Back in Action ending explained: Do Matt and Emily get their kids back?

Cameron Diaz is back in Hollywood (sort of) thanks to new Netflix flick Back in Action. As a CIA mission blows up 15 years later, can Matt and Emily protect their kids?

The mid-range action movie is back, baby! Netflix has already got off to a roaring start resurrecting the sub-genre with last month’s Carry-On, proving the appetite for some dumb fun never went away.

Netflix could only make things better if they just happened to bring one of the most beloved actresses of the last 30 years out of retirement… and they did.

Jamie Foxx and Cameron Diaz star as ex-CIA operatives Matt and Emily, whose lives get turned upside down after leaving to start a family. Frankly, parents have never been cooler. Here’s a full debrief of the Back in Action ending – and warning, there’s spoilers ahead.

Matt and Emily win their kids back in the Back in Action ending

In the Back in Action ending, Matt and Emily successfully get their kids back from the clutches of real enemy Chuck (Kyle Chandler) after failing to sell The Key. London is safe – for now – and the kids can get back to their usual routine at school.

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Let’s rewind for a second. 15 years ago, Emily and Matt were two CIA agents on top of their game. Their last mission involved taking out a group of Belarusian terrorists on a hijacked plane, where Emily also told Matt she was pregnant. They’d only been dating for a matter of months, but Matt responds that he’s all in.

In the present day, they’re off-grid, bringing up kids Anni (Leela Owen) and Leo (Rylan Jackson), who outwardly hate them. 14-year-old Anni struggles with Emily interfering in her life, leading to Emily hacking her computer to check her movements. Sure enough, she’s snuck into a club with a fake ID, prompting Matt and Emily to pull her out themselves. When one of the guys Anni’s with gets creepy, the pair beat the men in the group up, throwing them over the first-floor railings.

Sadly for them, somebody’s filmed it and put it on YouTube. While Emily had previously told Matt she missed their old life, Chuck (Kyle Chandler) turns up at their door. He initially hired them for the job in the flashback, and is now concerned their cover has been blown. There was a “key” in their possession which was never found by the terrorists, meaning old enemies would soon be out to get them.

Sure enough, cars turn up shooting at the house, killing Chuck. Matt and Emily grab supplies from the garage and hit the road, picking the kids up from school on the way. Heading straight to the airport, suspicions are up. Trying to keep their true identities hidden from the kids, the couple tells them they’re heading to meet their Grandma. In reality, Matt hid the key in England at her house for protection.

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It isn’t long before their faces are picked up by CCTV at Heathrow airport, with Matt jacking into a stranger’s car to get them on the road. Baron (Andrew Scott) had been their point of contact for the key originally, and arrives to try and track them down. In pursuit, the family is attacked while getting gas, with the kids watching in horror. Noticing their passports all have fake identities, the game is up.

Managing to buy time from Baron and his henchmen, Emily and Matt tell the kids about their real past. They soon arrive at Ginny’s (Glenn Close) country estate, who almost shoots them with a hunting gun. It’s clear Emily and Ginny don’t get on, while it’s also revealed Ginny used to be a top operative spy back in the day.

These days, she has a much younger (and totally useless) boyfriend in Nigel (Jamie Demetriou), who is trying to learn the spy ropes. Matt tells Ginny what he’d done all of those years before, while Ginny and Emily fight over how Anni feels about Emily. Outside, officers turn up, severing Ginny’s security system from the outside.

Emily and Matt manage to get to the key first, which is hidden in a vault in the gardens. With it is a note of apology Matt had written to Emily 15 years before, claiming he’d taken the key for their growing family’s protection. By the time they get back to the house, Nigel and Ginny are gagged and bound, while the kids are being held hostage in the living room.

However, Baron is nowhere to be seen – because the person actually pursuing them is Chuck. He faked his own death on their porch knowing they would inevitably lead him straight to the key, claiming Baron is merely tracking another operative who’d been attacked. Chuck takes the kids, leaving on a helicopter.

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Through CCTV, Matt notices Leo is wearing his fitness tracker ring, giving them access to their exact GPS. They’re being held at the Tate Modern in London, which is apparently closed for a black-tie event. Emily and Matt arrive but are unable to find them until all the lights go off. On the roof, Chuck is trying to sell the key to the highest bidder, revealing its power to override city security systems. Not only are the Tate’s lights off, but all of London’s, with the Thames barrier compromised.

Emily and Matt get there before the deal is done, but the kids are still nowhere to be seen. While Chuck flees, the two are in hot pursuit on motorcycles, before boarding a boat to chase Chuck’s barge down. Ginny is acting as a sniper on the roof, while Nigel’s job is to get them Thames barrier back up before London floods.

When they get close, they find the kids held on there, wiping out Chuck’s henchmen. Emily tells the kids to trust her, chucking them off the back into the water. The pair follow suit, leading Chuck to meet his maker in a fiery crash with the barrier.

The final scene sets up a potential sequel

After Anni’s football game, Baron (Andrew Scott) appears in the back of Matt and Emily’s car. He explains Chuck’s body was never recovered meaning a new member of Emily’s family needs to be recruited – not mom Ginny, but her dad.

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After they’re all safely out of the water, the family heads home – with Ginny and Nigel – just in time for Anni’s soccer match at school. Her team wins, with Ginny and Nigel offering to look after them so they can have some alone time.

Their plan is purely to sleep, but as they get back into the car, Baron is in the backseat. They’re on friendly terms since he was cleared of being a villain. There’s an issue, though – the British police never found Chuck’s body, meaning there’s a chance he escaped and is still on the loose.

Baron tells Emily that he wants to recruit another member of her family into the ranks. Emily tells him Ginny would likely be delighted if he wanted to ask. However, Baron says he’s talking about Emily’s father, as the screen cuts to black.

It goes without saying that up until this point, Emily’s dad hasn’t even been mentioned, let alone been seen on screen. As Back in Action 2 hasn’t been confirmed, we won’t have any further information until Netflix gives the green light… if they ever do.

Back in Action is available to stream on Netflix now. Check out more platform updates for Stranger Things Season 5 and Squid Game Season 3, or take a look at the most anticipated movies of the year.