Mike Flanagan's Carrie finale follows the broad strokes of Stephen King's 1974 novel, but the Prime Video series also makes some significant changes. Most notably, Carrie White now survives, explaining the showrunner's comments about his hopes to tell this story over multiple seasons.
As with the book and previous adaptations, the series culminates with the prom massacre. Chris Hargensen and Billy Nolan dump pig's blood on Carrie, leaving the already-traumatised teenager convinced that she has been humiliated once again. Carrie unleashes her telekinesis inside the school before taking the violence into the streets of Chamberlain, Maine.
However, Flanagan's decision to introduce other young women with telekinetic abilities becomes crucial here. Emaline, who has been communicating with Carrie telepathically throughout the season, offers to "take the wheel" after Carrie accidentally kills Tommy Ross. In this version, Carrie's attempt to bring Chris and Billy down from the rafters causes a falling structure to strike Tommy, rather than the bucket of blood hitting him as it does in King's novel.
Carrie allows Emaline to take control, meaning she is largely responsible for the 200-plus deaths that follow. Among those killed are Principal Grayle, who is electrocuted on stage, and Rita Desjardin. Rita is actually trying to save Carrie from Amanda, the mother of another girl with powers who has come to the prom intending to kill her, but Carrie/Emaline instinctively sends her flying into the burning stage.
Sue Snell and Tina Blake are among the traumatised students who survive, while several other telekinetic young women also escape. Amanda's fate is less certain, as she's last seen being thrown onto a table by Carrie.
While the rest of the students are electrocuted and killed, Chris and Billy eventually cross paths with Carrie on the road, and their fate remains consistent with King's story: Carrie kills them inside their car. This time, however, we clearly see that Carrie herself is in control, flipping and crushing the vehicle as she finally takes revenge on the people responsible for what happened. Before dying, Chris expresses remorse, but is nonetheless crushed to death.
Margaret White also survives her confrontation with Carrie, despite trying to kill her daughter. Their house collapses around them, but Carrie escapes, and Margaret briefly reveals that she possesses telekinetic abilities of her own as she stops the rubble from flattening her. Margaret later tells Adelaide—the leader of a group of young women with powers—that this was only the second time she has been able to use them and that she doesn't believe she can do it again.
That proves to be a fatal admission. No longer seeing Margaret as useful, Adelaide stops her heart, killing her in a manner reminiscent of Carrie's fate for her mother in the original novel.
The biggest surprise, however, is that Carrie leaves Chamberlain alive, escaping alongside Emaline. Adelaide suggests Carrie's new friend is incredibly dangerous, suggesting a potential Season 2 would veer into completely new territory between these warring sides.
We get a hint at what might be to come when Adelaide tells Margaret that "a lot of people have a little bit of Shine and they don't even know it." That is, of course, a reference to The Shining, with the "Shine" being the psychic ability possessed by characters such as Danny Torrance and Dick Hallorann.
Do you think Carrie made the right decision by changing the title character's fate? Let us know in the comments section below.