The boy and the heron ending, explained

Key points

• The Boy and the Heron is Hayao Miyazaki's last film and marks his farewell to creating new stories for the world.
• The film revolves around a magical world created by a great uncle where the blocks of a tower maintain existence.
• Despite returning to reality, the characters, including Mahito and his family, over time forget the existence of the magical world.

The boy and the heron is Hayao Miyazaki's latest film. This is his swan song. His final gift to humanity. Studio Ghibli will produce even more films and TV series in the future, but we will no longer see any new stories from Miyazaki, one of the most beloved, respected and influential directors the world has ever seen. The man is already well into his twilight years and the time has finally come for him to put down his pencil, rest and spend his precious time with his loved ones.

The boy and the heron they still bear the hallmark of “timeless beauty” that we all know and love from the works of Hayao Miyazaki. That said, this is by far Hayao Miyazaki's most cryptic film. You can immerse yourself in the story for 2+ hours and still feel quite confused with what you just saw. So, with that in mind, here are some explanations for the ending of The boy and the heron.

The fragile world, explained

• Character Name: Mahito Maki
• Voiced by: Soma Santoki (JP)/Luca Padovan (EN)

Mahito's original purpose in entering the mysterious world is to find his stepmother, Natsuko. But in doing so, he unknowingly embarks on a journey that leads him to the creator of the world itself, his great-grandson. As it turns out, the great uncle was the one who created this strange and fascinating world and he is the one who keeps it alive all this time.

Once every three days, this frail old man must stack pieces of blocks to create a block tower. If the tower remains intact, the world and everything in it will live for another day. But if he made a mistake and the tower block fell, then this fragile world would immediately begin to crumble into nothingness.

The fall of the wizarding world, explained

• Character Name: Grandzio
• Voiced by: Shōhei Hino (JP)/Mark Hamill (EN)

The great uncle knows that he is near the end of his life, so he must pass on the responsibility of maintaining his creation to a successor. Unfortunately for him, only his blood relative can take on his role. Luckily for him, his great-grandson Mahito suddenly arrives from the real world.

Naturally, the great uncle asks Mahito to be his successor and takes on the responsibility of being the pillar that holds this strange world together. Mahito refuses. He just wants to find his stepmother and get back together in the real world. Since no one adds a new block to the tower, everything collapses quickly. The earth shakes, the sky splits and in a few minutes this magical world ceases to exist.

The different timings, explained

• Character Name: Lady Himi
• Voiced by: Aimyon (JP)/Karen Fukuhara (EN)

One of the people who helps Mahito a lot during his short stay in the magical world is a girl named Lady Himi. As it turns out, she is actually Mahito's mother. Decades ago, when she was just a teenager, Himi entered a mysterious tower in the woods and became stranded in this magical world. He has lived here ever since.

So how is it possible for Mahito to meet the younger version of his late mother? Well, think of this magical world as the MCU's Time Variance Authority (TVA). Loki Television series. Just like in TVA, time passes differently in that magical place. It has doors that connect to every location at all times, but once inside the tower and into the magical world, everything exists on the same plane of existence. That's why teenager Himi gets to meet her teenage son, which among other things gives Mahito a chance to say goodbye to his mother.

The return to real life, explained

• Character Name: Shoichi Maki
• Voiced by: Takuya Kimura (JP)/Christian Bale (EN)

When the magical world collapses, the crazed pelicans, the man-eating parakeet and the four humans of this magical kingdom – Mahito, Natsuko, Lady Himi and Kiriko – race towards the doors that will return them to Earth. At this time, the Parakeet King and his deranged citizens not only try to escape the destruction, but also try to kill the one who caused this catastrophe, namely Mahito who refuses to take on the role of Grandfather.

However, the moment they enter the door and are transported to Earth, giant parakeets, talking pelicans, and other magical animals revert to their original forms. They acquired those peculiar shapes because Mahito's great-uncle wanted them to. Now that he and his magical world cease to exist, the animals are free from the effect of his magic, which is why they have returned to their true forms.

The return to Tokyo, explained

• Character Name: The Gray Heron
• Voiced by: Masaki Suda (JP)/ Robert Pattinson (EN)

In the last scene of the film, we see Mahito and his family ready to leave home to return to Tokyo, and then the screen goes black. There is no hint of the magical world. There are two explanations for this. First, the war is finally over, so they can finally return home to Tokyo. Since his father's main factory is in Tokyo, it makes sense for them to return now that everything has calmed down.

The second reason is because Mahito and Natsuko forgot about the existence of the magical world and everything that happened while they were there. When they managed to escape the implosion, the gray heron told Mahito that he would forget about the magical world. This is what happened to those who returned to Earth, like Mahito's mother. Even though Mahito retains a piece of the block of his great-uncle's creation, the memory of that world and the meaning of that piece of the block will inevitably be forgotten as time passes.

“Forgetting is normal. You will forget in time. You should. Goodbye, friend!”

These are the explanations for some of the most significant events that happen at the end of the film. Please note that these are only surface-level explanations. There are more than meets the eye The boy and the heron. So we implore you to put on your philosophical hats and watch this film one more time. You will find more meaningful questions that will lead you to even more meaningful answers. And this applies to all Hayao Miyazaki films.

The boy and the heron is available for streaming on Netflix.