The Ending Of 1996's Fear Explained

Moviegoers in 1996 were introduced to a new type of fear: One that came in the well-sculpted form of model and musician-turned-actor Mark Wahlberg. A tense psychological thriller directed by James Foley ("Fifty Shades Freed"), "Fear" stars Wahlberg as David McCall, a charming but unstable young man whose obsession with the beautiful high school student Nicole Walker — played by future Academy Award winner Reese Witherspoon — threatens not just her, but her entire family.

Called "suspenseful" and "riveting" by film critic Roger Ebert, "Fear" has gone on to become a cult classic and recently gained a new audience after streaming on Netflix. This '90s teen shocker is full of twists and surprises — not to mention a male lead who is not at all that he appears to be — so some details may need further explanation. For anyone who is curious about an early film starring two Hollywood A-listers (and a rare thriller role for Witherspoon), or is afraid that they might have missed something while peeking through their fingers during the violent and startling final act, here is the ending of "Fear" explained.

"Fear" introduces the Walker family: Architect Steven (William Petersen), his teenage daughter Nicole (Reese Witherspoon), his second wife Laura (Amy Brenneman), and her young son Toby (Christopher Gray). Nicole struggles with her new blended family and chafes under Steven's overprotective parenting. Eager to assert her independence, she skips school with her adventurous friend Margo (Alyssa Milano) and sees a handsome stranger– David McCall (Mark Wahlberg).

Nicole encounters David again at a warehouse rave, and when the police arrive, he helps her escape. They quickly fall into an all-consuming love affair, complete with broken curfews, an intimate encounter on a roller coaster, and Nicole giving David the code to sneak into the Walkers' fortified, specially-designed home. At first, David seems like the perfect boyfriend, but he becomes dangerously possessive, giving Nicole a black eye during a scuffle and lying to her about Steven attacking him. Heartbroken, Nicole ends their relationship.

Unfortunately, David won't let her. He threatens Margo (who he previously sexually assaulted) and murders Nicole's supportive classmate Gary (Todd Caldecott), before warning Nicole that nothing will come between them. Steven breaks into David's house and destroys his twisted shrine to Nicole. Upon seeing the damage, David resolves to take Nicole back by any means necessary.

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David assembles his criminal friends to lay siege to the Walkers' home. Unfortunately for any dog lovers in the audience, their first victim is Kaiser, Toby's beloved German Shepherd, whose severed head is shoved through the doggy door. As the family reels in horror, Nicole realizes that David has the entry code; the Walkers barricade their home while Nicole contacts their security guard Larry. Steven leaves to back him up, but in the confrontation, they shoot Larry dead and take Steven hostage. Laura reluctantly lets David in with Steven while Nicole, Margo, and Toby hide upstairs.

Now sporting a self-inflicted "NICOLE 4 EVA" tattoo on his chest, David has deluded himself into thinking that Nicole is in love with him and her family is the only thing standing in their way. Toby sneaks out of a window to call for help on Laura's car phone, running over and killing one of the assailants in the process. Another is killed — surprisingly enough, by David — when he attempts to hurt Nicole.

Toby re-enters the house to free his tied-up parents. Steven lunges at David before he can drag Nicole out of the house; as they fight, Nicole stabs David, ironically with a peace pipe — a gift he won for her at a carnival. David turns on her, but Steven throws him out of Nicole's window to his sudden, violent death. The Walkers reunite, safe at last, but they now know the true meaning of fear.

The ending of "Fear" represents the restoration of the normal social order over an outside threat — David is dead, and the Walkers can now move on and heal. Broken homes are a repeated thread in the film, literally and figuratively: Nicole's parents are divorced, David's stories about a happy childhood are lies, and Steven and David both break into and violate each other's homes. Despite their troubled interpersonal relationships, the Walkers join together in repelling David. The family is whole, and fittingly enough one of the final images of "Fear" is Nicole, Steven, Laura, Toby, and Margo embracing.

The film's conclusion could also be seen as a defeat of David's toxic masculinity by Steven's more positive, paternal force. At the beginning of "Fear," Steven struggles with Nicole growing up and becoming a young woman. David's arrival threatens his position as the man in Nicole's life, with the two forming an escalating rivalry. But where David fights to control Nicole and possess her, Steven fights because he loves her and wants to keep her safe.

An unfortunate aspect of this ending is that it relegates Nicole, the female lead of the film, to the narrative sidelines. Though Nicole is able to stab David, Steven is the one who throws him out the window and ends his threat permanently. Rather than being a film about a girl regaining her agency from an abusive ex-boyfriend, "Fear" ultimately becomes a story about two men fighting over a girl.

First, don't be confused by the word "franchise," because "Fear" is indeed a standalone film — at least, for now. In the tradition of erotic thrillers like "Jagged Edge" and "Fatal Attraction," "Fear" ends rather conclusively with the villain's spectacular demise, to the relief of the on-screen heroes, as well as the audience. Understandably, then, there has not been a sequel to "Fear" in the decades since the 1996 film's release. But there have been two recent attempts at reboots, suggesting that "Fear" may return to our screens after all.

In 2019, Deadline reported that Universal Pictures and Imagine Entertainment were rebooting "Fear" as a feature film. "The Acolyte" star Amandla Stenberg was attached to play the lead, possibly taking over from Witherspoon in the role of Nicole. As of 2024, however, there has been no further news of this project, meaning that it is likely not moving forward.

A second proposed reboot promised to push "Fear" in a bold new direction. In 2022, Peacock began developing "Fear" as a television series; according to the log-line presented to Variety, the new series would be a "game of cat and mouse" and a "twist-filled suspense story about toxic relationships." No further details of this television series have been released, however, making its future unclear. For now, David McCall remains dead and buried.