The Code 8 ending wraps up the stories of virtually every character while also setting up a spinoff series. Based on their 2016 short, Jeff Chan and Chris Paré returned to write and direct the feature-length edition. Set in the fictional Lincoln City, the world-building intro established that, in an alternate present, 4% of the population live with superpowers. Despite once being revered and even recruited to help build the city itself, such empowered people are now viewed with prejudice and forced to eke out a living on the fringes of society.
Starring The X-Files and The Babysitter 2 actor Robbie Amell, Code 8 follows the journey of lowly construction worker Connor Reed. Struggling to make ends meet and look after his terminally ill mother, he is forced to turn to more criminal methods. With the ability to produce and control electricity, Connor is recruited into a gang that works for local crime boss Marcus Sutcliffe (Greg Bryk). The gang is headed up by Garrett - who is played by the cousin of Robbie and Arrowverse stalwart, Stephen Amell. Unfortunately, with conflicting agendas and two government agents on their trail, things in Code 8 increasingly go awry.
Code 8 also stars Sung Kang (Fast & Furious 9) as Agent Alex Park and Laysla De Oliveira (Locke & Key) as fellow superpowered gang member Maddy. The rest of the cast is filled out by lesser-known actors and cinematic newcomers like Kyla Kane as Nia and Vlad Alexis as Freddie. Having helped to raise the budget through crowdfunding, the Amell cousins also served as producers. The efforts ultimately paid dividends - with the film not only surpassing its crowdfunding goals but set to produce a short-form spinoff via Quibi. Here are all the ways Code 8 simultaneously concludes and sets up threads for the future.
Throughout Code 8, Sutcliffe was frequently threatened by members of a mysterious organization known as The Trust. Owing money to them, the majority of the crimes orchestrated by Garrett's gang were in pursuit of paying off the debt. After a few ill-fated attempts, Connor provided some intel that could lead to a huge score. Unfortunately, once the job was complete, Sutcliffe's men turned on the gang. Though they failed to kill Connor and Garrett, they were successful in taking out Maddy and Freddie.
Connor would later blame Garrett's greed and overstepping his position on provoking Sutcliffe's wrath. While that may have had an element of truth to it, Sutcliffe was likely to have betrayed them either way. After all, the heist had a reward that said to be more than double what was owed to The Trust. As such, in a move that would impress even The Dark Knight's Joker, reducing the number of those set to receive a cut meant that Sutcliffe could not only clear his debt but salvage his increasingly declining business and reputation.
In the wake of Sutcliffe's betrayal, it appeared that Connor had come to see the realities of the world he had been drawn in to. Seeming to now accept that he was out of his depth, he arranged a covert meeting with Agent Park. There, he revealed the location of Marcus Sutcliffe's hideout. While the information was solid, the police never actually made it to Sutcliffe. As the crime boss tried to make a getaway, Connor and Garrett were waiting for him - having seemingly known which way he would flee. It's unlikely that Park and his agents were aware of this part of Connor's plan, as it could have gone wrong and with Sutcliffe escaping.
As things stood by that point in the film, Connor was still holding on to the aims that had driven him the entire film. As such, in line with his previously established aptitude for criminal schemes, Connor was simply using the police to coral Sutcliffe into an ambush. Rather than turning him over to the police, Connor wanted to enact a more brutal vengeance on Sutcliffe alongside Garrett. Given that the spinoff will center on Connor and Garrett teaming up, this set-piece served as a decent tease for what that duo could look like when at full force against common enemies. The deception also established that while Connor was the main character, he wasn't entirely a hero. Equally, though the world of Code 8 was one filled with superpowered people, it wasn't quite as black-and-white and driven by superheroism.
Much of Sung Kang's character remains shrouded in mystery by the Code 8 ending. At the end of the film, such things clearly seemed to be weighing on the detective - as represented by his pensive stare when receiving his medal. One of the reasons for such an expression is surely down to not feeling deserving of the honor being bestowed upon him. While he deserved credit for his part in shutting down Sutcliffe's drug empire, it wouldn't have been possible without Connor's information. Plus, it was Connor himself that effectively brought direct justice to Sutliffe and his lieutenant, Rhino. As such, given that Alex Park was established as the more moral of the two central detectives, he is likely feeling the disconnect between him being rewarded and Connor remaining vilified; Connor will now have to endure time in prison.
Equally, it was revealed partway through Code 8 that Park's daughter has powers. Since such gifts are said to hereditary, there's a chance that the detective himself is "power enabled" and is actually keeping such a fact secret. In either case, however, that's a level of conflict that was only briefly touched on - and could produce some interesting character turns in the planned Code 8 spinoff. That goes extra considering that the government is now voting whether to target superpowered people more directly and that the synopsis for spinoff suggests that corrupt cops will play a part. As a result, Park could directly have to team with Connor against some of his own - including, potentially, his morally ambiguous partner, Davis (Hannibal's Aaron Abrams).
Rather than ending the film with Connor, Code 8's final scenes instead centered on Nia. Visiting her father in prison, the pair had a near-wordless exchange that concluded with a rare smile from Nia. The reason for this is clearly to cut to credits on a feeling of hope and success. After all, Code 8 spent its runtime slowly unfurling Nia's backstory and what led to her indentured servitude. With Sutcliffe now officially dead, the debt she and her father owed was effectively wiped out. As a result, in at least that one sense, they are both now free. It's a much more heartwarming place to end things, given that everybody else's storylines end in quite a bleak fashion - especially with Connor both losing his mother and now heading for prison.
It also helped push Connor more towards being a hero, especially if Code 8 is viewed through the prism of being an origin story. Though he briefly gave in to the temptation of sacrificing Nia to save his mom, he ultimately made the noble choice. And while he wasn't able to save his mother and enjoy a true reunion with her, he helped ensure a reunion between another parent and child. It remains to be seen whether Nia will return in the spinoff. If not, however, Code 8 told a complete story through her - while leaving the majority of others open-ended.
The biggest set-up for the Code 8 spin0ff comes via Garrett's meeting with Wesley Cumbo (The Umbrella Academy's Peter Outerbridge). As a leading member of The Trust, Cumbo lurked on the periphery of the film's action. As the dust settled, however, Garrett brought them more to the fore by paying off the debt that Sutcliffe owed. While his killing of Sutcliffe was driven by revenge, the character frequently demonstrated his own thirst for increased power. As such, he opted to kill two birds with one stone and ingratiated himself with a group that will likely play a larger role in the spinoff.
After all, the Code 8 spinoff synopsis states that Connor and Garrett will team up against an elite criminal organization - as which The Trust could definitely be described. Whether Garrett can be trusted or will merely be using Connor to usurp another empire, however, will also no doubt hang over future proceedings. Given all of this, it's easy to see why Chan and Paré have been praised for their world-building and why fans are excited to see what comes next for Code 8's surviving characters.
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