‘Poor Things’ ending explained: what happens to Bella Baxter?

Spoilers ahead Poor Things looks set to be one of the major films of the 2024 award season. Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos ( The Favourite, The Lobster ), the sci fi black comedy follows young woman Bella Baxter ( Emma Stone ) who, after dying by suicide, is resurrected by a scientist and runs off with a debauched lawyer on a journey of self discovery.

The film is based on a novel of the same name by Alasdair Gray. Alongside Stone, the cast includes Mark Ruffalo, Willem Dafoe, Ramy Youssef, Christopher Abbott, Kathryn Hunter, Jerrod Carmichael, Hanna Schygulla and Margaret Qualley. Emma Stone in ‘Poor Things’. CREDIT: Atsushi Nishijima/Searchlight Pictures At the wedding ceremony between Bella Baxter and Max McCandles (Ramy Youssef), Alfie Blessington (Christopher Abbott), the ex husband of Bella’s mother, interrupts and implores Bella, who he believes is her mother Victoria Blessington, to return with him.

Bella abandons Max at the altar, keen to learn of her mother’s past life with Alfie. At his mansion, however, Bella soon discovers the nature of their relationship – with her mother having killed herself to escape his abuse. Alfie threatens Bella at gunpoint if she doesn’t submit to undergoing genital mutilation, and demands she drink a chloroform laced drink.

Bella throws the drink in his face, which causes Alfie to shoot himself in the foot and pass out. Bella returns to Godwin Baxter’s (Willem Dafoe) home with passed out Alfie, where she performs the same surgery on him that Godwin performed on her – swapping his brain with that of a goat. We later see Godwin die peacefully with Bella and Max at her side, who then decide to continue his legacy by studying surgery and taking over the ward.

In a four star review of Poor Things , NME wrote: “While its oddball nature won’t be to all tastes, the championing of female guile over insufferable male idiocy will surely leave many with a big smile on their faces.”.