What happens in the Insidious 5 ending? The Lambert family are back for the fifth installment in the Insidious franchise. Of course, they’re heading back into The Further in an attempt to fight off the many malevolent forces that live there.
Insidious 5 sees Patrick Wilson step into the director’s chair, as well as returning to play Josh Lambert. Dalton (Ty Simpkins) is on the way to college, and neither of them has any memory of The Further, or the demons within. Of course, there wouldn’t be many new movies in the franchise if they didn’t soon remember the horrors they have faced. Check out our Insidious 5 review to see what we thought of the movie.
There are, of course, loads of spoilers ahead as we guide you through the Insidious 5 ending. There may be other guides to the Insidious movies out there on the internet, but this one… goes Further. See what we did there? OK… OK… let’s get on with it.
How does Insidious 5 end?
Insidious 5 ends with Josh and Dalton finding each other in The Further and seemingly sealing the red door to the other realm forever.
The events of Insidious 5 draw Dalton back into The Further when he paints a picture of the Red Door, as well as a grotesque image of Josh wielding the hammer from Insidious Chapter 2. Much like in the first movie, Dalton ends up shackled in the lair of the Lipstick-Face Demon. That evil dude is just obsessed.
In order to get Dalton back, Renai (Rose Byrne) allows Josh to remember his astral projection ability. He enters The Further and breaks Dalton’s shackles as father and son reconcile their differences before fleeing back through the Red Door. Unfortunately, several demons try to follow them, and Dalton’s friend Chris (Sinclair Daniel) is attacked in the real world by contorted demons.
Josh prepares to sacrifice himself to hold the door shut, sending Dalton back to the real world. Dalton paints over his artwork of the door, which appears to seal it back in The Further.
Josh calls out to his father, whose suicide he learned about earlier in the movie, and his dad appears to him in The Further before disappearing in a white light. That light becomes a lantern, guiding Josh out of The Further and back to his real body.
Josh and Dalton agree that they need to remember what has happened this time and that forgetting the trauma hasn’t done either of them any favors. Josh and Renai also end on better terms when she invites him to collect the kids earlier next time and stay for dinner.
When Josh leaves the house, he hears the unmistakable voice of Elise, who appears to him from the other side. He recognizes her, even if he isn’t sure why, and she explains that she “knows [his] mother.” Josh says he has so much he wants to say to his mom, and Elise says that he will get a chance to do that one day. “You have a bright future ahead, you and Dalton,” she says before disappearing.
We then see Josh picking Dalton up from college, where he has painted a picture of his father carrying him out of The Further as a child.
What happens in the Insidious 5 post-credit scene?
The very brief Insidious 5 post-credit scene shows the red door surrounded by flickering lights, implying that it could well open again in the future.
While the Insidious 5 ending itself eschews the “one final scare” template beloved of the franchise – and many other horror movies – there’s a clear hint at the very end of the credits that the door to the Further might not be closed forever.
We wouldn’t be surprised if there’s an Insidious 6 release date in the next few years. You can’t keep that Lipstick-Face Demon quiet and hidden away for long. Someone should probably tell the Insidious 5 cast.
To shift focus to another icon of the best horror movies, check out our guide to Freddy Krueger in the Elm Street franchise. You can also find out why Melissa Barrera has a very controversial opinion on the Scream movies and learn how to be a final girl in 2023.
We’ve also got you covered on the best movies for horror fans still to come this year, including The Meg 2 release date and the Saw 10 release date.