Ocean’s 8’s Heist and Ending Explained

Warning: Major spoilers for Ocean’s 8.

It wouldn’t be an Ocean’s movie without a twist, and the ending of Ocean’s 8 certainly delivers some shocks. In the reboot of the franchise, Debbie Ocean (Sandra Bullock) assembles an all-star team of seven women to steal a $150 million diamond necklace from the Met Gala.

Of course, like all the other films in the Ocean’s franchise, the Ocean’s 8 heist includes some surprises. We’re told a rather simple heist story centered on the eclectic characters for most of the film, but what’s really going on underneath digs deeper. There’s the question of the unmentioned eighth member from the title, the actual target of the heist, and, of course, the big connection all the way back to Ocean’s 11.

Related: Ocean’s 8 Review: An All-Female Cast Shines In This Heist Comedy

Ocean’s 8‘s twist ending may not be as violent a rug-pull as Ocean’s 11 (or as ridiculous as the Julia-Roberts-as-Julia-Roberts trick of Ocean’s 12), but there’s still a lot of threaded intricacies to the heist and its payoff that require a deeper dive.

• This Page: Ocean’s 8’s Heist Explained
• Page 2: Ocean’s 8’s Two Twist Members Explained

Ocean’s 8’s Heist Explained

The goal of the movie is to steal Cartier’s “Jeanne Toussaint” diamond necklace, a task that requires a team with very specific skills. Debbie first shares her plans with her partner Lou (Cate Blanchett), and together they gather a team of five more specialists. Because the necklace is usually stored in a below-ground vault, Debbie and Lou enlist a fashion designer, Rose Weil (Helena Bonham Carter), to create a Met Gala look for actress Daphne Kluger (Anne Hathaway). Rose convinces Cartier to let the diamonds out of the vault for the Met Gala, and she scans the jewels so that they can create a replica. Meanwhile, a hacker named Nine Ball (Rihanna) hacks into the Met Gala security cameras and creates a blind spot outside of the bathrooms. Tammy (Sarah Paulson) takes a job at Vogue that gives her insider access to the Met Gala planning, convincing her boss to hire additional catering staff, which allows the team to enter the Gala undetected.

The heist, as it turns out, isn’t just about the money: it’s also about revenge. Debbie Ocean wants to get back at her ex-boyfriend, Claude Becker (Richard Armitage), who threw her under the bus after a scam gone wrong. As a result, Debbie has spent the last five years in jail planning the perfect heist. Ocean orchestrates a meeting between Kluger and Becker so that he will accompany Kluger to the Met Gala; Becker becomes the perfect “fall guy” who Debbie and her team frame for stealing the diamonds.

On the night of the Met Gala, when Daphne puts the necklace on, Rose discovers that they need a special magnet to unlock the necklace; she sends a video of the magnet locking necklace to the team, and Nine Ball calls in her sister to create a key for them. Lou works as part of the catering staff, serving Daphne soup that makes her nauseous. Daphne runs to the bathroom, and while she throws up, Constance (Awkwafina), the team’s pickpocket, removes the necklace. Stepping into the blindspot that Nine Ball created, Awkwafina stows the necklace on a serving tray carried by an unsuspecting busboy; the server unknowingly carries it to the kitchen, where Amita (Mindy Kaling), the jeweler, picks it up. Amita works to deconstruct the necklace, and after a brief security scare in which the guests are evacuated, Tammy “finds” the replica. Security returns to normal, and the team is able to leave the Met undetected.

Watch: The Ocean’s 8 Trailer

Debbie takes some diamonds from the necklace and places them on Becker. By the time that Cartier realizes that the replica is a fake, the team has already gotten away with the diamonds and hired four different elderly women to sell pieces of the jewels. John Frazier (James Corden) is brought in by the insurance company to locate the necklace, but there seems to be no solid evidence that he can use against Debbie and her team.

While the film could have ended there, Ocean’s films are known for their surprise endings. In keeping with that tradition, Ocean’s Eight featured not one but two twists…

Page 2 of 2: Ocean’s 8’s Two Twist Members Explained

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