The Rip’s Ending Twist Revealed: Director And Star Explain Shocking Betrayal

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Be warned, major spoilers ahead for the movie The Rip! The ending reveals who was secretly trying to sabotage the team, and the writer/director, Joe Carnahan, and star, Sasha Calle, are explaining the surprising twist. This Netflix action-thriller, starring and produced by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, follows a group of Miami narcotics officers who discover a much larger sum of money than anticipated during a raid, leading to internal conflict as some consider stealing it.

In a recent interview with Liam Crowley from ScreenRant, director Joe Carnahan and actress Sasha Calle revealed the true mastermind behind the robbery attempt at the end of The Rip. Throughout the 113-minute film, the audience is led to suspect Damon’s character, largely due to his suspicious actions—like not reporting a large sum of money and confiscating everyone’s phones.

The ending of The Rip reveals that Detective Mike Ro, played by Steven Yeun, and DEA Agent Matty Nix, played by Kyle Chandler, were actually the ones responsible. Lieutenant Dumars, played by Damon, was attempting to use the house as part of an undercover operation to expose the corrupt officers who murdered Captain Jackie Velez (Lina Esco), and his actions were meant to mislead anyone investigating.

A crucial clue to the reveal, as Carnahan highlights, is who Dumars confided in about the $150,000 stash – a detail the director deliberately included for observant viewers, since Damon’s character claims a different amount. Despite this, Carnahan intentionally cast actors known for playing heroes to mislead the audience and divert suspicion, playing against their typical on-screen personas.

I often rely on the established reputations of actors like Matt and Ben, and the characters they’re famous for. People have a strong image of those roles – Jason Bourne isn’t a villain, Batman isn’t a villain, and so on. It’s about playing with those pre-existing expectations and leveraging what audiences already know and believe about these iconic characters. You’re deliberately using that established history and benefiting from it.

Carnahan remembered watching the film with an audience in a theater, paying close attention to their reactions. He believed the ending’s twist wouldn’t be predicted, and he was right. He specifically recalled two women reacting with genuine surprise when they realized the barrels weren’t filled with stolen money, but with phone books—one of them even exclaimed, “No!” in shock.

Calle, whose character was caught in a complex game of deception with the police, was asked if she figured out who the real criminal was. She quickly acknowledged that the actor playing Matt skillfully misled her character, Desi, throughout the story. She was even a little surprised by the ending, particularly when Dumars said, “I knew you’d do the right thing,” and she was prepared to adapt and persevere.

Sasha Calle described her character, Desi, as someone simply focused on survival and escape. She understood danger was approaching and didn’t want to be caught in the crossfire.

As Carnahan intended, the film strongly suggests Damon’s character is the prime suspect in The Rip. He’d recently been promoted to Lieutenant right before Velez was killed, and was struggling with personal issues – he’d lost his son and was deeply in debt due to his divorce. Meanwhile, Desi cautioned the new team member, Ro, that Dumars appeared to be conspiring with Baptiste (Teyana Taylor) and Salazar (Catalina Sandino Moreno) to steal the money.

I’ve been thinking about Yeun’s character, and honestly, the signs were there that he was one of the bad guys. Beyond repeating one of Dumars’ made-up numbers, he’s the newest addition to the team and always seems super put-together, which felt off. Plus, the burner phone! The movie tried to make us believe it was for reporting to higher-ups, but looking back, it was definitely foreshadowing his betrayal. It all makes sense now!

Similar to Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight, director Carnahan’s The Rip relies heavily on the suspense leading up to its major plot twist, and critics seem to have enjoyed its classic thriller style. With an 84% critic score and a 77% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, the film could be another success for Netflix.

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2026-01-17 00:10