Entertainment · Film · 3 hrs ago
Whalefall Adds a Family Reunion After Test Screenings
Whalefall now ends with Jay reuniting with his family at sea, after an epilogue was added to the film.
Jay, played by Austin Abrams, is a young man who survives being trapped inside a sperm whale.
The film is based on Daniel Kraus’s novel and was adapted by writer-director Brian Duffield with Kraus.
Test screenings led 20th Century to push for a family-focused final scene, beyond the original ending in which Jay is rescued.
In the new scene, Jay is with his mother, sisters and family friend Hewey, and viewers see the injuries he suffered escaping the whale.
Jay has severe scarring and has lost his left arm, which he sacrificed to set off the explosion that freed him.
Duffield and Abrams initially preferred ending with the rescue, but later embraced the added scene.
Test screenings led 20th Century to push for a new epilogue to Whalefall, adding a family reunion after Jay Gardiner’s rescue.
Director Brian Duffield and star Austin Abrams initially questioned the change but later embraced it.
The new final scene shows Jay reunited at sea with his mother, sisters and family friend Hewey.
It also reveals Jay’s severe injuries, including the loss of his left arm.
The film had previously ended with Jay being rescued by a nearby cabin cruiser.
- Who
- 20th Century pushed for the new ending. Director Brian Duffield and star Austin Abrams initially resisted it.
- What
- Whalefall added an epilogue showing Jay Gardiner reunited with his family at sea after his rescue.
- When
- The change followed test screenings; additional photography took place earlier in 2026.
- Where
- The story is set on California’s Central Coast, and the new scene takes place at sea.
- Why
- Test screenings convinced 20th Century to champion an epilogue that offered a sense of family closure.
20th Century
Brian Duffield and Austin Abrams
Ending
20th Century
The studio pushed for an epilogue offering family closure.
Brian Duffield and Austin Abrams
Duffield and Abrams initially preferred to end with Jay being rescued.
20th Century pushed for an epilogue to provide a sense of family closure.
Additional photography took place after Austin Abrams finished Resident Evil.
- Studio
- 20th Century
- Director
- Brian Duffield
- Jay Gardiner
- Played by Austin Abrams
- New ending
- Jay reunites at sea with his mother, sisters and Hewey
- Injury
- Jay has lost his left arm
- Setting
- California’s Central Coast
What people are saying
That scene at the end was something the studio really pushed for, and Austin and I were both a little like, I don’t know. Isn’t it cool to just end with him getting fished out, seeing that he’s survived, and then be done with it?