The Monkey Explained: Stephen King's Cursed Toy Movie Breakdown

⚠️ Spoiler Alert: This article contains major plot details for The Monkey.

The Monkey Movie Ending Explained: Death, Family, and One Very Evil Toy

When Osgood Perkins followed up his critical hit Longlegs with The Monkey, expectations were sky-high. Based on a short story by Stephen King, the film tackles a deceptively simple premise: a toy monkey that beats its drum whenever someone is about to die. But Perkins leans hard into dark humor, absurd accidents, and over-the-top gore, creating something equal parts campy throwback and chilling meditation on fate.

So what’s really going on with this cursed toy? Let’s break down the story, the twisted family dynamics, and the ending that suggests the monkey’s game is far from over.

The Curse Begins

The film opens in 1999 with Peter, a bloodied pilot, frantically trying to return a strange monkey toy to a pawn shop. When the toy’s cymbals clash, a gruesome “accident” claims the shopkeeper’s life. Peter attempts to burn the monkey, but we quickly learn: this thing can’t be destroyed so easily.

Soon after, Peter abandons his family. That leaves his twin sons, Hal and Bill, with only their mother — and eventually, the dreaded monkey.

Brothers Divided

Hal and Bill couldn’t be more different. Hal, the sensitive one, resents his older-by-minutes brother Bill, who bullies him at every turn. Their father’s collection of odd souvenirs becomes their only real link to him — until Hal discovers the monkey.

Once wound, the toy seems harmless at first. But each time the cymbals crash, someone close to the family dies in spectacular fashion — babysitters, relatives, even their mother. The monkey chooses its victims randomly, turning ordinary moments into nightmare slapstick.

Hal begins to understand: the monkey represents death itself. It can’t be reasoned with, it can’t be bargained with, and it definitely doesn’t take requests.

Growing Up Haunted

The brothers try to destroy the toy, even dumping it in a well, but of course it finds its way back. Twenty-five years later, Hal is a broken man, estranged from his own son, living in fear that the monkey will return. Bill, meanwhile, has become obsessed, treating the toy like an object of worship and blaming Hal for their mother’s death.

Their paths cross again when the monkey resurfaces, setting off another chain of bloody “accidents.” As adults, the twins are still locked in the same cycle of rivalry, resentment, and misplaced blame — with the monkey as their eternal referee.

The Ending Explained

In the climax, Bill tries to use the monkey to kill Hal, believing it will finally deliver justice. Instead, the toy reminds everyone who’s really in control. Death rains down indiscriminately: accidents pile up, a plane crashes, even skydivers plummet mid-wedding.

The monkey delivers one final, ironic kill by smashing Bill’s head with their late mother’s beloved bowling ball — echoing Hal’s childhood fantasy.

Hal survives, but it’s no victory. He accepts that he can’t outrun death or the monkey. Instead, he decides to keep it close, alongside his son, acknowledging that life is fragile and every moment is borrowed time. In one of the film’s most haunting images, Hal and his boy see a pale rider on horseback — death itself — and respond not with terror, but by dancing, echoing his mother’s old advice.

What It All Means

While The Monkey delivers buckets of gore and outrageous kills, the heart of the story lies in its themes:

• Death is random. The monkey kills without reason or mercy, a stand-in for life’s arbitrary accidents.
• Family scars run deep. Hal and Bill’s rivalry shows how resentment and guilt can outlast childhood.
• You can’t live in fear. The ending isn’t about defeating the monkey — it’s about learning to live despite it.

Perkins blends Stephen King’s fatalistic story with his own brand of surreal, darkly comic horror. It won’t work for everyone, but for viewers who can handle both blood and absurdity, The Monkey is a devilish little parable about mortality.

Land of Geek Rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5)

✅ Pros

• Darkly funny blend of horror and absurdity
• Creative kills that lean into camp and shock
• Strong performances bring heart to the chaos
• Perkins’ direction balances tension with humor

❌ Cons

• Padded plot (short story stretched a bit thin)
• Some subplots feel like filler
• Not as tight or impactful as Longlegs

The Monkey may not hit the same artistic highs as Longlegs, but it’s one of Perkins’ most entertaining works. It plays like a campy cousin to Final Destination, with King’s grim worldview lurking underneath.

By the time the credits roll, you’ll probably never look at a toy monkey the same way again.

Stay tuned for more spine-tingling horror breakdowns at Land of Geek Magazine, where we keep your nightmares fresh and your geek cred even fresher!

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