Directed by Lee Daniels, Netflix’s horror film ‘The Deliverance’ ends with Ebony Jackson’s efforts to safeguard her children from the hands of Trey, a vicious demonic spirit that targets the three kids in the family. When the young mother stoops to helplessness, an apostle named Bernice James comes to her rescue with the much-needed explanation that unravels the mystery behind the paranormal activities that unfold in her house. Even though the reverend leads the deliverance, the demon she battles manages to conquer her, leading Ebony to a showdown in which her beliefs and courage are tested. The supernatural thriller concludes with several ambiguous details concerning the fates of beings involved in the deliverance! SPOILERS AHEAD.
The Deliverance Plot Synopsis
‘The Deliverance’ takes place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Ebony Jackson and her family, which comprises her mother, Alberta, and three children, Nate, Shante, and Andre, had recently moved into a house in the city to open a new chapter of their lives. The children’s father is in Iraq, fighting a war without knowing when it will end or when he can return to his family. The young mother is a recovering alcoholic who fails to hide her occasional lapses. The grandmother, unlike Ebony, is highly religious and a regular churchgoer. She is also battling cancer, which takes her to a nearby health center for chemotherapy sessions.
The peace that barely exists in the relationships between the family members is eliminated when they start to see black flies randomly across the house. Meanwhile, Andre, the youngest of Ebony’s children, begins to walk around the house at night. The family is particularly drawn to the house’s basem*nt. When the young woman opens the door to it, she is welcomed by an unbearable smell, only to find a dead cat eventually. Andre talks to an invisible friend as the house’s condition alarms Ebony. His mother does not have the time to deal with these conversations since she has to prioritize handling a social worker named Cynthia Henry, who can terminate her right to her kids’ custody.
Nate, Shante, and Andre snap one day in school. They display irrational and supernatural behavior. The latter even defecates in the classroom and throws his feces at his teacher. Ebony takes her children to a hospital, but the doctor fails to find an issue with the three siblings. However, their conditions become progressively worse as bruises start to appear on their bodies. Andre bangs his head on a door and suffers from an intense fever. Nate stuns his mother and grandmother by trying to drown his younger brother in a bathtub. Alberta realizes the severity of the threat her family is facing, which leads her to place crucifixes in the house along with a Bible.
Who or What Possesses Ebony’s Children?
Andre, Shante, and Nate are possessed by Trey, the demonic spirit that once belonged to one of the former tenants of the house. Ebony learns about the truth behind the paranormal occurrences unfolding in her home from Bernice James, an apostle spotted outside the Jackson family’s house. Alberta and her daughter initially believe that the mysterious woman is Cynthia’s companion. When the children’s mental and physical states worsen terribly, Bernice shows up before Ebony to explain why the latter’s kids have been acting strange. Around two decades before the Jackson family moved into the Pittsburgh house, a couple and their two children from Memphis, Tennessee, stayed there.
Janelle and Ahman were part of Bernice’s church and beloved presences in the region’s religious community. That was why it was unbearable for the particular apostle when their son, Trey, fell sick. The medical personnel who treated the young man couldn’t explain his ailment, leading the reverend to the house, only for her to sense a demonic presence. Despite her best efforts, Trey died, marking the victory of the demon who possessed him. The demonic essence contaminated the young man’s pure, religious spirit, which became an opening for the former to infest the human world significantly. The same presence must have possessed Janelle through Trey, leading her to behead her husband, Ahman, and strangle their little daughter.
Thus, Trey’s spirit became the demonic entity’s “home.” It seemingly awaited a similar vulnerable human being to possess, and the long wait ended when the Jackson family became the house’s new tenants. As far as the demonic entity is concerned, Andre, Shante, and Nate are ideal hosts because of their vulnerabilities. Irrespective of their age, they had to bid adieu to their father, who left for a war that could kill him, and deal with an alcoholic mother. In a way, the children were emotionally abandoned by their parents, who should have been there for them.
Ebony’s problematic or borderline abusive nature and her constant fights with Albert made their home an unsettling place, severely affecting Andre, Shante, and Nate, making it easier for Trey to possess the former’s children. The vicious spirit takes advantage of the kids’ weaknesses to make them new “homes.”
How Does Alberta Die?
After possessing Andre, Shante, and Nate, Trey’s demonic spirit is challenged by Alberta. Even though chaos prevails in the Jacksons’ household, exposing themselves to the supernatural presence, Alberta is an exception. Although she fights with Ebony, she is a woman believing in God. She is a regular at their local church and a believer who relies on crucifixes and a Bible to battle her family’s threat. She is enveloped by her trust in God, which gives her enough courage to fight the demon and serves as her shield. The history of Trey’s family reveals to us that the supernatural entity can only unleash its wrath completely when its targets are immersed in helplessness.
In Trey’s case, the demon destroyed the family after Bernice accepted her defeat, leaving no other avenues for Janelle and Ahman to rely on to save their son. Similarly, the spirit that possesses Ebony’s children needs the family to stoop into outright helplessness to kill them. As long as Alberta remains confident about conquering the spirit with the help of God, the family won’t become hopeless. The demonic entity must have targeted the religious woman after becoming convinced about her beliefs’ power. The shadowy figure that attacks her resembles none other than Andre, indicating that Trey’s spirit possesses the boy and makes him kill his grandmother.
The Deliverance Ending: How Does Bernice Die?
After Alberta’s death, Ebony realizes that the threat her family faces is immensely severe. She has been beating around the bush for a while, but her mother’s demise convinces her that she cannot hide from the supernatural entity that has taken hold of her children. The realization leads her to Bernice, who proposes a deliverance to destroy Trey’s spirit and free Andre from the demonic presence. With holy water and the words praising God, the apostle starts the ritual, but in no time, Trey’s spirit fatally injures her, isolating the young mother. The reverend’s death is not a surprise, especially considering her history with the demon.
The demonic entity’s actions make it significantly evident that it takes advantage of its subjects/targets’ vulnerabilities. Even though Bernice is a woman of God, she is vulnerable before the supernatural spirit. She had already failed once to conquer the entity and sent it to hell. The unsuccessful attempt must have exposed the apostle’s strengths to the demon. Due to the same reason, the paranormal being must have been well prepared for Bernice when she arrives in the haunted house to save Andre. When the apostle slowly dies, she asks Ebony to fight the entity and save her child. What the young mother does after the reverend’s death may have taken the evil spirit by surprise.
How Does Ebony Save Andre From Trey?
As far as Trey’s demonic existence is concerned, Ebony is as vulnerable as any of her children. Her alcoholism and troubled relationships with her loved ones have unsettled her life considerably. Since she hasn’t been a woman of God like Alberta, she also does not have a shield. After killing Bernice, the spirit must have been under the impression that it could break the mother easily and steal Andre’s soul. Ebony then stuns the demon by seeking the help of Jesus Christ. She proclaims her belief and trust in God the Son and requests his intervention to save Andre. Since Trey’s spirit does not expect her to appeal to God as a non-believer, this turn of events leaves the demonic entity vulnerable.
Ebony saves Andre by allowing Jesus to fight the demon through her body and mind. She prays to God and allows his son to find a home in her physique and soul to eradicate the supernatural entity’s threat. Jesus then seemingly possesses the young mother and attacks the evil being that has been preying on the family. Therefore, Ebony’s transformation from a non-believer to a believer helps her safeguard her son from the demonic presence that haunts her house. Through the protagonist, the film depicts how one can find a higher power and safeguard lives by believing in the same.
Is Trey’s Demonic Spirit Gone for Good?
The horror thriller concludes with Ebony sending Trey’s demonic spirit to the gallows with the help of Jesus. After the deliverance ends, the family members lead normal lives without any paranormal occurrences affecting them. Having said that, Ebony and her loved ones’ peaceful existences cannot be seen as definite proof of Trey’s outright elimination. The film only depicts the supernatural entity returning to hell, which can be escapable. By killing Alberta and Bernice and burning down the former’s crucifix, the demon makes it clear that it is not a weak entity. If it has the strength to deal with a crucifix and two women of God directly, it cannot be said that the spirit is gone for good.
If the tenants who replace Ebony and her children are vulnerable beings who don’t believe in God, Trey’s spirit may succeed in resurfacing from hell to target them. The higher Christian power that helps the young mother defeat the demon finds a home in her rather than the building where she has been living. Since she moves away from the house, the protection of God must have left the haunted house with her, possibly leaving a portal open for the evil spirit to resurface. What’s important is that Ebony has found the way of God that safeguards her and her children from Trey for good. She does not have to worry about the paranormal entity targeting her or her loved ones any longer.
After Trey’s spirit disappears, Ebony embraces Jesus and tries to be a better mother. She decides to work on her relationship with her kids’ father so the three children will have their parents to look after them. Even though she loses Alberta to Trey, the supernatural entity’s diabolical intervention in their lives helps her find God and mend her bonds with Andre, Shante, and Nate.
Read More: Did Glenn Close Go Bald For The Deliverance? Is She Wearing Wigs?
