Dakota Fanning on Vicious’ Brutal Yet Hopeful Ending

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Be warned, this article contains spoilers for the 2025 horror film, Vicious! Dakota Fanning, the star of Vicious, has explained that despite the movie’s shocking and violent ending, there’s still a sense of hope. The film, directed and written by Bryan Bertino (known for The Strangers), centers around Fanning’s character, Polly, who is forced to give up something she deeply dislikes, requires, and cherishes to a mysterious box in order to survive the night.

Once she calms the strange box belonging to Vicious, she needs to give it away. She passes it on to her neighbor, Tara (Devyn Nekoda), who is then forced to kill her parents to protect herself. The movie concludes with a phone ringing in Polly’s house, leaving the audience with a suspenseful and unsettling ending that fits the film’s overall mood.

In a recent interview with ScreenRant, Fanning pointed out that even though Vicious ends on a dark note, there’s still a glimmer of hope. She explained that despite the overwhelming despair and frightening conclusion, Polly’s story ultimately shows how resilient people can be and how much they can endure while still surviving.

ScreenRant noted that Brian considers the ending of ‘Vicious’ to be surprisingly optimistic, despite the trauma Pauly experiences. While Pauly is left with lasting scars, the fact that she survives offers a sense of empowerment and prevents the story from being entirely bleak. The interviewer then asked how the speaker understood Pauly’s survival.

I think the main message is that we’re all much more resilient than we realize. We often underestimate our ability to handle difficult situations, even though we’re naturally strong. The character Polly is the same way – she’s stronger than she thinks. So, even though this is a typically intense movie by Bertino, there’s a glimmer of hope within it.

Following her appearance in Ishana Night Shyamalan’s horror film The Watchers, Georgina Campbell takes on another supernatural thriller with Vicious. However, unlike her previous role, this time her fight to survive doesn’t just put her own life at risk – it also endangers those around her.

Fanning’s comments highlight the intense psychological horror Polly experiences in the movie. The box preys on her emotions by showing her ghostly images of loved ones, manipulating her into making difficult choices, all while the constant danger of death looms over her. This pervasive sense of dread is a hallmark of Bertino’s horror films, steadily building throughout the story.

I’ve been watching her story unfold, and it’s heartbreaking. She’s in this impossible situation where she might have to give the box to Tara just to survive, but even that doesn’t guarantee her safety. Despite everything, she’s fighting so hard to live. The way things ended was really dark, but it really showed how much she was struggling against something she couldn’t even comprehend. It felt like she was battling something bigger than herself, and it was devastating to watch.

Though this film leans more into the supernatural than Bertino’s The Strangers, it still showcases the director’s talent for creating frightening stories that delve into the darker aspects of human nature. The ending of Vicious is somewhat bleak, as Polly’s struggles don’t entirely resolve, but her efforts to overcome them offer a small glimmer of hope.

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2025-10-21 16:53