Netflix‘s Unchosen is set in an oppressive religious cult, but does the central character Rosie escape her marriage by the end? Find out below.
The show depicts a closed religious cult and has been created and written by Julie Gearey, known for her work on Intergalactic and Prisoners’ Wives. Several episodes have been directed by Jim Loach, son of film-making great Ken.
The story centres on Rosie (Molly Windsor), a young mother living in a religious sect named the Fellowship of the Divine, alongside her controlling husband Adam (Asa Butterfield). Rosie meets an outsider named Sam (Fra Free), who shows her the possibilities of the outside world, but any attempts to escape will see her running up against the cult leader, played by Christopher Eccleston.
Check out the trailer for Unchosen here:
All six episodes of Unchosen dropped together on Netflix on April 21, with episodes running at between 40 and 60 minutes.
The series began life under the title Out Of The Dust and is the result of extensive research conducted by Gearey on real-life cults and sects, such as the patriarchal Plymouth Brethren. She spoke to survivors and the production even filmed in real meeting halls associated with cults to capture the claustrophobic atmosphere.
The show currently sits on a 50 per cent rating on reviews aggregator Rotten Tomatoes.
The ending of Unchosen explained: does Rosie escape her marriage?
By the final episode, Rosie (Molly Windsor) does at least in strictly literal terms leave her husband Adam (Asa Butterfield) and the closed religious sect that has controlled her life.
Rosie is secretly hiding Sam (Fra Free) inside the cult community while still living with Adam. He becomes increasingly suspicious, while pressure from the Christopher Eccleston’s cult leader intensifies.
While Sam had initially seemed to offer hope of an escape, however, he becomes exposed as a violent and unstable man, with a history of serious violence. He becomes more erratic and aggressive, and confrontations with the group boil over.
Rosie takes advantage of the fallout, escaping with her daughter and leaving the community. She does not return to Adam and the marriage is effectively over. She does not end up with Sam either, and she is left with a tentative sense of freedom, but with the trauma and institutionalisation of the cult still imprinted upon her. The cult itself continues, with Sam and Adam still fully emerged in it.