'Under Paris' Has a Bloody and Confusing Ending — Let's Unpack It

This article contains spoilers for the movie Under Paris.

Shark movies are infamous for their rarely serious plot lines, particularly thanks to certain movies like Sharknado (and its subsequent sequels). The French film Under Paris, available to stream on Netflix, has a similarly silly feel, though the film's ending has left plenty of viewers baffled and confused.

The story is a wild one. Former scientist and studier of sharks Sophia traumatically lost her husband while researching a Mako shark named Lilith, forcing her to step back from her work. Years later, in France, Sophia is contacted by shark activist Mika, who says that despite the odds, Lilith has swam from the Pacific Ocean to the Seine River. Though she shouldn't be able to survive in fresh water, Sophie confirms via her old tracker on Lilith that she has migrated to France.

As Sophia battles her demons while trying to save the people of Paris from a potential shark attack, she and her comrades also have to fight the French government, who refuses to believe that a deadly shark is patrolling the river.

Unfortunately, the film doesn't have a happy ending — and the closer viewers get to the end, the more confusing it becomes. Let's break down and explain the wild and wacky ending of Under Paris.

As Sophia and her team get closer and closer to their goal of either killing or relocating Lilith, it becomes clear that she's not alone. Not only has the shark managed to navigate her way across the oceans to France, but she's also managed to create mutant babies by reproducing on her own. There's some science to back this up, as climate change and rapidly altered ecosystems have produced creatures that can adapt to new climates or reproduce via parthenogenesis.

Though one would assume that in a film about saving people from sharks, the people would win, Under Paris is a different case entirely. Lilith's mutations have passed onto her offspring, and though it's been only three years since Sophia faced her in the Pacific Ocean, she's managed to create a whole nest of offspring in the catacombs under Paris. Thanks to Lilith's genetic mutations, all of her children can live in freshwater and reproduce independently at a young age.

Thanks to the mayor of Paris's decision to not heed Sophia's warning of the killer sharks living under the city and Mika's poor decision to try and approach Lilith calmly, the climax of the movie is a bloodbath. Not only are members of Sophia's team killed off attempting to blow up the nest of sharks (both by the sharks and by the bombs they planted), but athletes participating in the triathlon taking place in the Siene also fall victim.

To add more carnage, there are also explosives from WWII still embedded in the Siene River, resulting in chain explosions as the French military hurriedly attempt to shoot the sharks attacking the athletes. In the end, the sharks prevail and live to prowl more water sources and claim victims.

Though this seems like a wacky ending, the film does offer some commentary on human involvement in wildlife, noting how our involvement is often the catalyst for drastic adaptation in species.

Though it's unlikely killer sharks will be prowling the rivers of Paris anytime soon, this campy shark flick has warnings embedded into it (if you're willing to look for them).

Under Paris is now streaming on Netflix.