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'My Son' Ending Explained: Who Kidnapped Ethan?

Scriptless James McAvoy stars as a father desperately looking for his son in this improvisational experiment film.

'My Son'

'My Son' is a gripping tale of a father desperately trying to rescue his son after a mysterious abduction. The film is based on the 2017 French film of the same name (Mon Garcon in French) but was recreated into English. Christian Carion directed both films, who also co-wrote the English screenplay with Laure Irrmann.

What makes the film so interesting is the improvisational experiment that led to James McAvoy's raw and real-time acting. McAvoy plays the father looking for his missing son. He was given no script and no specific dialogue. The remaining cast is fully aware of everything that was about to happen to him, but McAvoy is only aware of the basic plot details of his character.

McAvoy has to improvise and react as the action of the story unfolds.

So, did McAvoy's character managed to rescue his son? Let us get through the layers of the mystery surrounding the film's story. Here is everything that happened in 'My Son.'

My Son

Plot Sypnosis

After receiving a call that his seven-year-old son Ethan was missing, Edmond Murray (James McAvoy) travels to Camp Lochy in the Glen Nevis where his son was last spotted.

There, he met his ex-wife, Joan Richmond (Claire Foy), with the assigned Investigating officer Inspector Roy (Gary Lewis). Inspector Roy gathered his team and looked for the missing boy in the woods and hill range. However, the search was unsuccessful. Roy concluded that it was a kidnapping case.

After visiting the station, Edmond gets interrogated and reveals that he works for a petroleum company. Roy suggests that the kidnapping might be related to Edmond's job since it requires him to live in the Gulf countries. Edmond disregards Roy's hypotheses and visits Joan in her rented cottage.

At Joan's place, Edmond meets Frank, his ex-wife's boyfriend. The two men drink whiskey but eventually have an unpleasant and awkward conversation. Edmond assumes that Frank has something to do with Ethan's disappearance and beats him badly. The assault lands Edmond in jail.

Inspector Roy assures Edmond that Frank has nothing to do with his son's disappearance. The officer also reveals that his ex-wife suffered a miscarriage a month ago, and Frank had given her Valium to help her cope with anxiety.

Sadly, Roy visits Edmond to inform him that his superiors in Glasgow and London have removed him from the case. The higher authorities from London will take over the investigation. Roy theorizes that the decision has something to do with Edmond's Petroleum industry.

Edmond is now on his own. He must work against time to save his son.

'My Son'

'My Son' Ending Explained: Who kidnapped Ethan? How did Edmond save him?

Edmond stole Frank's phone when he beat him in Joan's place, assuming it may have some evidence leading to Ethan's disappearance. He scrolls through the albums and feels guilty for not spending time with his only son. He sees videos of his son's birthday celebration and his ex-wife accompanying Ethan to the astronomy camp.

Desperately missing his son, Edmond watches the video in a loop until he sees a suspicious vehicle.

After this discovery, Edmond quickly goes to Joan's place and shows her the footage. He thinks that the person in the car might be keeping an eye on their son.

Edmond follows his gut. He tells Joan to call her brother, who works in the insurance company, to ask for plate number details and address listed. They found the address and its owner, William O'Connor.

Edmond knew he ought to act quickly. He sneaked into William's property and saw the same car parked outside. Edmond strikes William with an iron rod and tortures him for answers.

After several beatings, William finally confesses that he followed Ethan for weeks and kidnapped him. It turns out that the kidnappers weren't terrorists as the film led us to believe. William is part of a child-trafficking syndicate. He delivered Ethan at Dunmore Lodge and left. After that, William had no idea what happened to Edmond's Son.

Edmond goes to the Dunmore Lodge, while Joan decides to go after Edmond. She drove to Willam's place and found him motionless there. When she opened William's car, she saw an unconscious little girl.

Around this time, Edmond reaches Dunmore Lodge and finally sees his son. Unfortunately, three people are guarding the unconscious boy. Edmond texted Joan and instructed her to call Roy. Edmond angrily knocks out one of the traffickers. The other one gets killed in friendly fire. He grabs his son and runs to Joan, who went there looking for them. They hurriedly escape, but the last guy shoots at their car. One of the bullets hits Edmond's back.

Edmond passes out, and the car deviates off the road.

'My Son'

'My Son' Ending Explained: Did Edmond Die?

No, Edmond did not die. Luckily, Inspector Roy arrives in time to rescue Edmond and his family. 

At last, Edmond reunites with his son and ex-wife. The next scene sees Edmond teaching Ethan to fly a drone. He is happy, but he knows that this won't last long. 

Sadly, Edmond gets arrested because of his company's illegal doings. Although the thriller ends with Edmond getting captured, it is still a satisfying conclusion because he managed to bring back his son. There is also more hope that Edmond will be able to spend more time with his son in the future.Before leaving, he promises Ethan he'd be back soon. Edmond has played a crucial role in bringing down a child-trafficking group. Hence, the judge might consider his valuable efforts.