Warning: massive spoilers for Netflix’s Red Notice are in play. If you haven’t seen the movie just yet, you may want to turn around and head to CinemaBlend’s non-spoiler coverage of the movie.
An adventure as massive as writer/director Rawson Marshall Thurber’s Red Notice needs to have a finale that’s equally prolific. That should go without saying, as any movie that’s able to put Ryan Reynolds, Dwayne Johnson, and Gal Gadot in the same story has to go big or go home. As such, the Red Notice ending is something that delivers on that promise, and sets up some potential fun for the future. This is your last call for spoilers, as we’re about to reveal the clues that piece it all together.
What Happened At The End Of Red Notice?
Through a globetrotting caper that takes them on one hell of a journey, FBI profiler John Hartley (Dwayne Johnson) and Nolan Booth (Ryan Reynolds) are forced to work together with their common foe. After trying to outsmart each other during this movie’s treasure hunt, Hartley and Booth must team with Sarah Black (Gal Gadot), better known as “The Bishop,” in order to make it out of a secret cave in Argentina.
Not only must the trio escape Urvashi Das (Ritu Arya), the Interpol agent that’s been hot on their trail the whole time, but there’s the problem of the only exit out of said cave being located behind a waterfall. Oh, and the huge drop underneath that opening. Our team makes it out alive, but that leads to Red Notice’s final twist; and it’s a doozy that could make it one of the best movies on Netflix.
The Last Big Twist In Red Notice
It’s a funny story actually: at the beginning of Red Notice, John Hartley is pursuing Nolan Booth, but is ultimately framed by The Bishop as being dirty. Trying to help Urvashi Das capture both Hartley and Booth, Sarah Black sabotages the boys at every turn. Except, that’s not entirely the truth, as John and Sarah reveal to Nolan that they’re actually a team. They’re both The Bishop, and John really has been a thief this whole time!
Looking to cash in on the movie’s big score, the two thieves play themselves as rivals, with Sarah Black even romancing an arms dealer named Sotto Voce (Chris Diamantopolous) and electrocuting her lover’s more sensitive regions in the process. But all’s fair in love and heists, as the pair known as “The Bishop” were looking to make a huge score by collecting Cleopatra’s three eggs, and selling them to an Egyptian buyer who wanted them as a wedding present for his daughter.
The Tale Of Cleopatra’s Three Eggs
What could be a wedding present so valuable it’d eclipse a personal performance by Ed Sheeran? How about a fabled trio of eggs given to Cleopatra by Mark Antony, as a sign of how much he loved her upon their marriage? $300 million is riding on the acquisition and delivery of Red Notice’s huge MacGuffin, however there’s a huge catch that gums up the works. (Oh, and the blushing bride totally ignores Cleopatra’s Eggs for Sheeran at the reception. Surprise surprise.)
The location of only two of those eggs is known to the world, with the third supposedly vanishing to the sands of time. Which is another one of this movie’s lies, as one person does know where that third egg lies: the second best art thief, and neglected son of a history buff obsessed with said treasure, Nolan Booth. Sounds like it’s time for John Hartley and Sarah Black to play “The Bishop” game, and trick Nolan into a double crossing road trip to help out the cause.
Egg 1: Museo Nazionale di Castel Sant'Angelo - Rome, Italy
Acquiring the first egg of Red Notice’s complete caper seems easy enough. Nolan Booth builds a replica egg with a 3D printer, some shiny metals, and his boyish charm. Swapping the real egg for his own fake, he almost escapes John Hartley and Sarah Black in time to make it into the next episode of Antiques Roadshow.
However, John shows up with his own SWAT team, and Sarah disguises herself as part of the team to steal the egg from Interpol custody. Cue John and Nolan’s frozen prison escape, and someone literally trying to blow up Dwayne Johnson with a rocket launcher. The boys make it out in a helicopter, and are ready to run off to the sunny side of Spain.
Egg 2: Sotto Voce’s Vault - Valencia, Spain
Our next stop on the road is Valencia, Spain; home of infamous arms dealer/strangulation enthusiast Sotto Voce. Stealing this second egg makes Red Notice’s first act of thievery look like a shell game. Hidden in a vault that’s protected by biometric access points that require facial, vocal, and thumbprint recognition.
The first two are outsmarted by a clever deepfake app, while the third is faked out by a good old fashioned mold that lifts thumbprints from glasses. If it wasn’t for Sarah Black “interfering” with the lift, John Hartley and Nolan Booth could have been home free. Narrowly escaping death by surprise bullfighting match, it’s time for our lads to move onto the final piece of the puzzle.
Egg 3: Secret Nazi Treasure Cave - Argentina
Red Notice sees Nolan Booth, Sarah Black, and Frank Hartley embarking on a very Indiana Jones style adventure. During their stop in Valencia, Nolan lies to Sarah and says that the third egg lies in Cleopatra’s tomb. Which, if you’re not looking too deep, sounds like an accurate story. However, as he later admits to Frank, the third egg is in a place where the audience did Nazi coming.
Tying into the real life events that saw members of the Nazi party fleeing to Argentina in the final days of World War II, Cleopatra’s third egg is revealed to be part of a hidden cache of stolen artifacts from Adolf Hitler's collection. After a heartwarming reunion, in which Sarah admits she didn’t buy Nolan’s lies for a second, the three fight off some Interpol agents, and escape with all three eggs.
How Ryan Reynolds’ Red Notice Character Fits Into The Mix
So why was Nolan Booth so important that he was worth being duped by two thieves, a worldwide goose chase, and a nearly $200 million budget? Well, his father had an obsession with Nazi treasure, valuing a watch he acquired so greatly that when he thought Nolan had taken it, he stopped talking to him for about a week. Acting as a key and a map that were instrumental to acquiring the final egg, Red Notice’s entire story rested on the fate of this watch. Which is absolutely no excuse for Nolan’s father being an absent and rather cruel parent.
What’s The Next Score For The Red Notice Team?
With Sarah and John getting paid for the delivery of Cleopatra’s eggs, the pair double cross their buyer almost immediately. It’s not their first betrayal, as they left Nolan handcuffed to a tree in Argentina, before revealing their secret identities. Always the escape artist, Nolan catches up with the lovely couple, setting up the potential next score for the Red Notice team.
The film ends with Nolan, John, and Sarah lined up, ready to take on The Louvre and steal something that we don’t quite know about yet. Providing a cliffhanger ending to the movie that gave Netflix its most successful opening day ever was probably a smart move, as there’s plenty of places to go from here. Though with future heists comes the possibility for further double crosses, and even more shocking twists!
If you haven’t seen Red Notice, and proceeded to spoil it for yourself, don’t say we didn’t warn you. However, do feel free to check out the movie, as it’s streaming on Netflix and playing in limited theatrical release. If you’re looking for your next score, check out 2021’s new movie releases, and see what’s headed to a theater near you. Or, take a look at the 2021 Netflix movie premiere dates, and see what other streaming hits are on the horizon.
