Disney has just released another of its live-action remakes: Peter Pan & Wendy. As in other versions of Peter Pan, the movie follows Peter Pan (the boy who never grows up) and Wendy as they journey through the mystical island of Neverland and encounter villains such as Captain Hook.
There have been many versions of Peter Pan’s story. We have J.M. Barrie’s original story which was first a play then a novel, the 1953 animated film, and now the live-action remake. So what happened in this version of Peter Pan? This article explains the ending of Peter Pan & Wendy.
Warning: This article contains spoilers for Peter Pan & Wendy. Read at your own risk!
Peter Pan Survives
In the movie, Peter Pan and Captain Hook fight in Castle Rock after the latter takes away Wendy’s brothers John and Michael. Hook and the pirates are eventually chased away by the crocodile Tick Tock.
In Peter’s hideout, Wendy sings a lullaby to the Lost Boys, but this reveals their location to the pirates. The pirates then capture Wendy, the Lost Boys, and Wendy’s brothers. Captain Hook then attacks Peter, and the latter seemingly falls to his death.
While Peter was presumed dead, he was actually saved by Tiger Lily. Meanwhile, Hook makes Wendy walk the plank, but after jumping, there was no splash. Thanks to Tinker Bell's pixie dust mixed with her own happy thoughts, Wendy was able to fly.
Subsequently, Tinker Bell spreads pixie dust which allows the Lost Boys to break free. Peter then arrives, which surprises everyone. Hook asks how Peter did it, and Peter responds that he had help from friends.
The both of them attack each other, and chaos occurs on the ship. Wendy turns the ship upside down, which causes the pirates to fall off.
Peter encourages Hook to fly by thinking happy thoughts. But Hook responds that he doesn’t have any happy thoughts and subsequently falls into the sea.
Wendy Goes Back to England
While Peter didn’t want her to leave, Wendy chooses to go back to England and grow up. Earlier in the film, they have a conversation where Peter tells Wendy that she must never leave because “who knows what you’ll become if you go.”
Wendy then asks what would become of her if she chooses to stay. Peter responds that she would become nothing and that she should just be herself.
He then says that he thought Wendy would be happy in Neverland. Wendy says that she thought so too, but Neverland was not exactly what she was expecting. Peter then says that Neverland is just a different kind of real.
Furthermore, when Hook lets Wendy walk the plank, the happy thoughts in her head were thoughts of her growing up. Wendy ultimately decides to go back to England as she believes she’s ready to grow up.
The Lost Boys Stay in England
In this version, the Lost Boys stay in England, just like the original story. They all decide that they want a real home, and the Darlings take them in. In the film, there’s a scene where Wendy talks about her own mother, which then leads to the Lost Boys saying that they miss their own mothers too. They ultimately make the decision to leave Neverland.
This is different from the 1953 animated version because, in Disney’s animated Peter Pan film, the Lost Boys don’t go to England with Wendy and her brothers. They return to Neverland with Peter on a pirate ship, and Wendy and her parents watch them leave through a window. Furthermore, in the live-action remake, the Lost Boys aren't all boys.
Peter Pan Chooses Not to Grow Up
As in earlier versions of Peter Pan, in this live-action remake, Peter chooses not to grow up. Before leaving Wendy, her brothers, and the Lost Boys in England, Peter and Wendy talk on the roof, and he reveals that he used to live in that very same house.
He shares that his mother scolded him one night and told him to grow up. But instead, he chose to climb out of the window, leap over the garden wall, and never look back.
Wendy suggests that he chose to come back over again because he misses his home and his mother. Peter agrees but says that she’s long gone now and that he’s just a story told to any child who’d listen.
He further says that his story never had an ending until now, but maybe he could come back and listen to it sometimes.
Wendy suggests that Peter could stay by saying that to “grow up might just be the biggest adventure of all.” She further tells him that he could be missing out on things that could be right around the corner.
But Peter says he’s not ready to grow up. Wendy tells Peter not to go, but Peter goes back to the pirate ship and leaves England with Tinker Bell.
Peter Pan Goes Back to Neverland and Saves Captain Hook
The live-action remake added a backstory for Captain Hook. In Peter Pan & Wendy, Peter Pan and Captain Hook used to be best friends.
Hook’s real name is James, and he was the first Lost Boy. However, Hook left Neverland because he missed his mother. Peter didn’t take this well and banished him.
Hook got lost at sea, but he was taken in by Smee and the pirates. When he then returned to Neverland, Peter couldn’t accept how he changed, thinking that he became evil and cruel. The two then became enemies.
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In their duel, Hook shares that the painful thing about getting old is knowing that his best friend can stare him in the eyes and not recognize him. Peter seems to have realized his mistake because he apologizes to Hook for hurting him and for being a rotten friend.
At the end of Peter Pan & Wendy, when Peter arrives back in Neverland, he sees Hook floating in the ocean. Hook then looks up and sees Peter at the ship. Peter Pan and Captain Hook then smile at each other.
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Peter Pan & Wendy is now available to stream on Disney+.