Beast of War (2025) ending explained: Kelly's ultimate sacrifice and Leo's final duel

Directed by Kiah Roache-Turner, Beast of War is a monster-horror survival action film inspired by true events. Featuring Mark Coles Smith, Joel Nankervis, and Sam Delich, the plot follows a group of young Australian soldiers in 1942 whose ship is sunk by the Japanese in the Timor Sea.

The tired, disputed survivors, including the Indigenous soldier Leo (played by Coles Smith), who struggles with racism in his nation, are stranded on the wreckage and must battle not only the enemy but also a massive, unrelenting great white shark that is circling below them.

The shark systematically hunts the men, forcing them into a brutal fight for survival that pits man against both man and nature. The final scenes of the film depict the few remaining survivors, particularly Leo, engaging in a final, desperate confrontation with the great white shark.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers about Beast of War. Viewer's discretion advised.

---

Final sacrifice and dual survival: How Leo and Will overcome the shark, the enemy soldier, and the Timor Sea in the climax of Beast of War

A still from the film's trailer (Image via Youtube/WellGoUSAEntertainment)

Beast of War concludes with a prolonged, brutal survival sequence, where the Australian soldiers must overcome the great white shark, the treachery of a fellow soldier, and the looming threat of the war itself. The final scenes focus on the Indigenous Australian soldier, Leo (Mark Coles Smith), and his younger comrade, Will (Joel Nankervis), who ultimately survive the ordeal.

The surviving soldiers, including Leo and Will, assemble on a makeshift raft of floating wreckage after their ship was sunk by Japanese planes. Their sole means of escape is a motorboat that is floating close by and is mostly unharmed. The enormous great white shark circles below, occasionally breaking the surface as Leo, sensing the danger, attempts a heroic sprint, jumping across covered with oil-slicked pieces of debris and metal to reach the boat.

One of the soldiers manages to stab a piece of wreckage containing a jammed air raid siren into the shark's side. As the shark approaches, the siren emits a hellish, distorted shriek, which acts as a warning of its proximity. As the survivors work to start the motorboat's engine, they are forced to contend with both the shark and a final human threat during the conclusion of Beast of War.

During the final scenes, only three among the entire crew of the Australian soldiers remain: Leo, Will and Kelly. As they await help, a Japanese soldier approaches them, prompting Will to pick up the last grenade from the crew's arsenal. The enemy soldier throws off his sword, pretending to surrender; however, as Will chooses not to use the grenade, the enemy soldier jumps onto the wreckage of the ship to kill them.

A still from the film's trailer (Image via Youtube/WellGoUSAEntertainment)

Will and Leo engage with the enemy soldier, who throws Leo off the ship wreckage. In a battling climax, Will, having been almost bested by the enemy soldier, pulls out an explosive attached under the debris of the ship. On the other hand, Kelly, having his fellow soldiers get killed or having killed them himself, has a change of heart and holds off the enemy soldier as the latter tries to take down Will and Leo.

Kelly takes the explosive retrieved by Will, grabs the enemy by his leg, and detonates it by pounding it on the wreckage, taking down the enemy with him, while Leo and Will escape to the sea. The two survivors reach the motorboat, where Will finds a toolbox to fix it. Leo, meanwhile, jumps into the sea and confronts the beast shark underneath.

He pulls the pin on the grenade and throws it deep into the shark's mouth, getting injured by its teeth in the process. The shark wanders off and explodes as it makes its way back to Leo. Will pulls him back onto the boat, ties a cloth onto his injuries, and the last two survivors manage to start the motorboat and move in the direction of the sunset in the final shot of Beast of War.

---

Beast of War was released on October 10, 2025. Stay tuned for more updates.

Edited by Suchita Patnaha