballpark figure on a ‘good’ return in pandemic times, but $350m will likely do it), then a sequel is almost certainly going to be a goer at Sony. Nothing has been announced as of writing yet, while there’s also been no word of Tom Holland signing on as Nathan Drake in a Marvel-style multiple picture deal. Things are very much up in the air for now but, as the post-credits prove, plans are clearly in motion for a franchise to be built out of this.
