‘Madame Web’ ending explained: Dakota Johnson’s superhero movie sets up a sequel that will likely never happen (2024)

Madame Web is arguably the most talked-about and least-watched movie of 2024 so far—considering the film made less than $100 millionat the global box office—but that could all change now that Madame Web is streaming on Netflix.

The latest Spider-Man adjacent movie from Sony began streaming on Netflix today, directed by S. J. Clarkson. Based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name, the movie stars Dakota Johnson as Madame Web, a niche comics character who first appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man in 1980. But hey, if Sony stops pumping out Spider-Man movies, they’ll lose their copyright on the highly profitable character.

Unfortunately, though many people were happy to joke about Madame Web online, they weren’t willing to commit to the bit by buying a ticket to the movies. But now that Madame Web is streaming on Netflix, perhaps it will be a hit for ironic viewings. That said, because the movie isn’t that great, you may find yourself confused by the Madame Web ending.

Don’t worry, Decider is here to help. Read on for a breakdown of the Madame Web plot summary and Madame Web ending explained.

Madame Web plot summary:

The movie opens in Peru in 1973. A pregnant woman named Constance Webb (Kerry Bishé) and Ezekiel Sims (Tahar Rahim) are leading a research team in the hunt for a rare spider, which Constance believes has healing properties. Good news: Constance finds the special spider! Bad news: Ezekiel betrays her, shoots her team, shoots Constance, and steals the spider for himself.

While Constance lies bleeding out on the jungle floor, she is rescued by “Las Arañas,” a secret tribe of people with spider-like superpowers, whom Constance thought were a myth. Turns out, they are real! They can’t save Constance, but they do save her baby. Las Arañas leader Santiago (José María Yazpik) promises that someday when that baby comes looking for answers, he will provide them.

Cut to thirty years later. That baby is now an adult named Cassandra “Cassie” Webb (Dakota Johnson), and she’s a socially awkward, misanthropic paramedic in NYC in 2003. After a near-death experience on the job, Cassie starts seeing visions of future events minutes before they happen IRL. One of these visions shows her Ezekiel murdering three teenage girls on a train. She’s able to save the three girls—Julia Cornwall (Sydney Sweeney), Anya Corazon (Isabela Merced), and Mattie Franklin (Celeste O’Connor)—and, after a fight with what can only be described as Evil Spider-Man, she gets them to safety. Ezekiel tells Cassie he has to kill the girls, because he saw a vision of them murdering him in the future.

Following clues that she finds in her mother’s old notes, Cassie goes to Peru seeking answers from Las Arañas. As promised, Santiago tells her everything. Cassie sees a vision of her mother in the past, which reveals that, before she was born, Cassie was diagnosed with “myasthenia gravis,” a neuromuscular disorder with no cure. Cassie’s mom refuses to accept that there is no cure, which is why she was chasing down the spider in Peru. And the spider worked, because Cassie is not sick. And it also, apparently, gave her the power to see the future, which was triggered by her near-death experience.

Santiago explains that Cassie has far more power than she realizes. While she doesn’t have super strength or ability to climb walls like Ezekiel, she can use the “web” in ways that he can’t. In a hilarious reverse of the famed Spider-Man line, Santiago tells Cassie, “When you take on the responsibility, great power will come.”

Madame Web ending explained:

Cassie returns to New York, and has a vision that the girls are in danger. They had been laying low with Cassie’s friend, Ben (Adam Scott), but Ben is forced to take them out in public—and therefore on Ezekiel’s radar—when Ben’s sister-in-law, Mary (Emma Roberts) unexpectedly goes into labor. Ezekiel attacks the girls, but Cassie swoops into save them. After getting Ben and his sister-in-law to safety, Cassie hatches a plan to take out Ezekiel for good.

The girls and Cassie lure Ezekiel into a condemned firework factory. Cassie, thanks to a vision, calls ahead to have a helicopter rescue waiting for them. But Ezekiel destroys the helicopter and has the girls trapped and near-death atop the recognizable Pepsi-Cola sign. (It’s not a Spider-Man movie without a fight on an NYC landmark!) Ezekiel taunts Cassie that she can’t save all three girls. But Cassie taps into her true Madame Web powers. Using “the web” she is able to project an astral form of herself outside of her physical body, and saves all three girls. How, exactly, do the powers work? Don’t worry about! The movie certainly doesn’t!

Cassie, again using the powers of her vision, lures Ezekiel to his death. But she is also gravely injured in the fight. The girls, using the CPR that Cassie taught them, save her life. Cassie left blind and in a wheelchair. But now she is able to “see” via the web. Her psychic powers allow her to see the future, and, seemingly, everything happening around her. In the final scene of the movie, she tells the girls she can see their future clearly, and we are shown a vision of Julia Cornwall, Anya Corazon, and Mattie Franklin all fighting crime, wearing their spider-themed superhero costumes from the comic.

If you’re confused, don’t worry too much about it. The ending clearly hoped to set up a franchise starring Dakota Johnson, Sydney Sweeney, Isabela Merced, Celeste O’Connor as a crime-fighting team. But unfortunately, Madame Web flopped in theaters, and there’s very little chance that there will be a sequel. In February, The Hollywood Reporter reported that Sony’s plans for the Madame Web franchise had been essentially scrapped after the film’s poor reception. So just enjoy the campy fun, and don’t worry about the lore.

Is there a Madame Web end credits scene?

No. There is no Madame Web scene during or after the credits. But there are plenty of memes online for you to laugh at. Enjoy!