Revenant (2023) used its final episodes to draw out every unanswered question that had been building since the beginning. The drama, which blended supernatural horror with real-world fears, made sure to ground its ending in emotional decisions rather than just shocking moments.
At its heart, the story followed a young woman whose life turned upside down after becoming connected to a violent spirit. But instead of only focusing on fear, it brought attention to personal loss, hidden guilt, and the history of wounds passed from one generation to another.
She didn’t ask for power but she learned how to carry it (Photo: Revenant (2023)/Studio S and BA Entertainment)Gu San-yeong, who worked hard just to live an ordinary life, found herself at the centre of events she could not explain. After her father’s death, strange things started happening around her. It didn’t take long before she began to suspect something deeper was at play—especially when violent deaths started happening around her.
The connection between her and the evil spirit wasn’t something she chose, but she had to accept it if she wanted any hope of saving herself or others. Her journey became more than a fight against an unknown force. It became a discovery of her family’s past, of truths that had been buried, and of a strength she didn’t know she had.
San-yeong’s Fight Was More Internal Than Physical
From the start, San-yeong wasn’t the kind of character who looked ready to fight off ghosts or evil. She was tired, unsure, and just trying to build a normal life. But once she found herself affected by a spirit she didn’t understand, her reactions became sharper.
She didn’t become a fighter overnight, but she learned to listen, question, and stand her ground when things started falling apart. It became clear that her father, a folklore professor, had left behind clues connected to the strange events.
Through his research, San-yeong discovered that the evil force around her had ties to ancient stories, forgotten rituals, and real people whose pain had been ignored. But this spirit wasn’t just any ghost. It carried deep resentment and fed on grief and vengeance.
Her decision to continue her father’s search for answers was not just about survival. It was about protecting others from what had already caused too much damage. But the closer she came to the truth, the more personal the danger became.
Yeom Hae-sang’s Past Was the Answer to the Puzzle
Hae-sang, a man who could see spirits, entered San-yeong’s life with a calm presence. His own past was marked by tragedy. He had watched his mother die when he was younger, and that moment left a scar that never left him. His ability to see spirits was more of a burden than a gift, and over the years, it made him more withdrawn.
But meeting San-yeong gave his life direction again. He recognised that her connection to the spirit was stronger than she understood. Together, they started investigating how her family’s history, and the deaths surrounding her, connected to the dark entity.
Hae-sang’s knowledge helped them see that what they were dealing with wasn’t only about one angry ghost. It was part of a pattern—rituals that had been broken, oaths that had been ignored, and consequences that had been passed down through time. He stood beside San-yeong not as a hero who had all the answers, but as someone who knew how deep the damage could go.
The Spirit’s Story Was Built on Long-Forgotten Pain
One thing Revenant did well was give depth to the evil spirit. Instead of presenting it as just a source of terror, the story slowly pulled back layers to reveal that the spirit came from a place of betrayal. It was once a person, someone who had been wronged in a way that made its pain impossible to let go of.
Through old documents, forgotten rituals, and the memories passed down, San-yeong and Hae-sang discovered that the spirit had been created through cruelty. It had not been born evil. It became what it was through injustice and broken promises.
This made the situation more difficult. If the spirit was only evil, fighting it would be straightforward. But once they saw that its actions came from deep pain, the fight became harder.
San-yeong had to ask herself whether she wanted to destroy the spirit or help it find peace. That question did not come with easy answers. She felt the spirit’s pull within her own body and mind, and there were times she nearly lost herself to its control. But even when she started doubting her own strength, she never gave up on finding a way through.
Final Choices Were Made from the Heart, Not Logic
As the final episodes arrived, the pressure increased. San-yeong realised that her own life was on the line. Every time the spirit took control of her, it left damage behind. People around her were hurt, and she felt less like herself each day. The thought that she might have to sacrifice herself to end the suffering was not far from her mind.
Hae-sang struggled with that idea. He had lost too many people already and did not want to watch another person fade away. But both of them knew that the pain could not be passed to someone else. They had to face it directly.
Through one last ritual, with the help of people who still believed in old traditions, they attempted to trap the spirit. But what made the ending powerful was that it did not offer a clean fix.
The ritual worked, but at a cost. San-yeong had to allow the spirit to fully enter her one last time to weaken it. It nearly took her completely, but she used her will to break its control from within.
In doing that, she gave the spirit what it had always wanted: someone who truly understood its pain. That act of understanding, not force, was what finally weakened it.
When silence followed her she knew the past wasn’t done (Photo: Revenant (2023)/Studio S and BA Entertainment)Even After the Spirit Was Gone, Life Did Not Return to Normal
Once the danger passed, San-yeong was not magically healed. Her life had been changed, and so had Hae-sang’s. The two of them did not rush into happiness. Instead, they kept their distance for a while. Both needed time to breathe and recover from what they had faced.
Hae-sang chose to continue helping people who dealt with spirits, but he did so with more care. He was no longer trying to fix everything alone. He had seen how people could carry deep pain without saying a word, and he made sure to listen more before acting.
San-yeong went back to regular life quietly. She started working again, trying to rebuild what she could. But she remained more cautious, more aware of the shadows people carry. The spirit had left her body, but the memories stayed.
Why This Ending Gave the Characters What They Needed
Revenant did not try to force happiness on its characters. It respected their journey and the damage they had faced. San-yeong did not become a hero in the usual way. She became strong by choosing to carry pain without letting it destroy her. Hae-sang found peace not by forgetting his past, but by accepting that it shaped him.
The show allowed grief and healing to sit side by side. It did not pretend that trauma disappears. It just showed that people can keep living even when they carry deep wounds. The horror was real, but so was the quiet strength that came from choosing not to give up.
By the time the last scene came, it was clear that San-yeong and Hae-sang would never forget what happened. But they had found ways to move forward, even if their path was slow. Revenant (2023) is available for streaming on Disney+.
