WARNING: MAJOR SPOILERS ahead for His Three Daughters.Netflix’s gripping family dramaHis Three Daughtershas a surprising and fantastical ending.His Three Daughterswas released on Netflix on June 12, 2025 following a two-week theatrical run in select theaters. The film originally premiered over a year ago at the Toronto International Film Festival on July 23, 2025.His Three Daughtersdebuted with a near-perfect 99%on Rotten Tomatoes, becoming one of just a handful of movies to join the prestigiousRotten Tomatoes 99% club, which has generated some early Oscars buzz. It’sone of seven feature films directed by Azazel Jacobs (French Exit,The Lovers), who also wrote the original screenplay.
His Three Daughterstakes place in a New York City apartment where a man named Vincent is suffering from cancer. His three adult children, all daughters, are somewhat estranged but are forced to face each other and live together in the apartment while also grasping the impending death of their dad. Often described as tense, emotional, and bittersweet,His Three Daughtersshowcases the exceptional talents of its three lead actresses, Carrie Coon,Elizabeth Olsen, andNatasha Lyonne. WhileCoon, Olsen, and Lyonne are all previous Emmy nominees, none of them have been nominated for an Academy Award, which could change with the release ofHis Three Daughters.
Vincent’s Parting Messages To His Three Daughters Explained
Vincent springs life into his daughters moments before his death
In a stunning twist at the end ofHis Three Daughters, Vincent stands up from the living room chair after his daughters lift him from bed and take a selfie with him.He springs to life, grabs a beer, and revises Katie’s obituary, specifying that he didn’t raise Rachel like his own because she really is his own. He had heard all about Rachel’s biological dad from her mother and knew he was a jerk, just like his dad was. He reveals to Katie that Rachel cared so much about her and was so sad when she went away to college. Katie never knew. Vincent had been waiting for them to reconcile their differences for so long, but he says it has yet to happen.
Vincent touches on things he will miss about life, particularly New York, and recalls a missed connection with a woman named Bliss. She was an Irish woman from Queens and taught Vincent how powerful love can be. He reflects on some of his guilt and regrets and what he wants for his daughters. He singles out Christina, apologizing for not being there for her to help her deal with her mom’s death. Interestingly, he doesn’t have that same sentiment toward Katie or doesn’t express it.His monologue ends with Vincent’s “spirit” locking eyes with his “body”. His spirit looks raw, slightly frightened. His body looks angry and full of contempt, like he had been wronged. The ending ofHis Three Daughtersmight not be that deep, but Vincent does look rather angry in his chair when he dies.
Did Vincent Really Deliver His End-Of-Life Monologue?
Vincent’s monologue was a thematic display of movie magic
Sadly, Vincent’s final monologue does not actually happen and is used as a way to convey Vincent’s character in a powerful albeit impossible way. The fact that Vincent is able to stand up and walk around in his apartment again ties in with the theme that Christina raised earlier about the power of movies. Vincent had said to her years ago that movies add fantastical elements to death and never truly capture what it’s like in reality.Vincent’s monologue is a meta and imaginative display that makes a point about the power of movieswhile giving Vincent his own voice and presence, making the reality of his death less grim through movie magic. However, when Vincent does pass, it is still realistic and devastating.
Why Vincent’s Daughters Brought Him To His Living Room Chair
It’s the only time all three of them do something together in the film
Vincent’s daughters brought their dad to his favorite living room chair, which wasthe only thing they did together as sisters in the entire movie. They thought he wanted to get up, and it seemed like he did, so they had a blast walking with him and believing they were making him happy as well. The fantasy elements ofHis Three Daughters’ending start after the beeping noise sounds and when Vincent gets up from his chair, tossing his oxygen machine and monitors. This is likely the point when Vincent actually passed and symbolically represented his true spirit leaving his body before saying goodbye to the world and his three daughters.
Later, they all sit in Vincent’s chair one by one as a way of saying goodbye to him. While Katie and Rachel see the significance in the act, Rachel still looks completely freaked out, likely because she has done the least to prepare for his passing.Rachel, Katie, and Christina bringing Vincent out to his chair is a tricky situationsince it seems like Vincent is happy to be back in his comfort zone and perhaps wants to die there instead of in the bedroom, but it’s the last thing he ever does. The daughters don’t really feel guilty for helping him to the chair, which raises the question of who’s to say that they should not have moved him in the first place or that Vincent would have lived longer if they left him in bed.
Christina’s Message About Death, Fantasy, & Absence Explained
Vincent told Christina long ago that deaths are always dramatized in movies
Christina recalls a time when she and her dad were watching a movie that had a death in it and he made a point to her that real death was never like it was in the movies. He told her,“The only way to communicate how death really feels is through absence. Everything else is fantasy.”Rachel helps Katie understand what her dad meant by absence – not like how people change and grow apart, but not having him at all after he’s gone. An absence with an absolute and permanent meaning. This is one of the most profound statements of the film since even though Vincent wasn’t himself during his final days, he was still alive. The permanent absence begins to settle in once Vincent is irrecoverably gone, which creates space for Rachel, Katie, and Christina to bridge their interpersonal gaps.
The Real Meaning Of His Three Daughters Ending
Vincent’s absence brings his three daughters closer together
Despite Katie, Rachel, and Christina’s emotional and heartfelt reactions while listening to their father’s monologue, none of it actually happened in the reality of the film, meaning that they were not brought together in their father’s final moments.Instead, they are brought together because of the absence of their dad, just like he had hoped they would. Katie finally lets go of trying to control the situation and Christina feels comfortable enough to sing for her sisters as a motherly way to soothe them. Rachel is in total shock, hinting that she may not have been emotionally prepared for Vincent’s death through nonstop weed smoking and never getting the DNR signed, indicating her avoidance of the gravity of the situation.
Christina leaves with her Grateful Dead shirt, unashamed, as her sisters are sad to see her go.Rachel and Katie are on better terms, more loving and accessible towards each other. Rachel goes back to her life of weed and sports betting, smoking again in the apartment. But it doesn’t feel right anymore. She hears Katie’s voice in her head telling her to take it outside. She’s also alone, knowing Vincent will come out to say hello and express his condolences. Finally, as Christina’s “Five Little Ducks” plays out in the final moments ofHis Three Daughters, Rachel makes a sisterly joke out of Christina’s song, saying, “Daddy duck says beep, beep, beep.” They laugh, indicating that their lives are now more intersected and they will make more of an effort to connect from then on.
His Three Daughters
Cast
His Three Daughters is a 2023 drama film directed by Azazel Jacobs. The story centers on three sisters, portrayed by Carrie Coon, Elizabeth Olsen, and Natasha Lyonne, who reunite in their childhood home to care for their terminally ill father. As they navigate the emotional complexities of their father’s final days, the sisters confront unresolved issues and deep-seated family tensions. The film explores themes of sisterhood, forgiveness, and the intricate dynamics of familial relationships.
