The Witch spoilers explained

What is the main twist in The Witch?

The infant Samuel is taken by the witch that haunts the forest, and Katherine (Kate Dickie) kills herself after believing the devil has claimed her child. William (Ralph Ineson) blames his daughter Thomasin (Anya Taylor‑Joy) for the loss, forcing her into exile. In the woods Thomasin meets the witch, who offers her a black goat and a pact, and Thomasin willingly accepts, becoming the witch’s new servant.

What happens in The Witch?

In 1630 New England a Puritan family arrives at the edge of a dense, untamed forest, hoping to carve out a new life on a remote farm. William (Ralph Ineson) leads his wife Katherine (Kate Dickie), their teenage daughter Thomas (Anya Taylor‑Joy), their teenage son Caleb (Ellar Coltrane), their younger son Jonas (Ian Hart), and their infant son Samuel into a crude wooden house surrounded by towering pines. The family is devout, reciting psalms and praying constantly, but the isolation quickly wears on them.

The first night after settling, the family hears a strange, high‑pitched cry that seems to come from the woods. Thomas hears it while looking out the window and tells her father that a witch lives in the forest. William dismisses her, insisting that the devil will not come near a god‑fearing household. The next morning, Thomas discovers a strange, black goat near the barn. She names it Black Phillip and begins to feed it, though the goat seems unnaturally intelligent, staring at her with a knowing gaze.

Katherine becomes increasingly anxious, fearing that the forest is a place of evil. She spends long hours in the kitchen, muttering prayers, and tries to keep the children close. Caleb, restless and skeptical, begins to explore the woods with his friend, a local boy named Jonas. They find a clearing with a stone altar and a strange, half‑buried wooden doll. Caleb brings the doll home, and Thomas, fascinated, keeps it on a shelf.

That night, a storm rages. The family gathers around the hearth, reading from the Bible. Suddenly, a scream pierces the house. Katherine rushes to the nursery and finds Samuel missing, the cradle empty, and a smear of dark, oily blood on the floorboards. She collapses, sobbing, convinced that the devil has taken her child. William blames Thomas for the loss, accusing her of witchcraft because she was the one who first spoke of a witch in the woods. Thomas tries to defend herself, but the tension in the house erupts into a violent argument.

Katherine, overwhelmed by grief, retreats to the woods, clutching a small wooden cross. She wanders deeper, muttering prayers, until she stumbles upon a clearing where a figure in a tattered black dress stands beside a fire. The figure turns, revealing a pale, gaunt woman with hollow eyes. Katherine screams, drops the cross, and the woman lunges. The next morning the family finds Katherine’s body hanging from a tree, her throat slit, a look of terror frozen on her face.

The family is shattered. William becomes more paranoid, insisting that the devil has entered their home. He forces Thomas to stay inside, forbidding her from leaving the house. Caleb, angry and frightened, decides to leave the farm with Jonas, hoping to find safety in the nearby settlement. Jonas refuses, saying his mother will not let him go. Caleb, in a fit of rage, attacks Jonas and leaves him unconscious on the floor.

Thomas, alone with her father and the goat, continues to hear the strange cry at night. She begins to suspect that Black Phillip is more than a goat. One evening, while William is out hunting, Thomas sneaks out to the woods, following the sound of the cry. She finds a small clearing where a woman in a black cloak kneels beside a stone altar, chanting in an ancient language. The woman turns and reveals herself as the witch. She offers Thomas a choice: join her and become a mother to the forest, or remain in a life of endless fear and loss. Thomas, exhausted by the accusations and the death of her mother, hesitates.

The witch shows Thomas a vision of Samuel, alive and smiling, playing among the trees. The witch tells Thomas that the baby is safe, that the forest has taken him to protect him from the corrupt Puritan world. Thomas, torn between love for her brother and fear of the unknown, finally accepts the witch’s offer. She kneels, and the witch hands her a small wooden bowl filled with dark liquid. Thomas drinks, feeling warmth spread through her body.

When Thomas returns to the house, William is waiting, his face twisted with rage. He sees the goat staring at Thomas, its eyes glowing. He shouts that Thomas has become a witch, that she has betrayed the Lord. Thomas, now calm and resolute, tells him that the forest has given her a new purpose. William draws his axe, but Thomas steps back, and the goat lunges, knocking the axe from his hands. In the chaos, the house catches fire, the flames licking the thatched roof. William tries to escape, but the forest seems to close in, and he disappears into the darkness, his fate unknown.

The next morning, the forest is silent. The house is reduced to ash. Thomas walks alone through the trees, carrying a sack of dried bread and a small knife. She arrives at the clearing where the witch waits beside a fire, the black goat lying at her feet. The witch gestures to the goat, and Thomas kneels, taking the goat’s milk into her mouth. As she drinks, the goat’s eyes flash a deep amber, and a low, guttural laugh echoes through the woods. Thomas smiles, her eyes reflecting the firelight, fully embracing the darkness that has claimed her. The camera pulls back, showing the clearing surrounded by towering pines, the goat’s head turning toward the viewer as Thomas sits beside the witch, the forest now her home.

Quick, non-spoiler context

In 1630, a farmer relocates his family to a remote plot of land on the edge of a forest where strange, unsettling things happen. With suspicion and paranoia mounting, each family member's faith, loyalty and love are tested in shocking ways.