‘They Cloned Tyrone’ Ending Explained: Are Two John Boyegas Better Than One? – Collider

The Big Picture

If there is one thing you need to know about They Cloned Tyrone, it is that John Boyega is just so good as an actor and a certain other science fiction franchise didnt take full advantage of this. It is thus refreshing that he has thrived in other films of late and this latest is no exception. Even as it is a little shaky at times, just seeing him in action will never get old. However, there is still the matter of the films ending itself and what it reveals about everything that preceded it. Thats right, in case it wasnt already clear, this piece is going to spoil everything in the film from beginning to end. In the event that you havent seen it, best bookmark this page and come back when you have. Beyond that, lets get started.

As some background, the film follows a trio of characters who discover that there is a vast conspiracy governing their lives. There is the lonesome hustler Fontaine (Boyega), the snarky pimp Slick Charles (Jamie Foxx), and the street-smart sex worker Yo-Yo (Teyonah Parris) who all begin with their own beef with each other before realizing they have bigger fish to fry. Specifically, as the title tells you, they are actually merely one version of themselves as there are actually countless clones that have been made as part of an experiment being overseen by Kiefer Sutherland's Nixon that targets the Black community. From the food they consume to the hair products they use, they are being pumped full of a substance that will make them more agreeable AKA docile. This is all being done from an underground facility with cameras surveilling every corner of the world above. Fontaine doesnt even have a real family, as his entire life was just a fabrication. Soon, he and the rest of the community come together to launch a rebellion that will blow up the conspiracy as well as bring one additional revelation.

A series of eerie events thrusts an unlikely trio onto the trail of a nefarious government conspiracy in this pulpy mystery caper.

In order to pull this off, the trio come up with a plan that involves Fontaine getting shot in the shoulder. As happened earlier in the film, he will then be brought underground for him to be swapped out for a new clone. However, this time, hell wake up and begin making his way through the facility from the inside. All of this goes according to plan, but then Fontaine discovers that he is not alone down here. No, it isnt the clones that they go about freeing. Rather, it is the original version of Fontaine who we discover actually was the one who set this all in motion as the lead geneticist who entered into a deal with the Devil. The memory all the clones had of their brother dying was based on reality, and he convinced himself that these experiments, however inhumane, would prevent future deaths like this in the future. Specifically, he wants to eliminate any differences by making everyone the same. It is a nightmarish idea of a literal melting pot that the original Fontaine wants to slowly implement over generations. As he says, assimilation is better than annihilation in a grim proclamation that makes all the humorous gags from prior into something more horrifying.

As clone Fontaine processes this information, which is spelled out in a rather extended exposition scene that grinds everything to a halt, we can see the wheels turning as he hatches a new plan on the fly. Not buying into the justification that his original self provided, he turns the tables on him. He does so by commanding the other clone to shoot the original via a code he had heard used earlier. The moment, while not as effective as it could have been had it been more flushed out, is built around Fontaine rejecting the false choice provided to him and embracing the community that had his back. The film could be more than a bit silly, but the sentiment behind this ending remains grounded in a skepticism of the premise of the bargain the older Fontaine made.

Where that version was willing to sacrifice many others for a safety that may not even come, the uprising showed that a collective coming together is what is really the key. Community looking out for each other rather than throwing each other under the bus is what holds the greatest chance to push away the evil forces of the world. As Fontaine reconnects with Slick and Yo-Yo, they discuss continuing putting this into practice by traveling around to take down similar sinister forces throughout the country. This culminates in one fitting final punchline of a scene where we see another such corner of the world.

True to what we learned from the original Fontaine, the cloning had indeed rolled out across the country, and we see another, Tyrone himself, living in Los Angeles. He goes about his day just like his other counterparts, checking in on his mother in her room even as she isnt actually there, before ending up at a friends house where he is smoking and watching the news. That's when he sees the clone version of himself which all his friends immediately clock as being him.

It's constructed as a joke, eliciting one more closing chuckle to send us into the credits, with the humor coming from meeting the titular character in the final minutes of the film. More than that, it provides one more glimpse at the broader world, serving as a reminder of how there is so much out there that is similar to our day-to-day existence and still much to be done to come together to make them better. Just as was the case with Fontaine and his friends, there is hope for the young Tyrone in the surrounding community.

They Cloned Tyrone is streaming on Netflix in the U.S.

Stream on Netflix

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'They Cloned Tyrone' Ending Explained: Are Two John Boyegas Better Than One? - Collider