‘My Son’ ending explained: why was Edmond arrested?

James McAvoy and Claire Foy star in mystery thriller My Son, an English-language remake of 2017 French film Mon garçon.

Directed by Christian Carion, who also helmed the French original, the film follows absent father Edmond Murray (McAvoy) who returns to Scotland to search for his missing son with his ex wife Joan (Foy).

McAvoy was only given the character’s backstory while shooting the film, with his dialogue for Edmond improvised throughout.

What happens at the end of My Son?

After saving Ethan from the child kidnapping ring, Joan and Edmond are seen standing in a field as their son operates a remote control quadcopter. Edmond then bids Ethan farewell but promises he’ll eventually be back, as he’s taken away by Inspector Roy (Gary Lewis).

Roy and Edmond drive off, with it made clear that he’s been arrested. Edmond is assured by Roy, however, that the judge will take into account the positive impact his actions have had, namely the dismantling of the kidnapping network, in his sentencing.

Why was Edmond arrested?

The film never explicity states why Edmond has been arrested, although it could be for several reasons. The first is the fact he tortured someone to obtain the whereabouts of his son, but considering this led to the downfall of kidnapping ring, it’s hard to imagine this would lead to any significant punishment.

The more likely reason is Edmond’s line of work. Earlier, Edmond states during a police interview that he works in the oil industry and travels internationally to places like Iraq and Libya. After this interview with Roy, Edmond is told during a phone call that the police have raided his office and taken a bunch of files.

This, coupled with Edmond’s hesitation to hand over his phone to police, suggests he was perhaps involved in some shady activity as part of his work. Whether this is exact reason is never made clear, but it would give a reason for those details to exist in the first place.

My Son is available to stream on Netflix UK.

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