‘Midnight Mass’ Ending Explained by Creator Mike Flanagan

TheWrap’s read on it was wrong, just FYI

Midnight Mass
Netflix

(Warning: This post contains major spoilers for the finale of Netflix’s “Midnight Mass.”)

If you’ve binged your way through Netflix’s “Midnight Mass” already and are looking for an answer as to what that cliffhanger ending means, TheWrap has the revelation that will lead to your confusion salvation, courtesy of the series creator himself.

So what we’re talking about here is the very, very end of “Midnight Mass,” when The Angel has flown away before the sunrise, following Erin Greene’s (Kate Siegel) dying attempt to completely slice up his wings to prevent him from being able to outfly the sun. Once he is out of sight, and the residents of Crockett Island who have been turned into vampire-liked beings by The Angel go up in flames in the sunlight, the formerly paralyzed but cured by The Angel Leeza Scarborough (Annarah Cymone) delivers the final line of the show while sitting in a small boat just off the shore with fellow survivor Warren Flynn (Igby Rigney): “I can’t feel my legs.”

Now, one could assume — as TheWrap did — that Lisa’s line means that The Angel did not make it away in time and was burned up by the sun as well, just off-screen, and thus whatever properties in the heavenly creature’s blood that allowed her to regain use of her legs have stopped working inside of her.

However, when TheWrap told “Midnight Mass” writer Mike Flanagan, who is also the mastermind behind Netflix’s “The Haunting of Hill House” and “The Haunting of Bly Manor,” what we assumed his ending meant, we were told our theory was wrong. But Flanagan does “love that that’s your read of it,” so don’t lose faith if that was your takeaway, too.

OK, so now to the actual meaning of the ending, courtesy of Flanagan: “We’re not saying he died… Our hope really there was just to say that Leeza’s concentration in her blood had begun to tip back, that she was going to be OK. We didn’t want it to confirm about The Angel, in that way that you can never kill fanaticism, it’ll always kind of come back. But I love that that’s what it meant to you!”

Readers can find more from our interview with “Midnight Mass” creator Flanagan and executive producer Trevor Macy here, here and here. Additionally, you can read our chats with “Midnight Mass” stars Siegel and Zach Gilford here and here.

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