The Ending Of The Ritual Killer Explained

An element of «The Ritual Killer» that doesn’t get explained until the very end of the film is why Detective Boyd lost his family. Visions of the past remind him and the audience throughout the film that he recently lost his daughter. By the film’s end, Detective Boyd’s hazy dreams resolve into complete clarity in order to provide more context for his actions.

In a tragic turn of events, Detective Boyd’s daughter drowned while he was supposed to be watching her. Instead, he fell asleep from drinking and did not keep an eye on his daughter, who had seizure problems. In his wife’s grief over the loss, she blamed Boyd and took her own life. Interestingly, she apologizes to Boyd in his last vision of her. Whether that is her apologizing from a spirit realm or just Boyd imagining her giving an apology is up to the audience to decide.

In light of that, Detective Boyd’s consumption of Randoku’s eyeballs at the film’s end could signify multiple things. It could mean that Boyd wants to see past the guilt and regret from his past. It could also mean that he is seeking redemption, metaphorically opening his eyes to repair the past that was broken by closing his eyes. If, like Mackles said, eating eyes brings foresight, then Boyd’s actions could be him trying to make sure that he never makes such a grave mistake again.