The Boogeyman (2023) – What Happened, How It Ended, and What Could Come Next

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A summary of how “The Boogeyman” (2023) ended, its major storylines, and whether a prequel or sequel is possible.

Director(s)	Rob Savage
Screenplay By	Scott Beck, Bryan Woods, Mark Heyman
Based On	A Short Story by Stephen King
Date Released (In Theaters)	June 2, 2023
Noted Cast
Sadie Harper	Sophie Thatcher
Sawyer Harper	Vivien Lyra Blair
Will Harper	Chris Messina
Dr. Weller	LisaGay Hamilton
Bethany	Madison Hu
Natalie	Maddie Nichols
Lester	David Dastmalchian
Rita	Marin Ireland

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Major Storylines

Sawyer’s Struggle With The Dark

It isn’t clear why, but Sawyer has an extensive fear of the dark even before The Boogeyman arrives. Chalk it up to her being a kid, but it is so bad that she sleeps with a well-lit moonball, she has lights across her wall, and Will even has her go to see a fellow therapist, Dr. Weller, who is trying her best to get to the root of the issue and uproot it.

That isn’t necessarily done in this film.

Will’s Avoidance Of His Wife’s Death

Will’s wife dying due to a car accident haunts him, and despite being a therapist, he has little desire to deal with what happened to her in a healthy way. He avoids talking about it with Sadie, doesn’t go to counseling himself, and the only way he seems willing to deal with her lingering presence is to move all of her artwork and clothes to the basement to be gotten rid of, which is an act he does in the middle of the night to avoid talking about what he is doing with Sadie.

Sadie’s Struggle To Readjust At School

After taking a month off from school, Sadie finds coming back to school hard. So many are giving their condolences, despite having no relationship with her, and while her best friend Bethany is better than others, she, unfortunately, has made friends with a girl named Natalie. Natalie is an ass who has little to no sympathy for Sadie and finds her to be a downer. This leads to Bethany being put in the middle of their growing beef, her loyalties often questioned, and her often having to prove herself to still be Sadie’s best friend.

Sadie Finding A Way To Kill The Boogeyman

As it increasingly becomes clear the Boogeyman isn’t part of Sawyer’s imagination but real, Sadie investigates one of her father’s clients, Lester, who she saw hang himself and seemingly may have witnessed or dealt with the Boogeyman. With listening to a recording of their interaction, which includes him noting the death of his children, and then seeing an image of the Boogeyman that Lester’s eldest drew, she finds herself seeking answers.

This draws her to Rita, Lester’s wife, who is at war with the Boogeyman, who seemingly is able to traverse from Sadie’s home to Rita’s dilapidated home with ease. But, one thing Rita has been trying to figure out is how to harm the Boogeyman, and the answer isn’t light, even though it shies away from the light. Rather, it is fire. Rita sets up the Boogeyman, using Sadie as bait, to shoot it with a shotgun repeatedly, but beyond showing it can bleed, she doesn’t learn anything.

How Did It End?

Ultimately, a combination of Sadie and Sawyer kills the Boogeyman. After their house is taken over, as the Boogeyman has brought them to a level of fear that makes them ripe, it originally goes after Will and Sawyer first, after it nearly killed Sawyer and sent her to the hospital. Luckily, Sawyer was able to get away, but the Boogeyman was in the process of killing Will in the basement.

When Sadie arrives, she finds Sawyer, who has a spray, and when combined with the lighter of her mother’s, that Sadie has, they learn that fire is the best way to kill the Boogeyman. Unfortunately, in the process of saving their dad and killing the Boogeyman, they burn their house down, but they are made to feel they maybe defeated it.

Is There Sequel/ Prequel Potential?

However, after a family therapy session with Dr. Weller, we’re led to believe they didn’t defeat the Boogeyman permanently. As the Harper family leaves Dr. Weller’s office, Sadie thinks she hears Dr. Weller call to her and finds herself in a similar predicament as before, where a familiar voice lures her. Sadie knows this is what the Boogeyman does, but, as she has done throughout the movie, she investigates rather than allow her curiosity to act as a warning. It seems to be coming from the closet, the Boogeyman’s favorite place to watch, but as it becomes clear, it wasn’t Dr. Weller, Sadie shuts the closet door and leaves.

Thus, it appears the Boogeyman is still alive, but Sadie has closed that door, and chapter, of her life.