'Under the Bridge' ending explained: Did Kelly Ellard go to jail? (2024)

The Hulu drama series Under the Bridge explores the real-life murder of Canadian teen Reena Virk and the several factors at play: bullying, race, and mental health. In the final episode, the show depicts the court case that unfolded ultimately leaving six teenagers convicted.

Created by Quinn Shephard and Samir Mehta, the show is based on Rebecca Godfrey’s best-selling book of the same name and stars Riley Keough as a fictionalized version of the author and Lily Gladstone as police officer Cam Bentland.

Going into Episode 8, “Mercy Alone,” Rebecca has been criticized for forming a close relationship with suspect Warren Glowatski (Javon Walton), Cam has been looking into her adoption and disagreeing with the police force’s approach to Reena’s murder, and Kelly Ellard (Izzy G) has created an innocent facade after admitting to her friends that she did the killing.

The finale opens with Rebecca reconnecting with Warren after spending time apart. At the request of Reena’s mother Suman Virk (Archie Panjabi), she visits Warren and asks him to speak to the grieving parent. Suman tells Warren about the consequences of his participation in Reena’s murder. “You have poisoned my life,” she says while documenting how she is unable to care for her family because she is afraid to love them after what happened to her daughter.

Warren expresses guilt and agrees to testify after previously telling the court that he was present at the murder but wasn’t involved, and couldn’t remember the details.

In the final episode, Warren and Kelly are on trial and share their accounts of Reena’s murder. What happens in the end? Does Kelly go to prison? Here’s everything you need to know.

Under the Bridge Ending Explained

While on trial, Warren admits to his participation in Reena’s murder. He says he helped drag her body into the water, but expressed regret for his actions. “I was right there when Kelly held her head under the water – I didn’t tell her to stop,” Warren confesses. The teen boy turns his attention to Reena’s parents and tells the court, “I’ll be sorry for the rest of my life.” Warren ends up being charged with second-degree murder.

On the flip side, Kelly’s trial unfolds in an unhinged manner and she has an emotional outburst. Kelly denies her involvement altogether and yells at the prosecutor for suggesting otherwise. She ends up receiving the minimum sentence of at least five years in prison for second-degree murder, which is thought to be an act of injustice.

Cam connects with Rebecca after they have been at odds following their romantic hook-up due to Rebecca’s journalistic interest in the case. She subsides some of Rebecca’s guilt for the death of her brother, who seemingly died of suicide. Cam tells Rebecca that she didn’t cause her brother’s death and reveals that she is resigning from the police force.

Some time passes and Rebecca is reading a passage from her book, and sees herself in a newspaper for her involvement in Reena’s case. Cam decides to reconnect with her indigenous heritage and visit her birth town.

Back in the Virk household, Suman experiences a brief moment of release when she decides to listen to Reena’s favorite rap CD while in her room. She sits in content with her husband until the song plays out.

The end credits of the episode show the fates of some of the real-life people depicted in the series: Teenager Dusty (Aiyana Goodfellow) has shared regrets for her actions, Warren has dedicated his life to restorative justice and eventually made parole with the support of Reena’s parents, and Kelly was sentenced to life in prison after appealing her charges twice.

As a final note, the series is dedicated to ReenaVirk.

Under the Bridge is streaming on Hulu.