The Garfield Movie Ending Explained (2024)

The Garfield Movie sees the titular house cat confronted with his complicated relationship with his father while taking part in a daring heist, but this all works out to a heartwarming ending. The Colombia Pictures film dives into the origin story of the beloved Garfield (Chris Pratt), revealing that he met Jon (Nicholas Hoult) after his father, Vic (Samuel L. Jackson), abandoned him in an alleyway. It didn't take long for the lasagna-loving kitten to sniff his way to the Italian restaurant where Jon was dining, and the pair were established as owner and pet shortly after. However, five years later, Garfield gets caught up in his father's mess.

While on a midnight food binge in 2024's The Garfield Movie, Garfield and Odie are kidnapped by two strange dogs, who are revealed to be henchmen to a villainous kitty named Jinx (Hannah Waddingham), who was an associate of Vic's before he allowed her to get captured and taken to the pound. The only way for Garfield to be safe again is for Vic to pay Jinx a quart of milk for every day she was behind bars—which is a lot considering she was in the pound for four years. Garfield and Vic (with the help of Odie) have no choice but to pull off a massive lactose heist and fix their relationship while they are at it.

Why Garfield's Father Abandoned Him

Vic Reveals That The Opening Scene Of The Garfield Movie Wasn't What It Seemed

The biggest reveal of The Garfield Movie is that Jackon's character, Garfield's father, didn't abandon his son after all. When Vic and Garfield were unable to work together due to the resentment between them, the older cat finally admitted that after leaving Garfield in a crate and telling him he would be right back, he had spent hours painstakingly getting his hands on a single small fish to feed his son. By the time he returned to feed him, Garfield had already found Jon and was happily munching away on pizza and lasagna—the kind of meal Vic could never hope to provide.

Seeing that Garfield was safe and fed with Jon, Vic decided to get out of the way. However, when the Monday-despising kitty was taken to the pound after the Lactose Farms heist, he learned that his father had never really been far. Vic would frequently sit in the tree near Jon's house, watching from afar to make sure that his kid was happy and taken care of. Every time that he visited, Vic left a mark on the tree. Once Garfield returned home and saw just how many times his father had come to see him, he knew he had to do something to fix their relationship.

Garfield & Vic Reconcile Their Relationship After Garfield Saves His Father

Vic & Garfield Work Out Their Differences In The Garfield Movie

Despite learning the real reason Vic had left him in the alley, Garfield had given up hope on his father in The Garfield Movie after he ditched him at Lactose Farms. However, the realization that Vic had always kept an eye on Garfield changed things. The titular cat headed back to Jinx's hideout, looking for his dad, only to discover the villain's plan to throw Vic off a train while passing over a bridge. So, Garfield headed out on another adventure to rescue his father and stop Jinx once and for all with the help of Odie, Otto, and 6,000 takeout orders delivered by drone.

Because Vic had considered Garfield a pampered house cat, his son's daring plan to save him from Jinx took the older cat by surprise. Garfield applied a lot of the lessons his father had taught him on their milk heist, combining them with many of his own twists (like using takeout drones to attack Jinx and her henchmen). In the end, this allowed the pair to put their differences behind them. Once Garfield returned home to Jon at the end of The Garfield Movie, Vic became a frequent visitor. In fact, he basically became a house cat himself.

How The Garfield Movie's Ending Sets Up A Sequel

The Garfield Movie's Post-Credits Scene Sets Up A Sequel

The Garfield Movie had a nice and tidy ending, with no loose ends that needed to be tied up. Still, there are a variety of ways that the door was left open for a sequel. The film ends with a montage showing Garfield and his dad's life together after their big adventure, with high-tech lounger chairs, plenty of takeout, and Odie at their beck and call. Still, it isn't entirely clear if Vic is a permanent resident of Jon's house or a visitor, as he claimed, leading up to The Garfield Movie's ending. A sequel could explore this further, as well as potentially bring back Jinx, whose need for revenge would have grown.

Though The Garfield Movie doesn't specifically set up a new story, the post-credits scene all but promises that a sequel is on the way. When the credits finished, a comic strip appeared on the screen, and Garfield cheekily asked the audience whether they were waiting for a sequel. This certainly seems to imply that Colombia already has something in store, but whether this actually comes to be will depend on the overall performance of the first film. If all goes well, The Garfield Movie 2 is sure to become a reality.

The Real Meaning Of The Garfield Movie's Ending

The Garfield Movie Uses Garfield's Father & New Friends To Establish A Brand New Franchise

The Garfield Movie takes a unique approach to the iconic cat's story, providing a brand new origin story covering how Garfield met Jon. However, the 2024 movie had very little to do with Jon in the end, and that is where it stands apart from past adaptations. Instead, we get Vic, who added a fun foundation to Garfield's story. Though the original Garfield comics and cartoons did sometimes mention a father character, the relationship between father and son was never explored. In this way, the ending of The Garfield Movie has opened the door to a brand new era for this beloved franchise.

The Garfield Movie sees a new dynamic at Jon's house, with Vic now a relatively permanent presence at the house. Garfield is no longer the only lazy, Monday-hating, food-loving cat since Vic is highly similar. Though the movie's ending is as straightforward and heartwarming as would be expected from a children's film, this subtle shift in the continuity is almost like a brand new timeline, this limitless opportunity to explore. The Garfield Movie may be the first movie adaptation of its kind, but the movie's ending indicates that it won't be the last.

The Garfield Movie

PG

Adventure

Animation

Comedy

Based on Jim Davis's comic series, Garfield is a new imagining of the lasagna-loving cat and his friends, opting for a fully computer-animated approach. Chris Pratt voices the titular cat, with the film aiming to explore his early days and new misadventures for him, his friends, and his family.

Director

Mark Dindal

Release Date

May 24, 2024

Studio(s)

Columbia Pictures , Alcon Entertainment , DNEG Animation , Amuse Entertainment , Paws, Inc.

Distributor(s)

Sony Pictures Releasing

Writers

David Reynolds

Cast

Chris Pratt , Samuel L. Jackson , Nicholas Hoult , Cecily Strong , Hannah Waddingham , Brett Goldstein , Bowen Yang , Ving Rhames

Runtime

101 minutes