Sumith Prasad
Directed by Patrick Hughes, Netflix’s action film ‘The Man from Toronto’ follows the titular assassin, who tries to complete a high-profile mission amid life-threatening circumstances. The Man from Toronto AKA Toronto’s mission gets compromised when Teddy Jackson, a fitness center employee, gets involved in the mission unintentionally. Starring Woody Harrelson as Toronto and Kevin Hart as Teddy, the engrossing film progresses through the challenges Toronto and Teddy confront together as they form an extraordinary friendship. Since the action-comedy ends with certain ambiguous details, the viewers must want clarity regarding the same. If that’s the case, let us be your ally! SPOILERS AHEAD.
The Man from Toronto Plot Synopsis
‘The Man from Toronto’ begins with Teddy deciding to celebrate his wedding anniversary with his wife Lori in a cabin in Onancock, Virginia. The Man from Toronto gets hired for a mission and gets instructed to go to a certain cabin in the same region. Teddy goes to Toronto’s cabin upon reading the address wrong. The man in the cabin, thinking that Teddy is Toronto, leads him to a scientist named Coughlin to acquire a code from the latter. Teddy somehow manages to force the scientist to reveal the code. Meanwhile, the FBI intervenes.
FBI Agents Davis and Lawrence inform Teddy that they need him to fulfill the mission by pretending to be Toronto to capture former Venezuelan colonel Sebastian Marín, who is plotting to attack the United States. The real Toronto arrives at the scene and finds out what really happened. Teddy gets taken to Puerto Rico to find the second code required to fulfill the mission. Toronto joins Teddy and helps him complete the mission so that he can claim his fee from Marín. They find out that Marín is plotting a bomb explosion at the Venezuelan embassy in Washington and the second code is actually the thump print of a scientist named Green, who co-developed the bomb.
Toronto cuts the thump and goes to see Marín with Teddy. The Handler, who acts as the intermediary between assassins like Toronto and their clients, sends the Man from Miami to kill Toronto and take Green’s thump from him. She realizes that Toronto has become useless for her as he shows reluctance to be ruthless to fulfill the missions. Miami manages to acquire the thump from Toronto and Teddy and joins the Handler to meet Marín. Before Marín could activate the bomb, the FBI intervenes. Toronto manages to obtain the money from the scene. The FBI agents find out that the thump didn’t belong to Green.
The Man from Toronto Ending: What Happens to the Money?
Even when Teddy and the FBI get involved in his mission, Toronto decides to move forward with the same. He wants the fee agreed with Marín so badly to start his own restaurant. While joining hands with Teddy, Toronto believes that he will still be able to fulfill the mission without many challenges. He gets proven wrong when the Handler hands over the mission to the Man from Miami. Toronto realizes that he is not a part of the Handler’s team anymore, making him determined to acquire the money despite the risks involved. He knows that if he passes the opportunity, he may not get a similar one again to obtain the money he wants.
The Handler, on the other hand, wants the money Toronto takes from Marín. She believes that the mission was completed by Miami and Toronto doesn’t have any right to take the fee. To kill Toronto and retrieve the money from him, the Handler sends several assassins. Still, Toronto manages to safely keep the money in the trunk of his car Debora. He and Teddy even kill the Handler to save their lives and the money. However, Toronto doesn’t get to make use of the money completely because of Teddy. The assassin asks Teddy to take Debora to reunite with Lori, who leaves him for his irresponsible actions.
Teddy parks Debora on a railway track as he rushes to Lori to stop her from boarding a train. Even though he manages to stop Lori from leaving him, the train arrives and hits Debora, making the money fly away from the trunk of the car. However, Toronto may have kept a part of the money aside since he opens a restaurant despite losing the same due to Teddy’s carelessness. Even if he hasn’t, Toronto materializes his dream by opening the restaurant, for which he has put his life on the line.
Does the Man from Toronto Quit Being an Assassin?
Yes, the Man from Toronto does quit being an assassin. Toronto decided to put an end to his life as an assassin when he failed to kill his target during an assignment in Minnesota. The incident made him realize that he is becoming sentimental, a characteristic that shouldn’t be present in a professional assassin. The incident not only became a blemish in his infamous career but also showed him that he is not an assassin anymore, at least mentally. He eventually started to get tired of the violence and bloodshed that are part of his job.
As Toronto accepts Marín’s mission, he considers quitting the job to start a new chapter of his life by opening a restaurant using the fee. Furthermore, his time with Teddy further brings out the humane feelings in him. He tries his best to save not only Teddy’s life but also the latter’s togetherness with Lori by handing over his sweetheart Debora to him. Throughout the film, we also get to see how Toronto gradually becomes reluctant to kill other individuals. Even though he gets forced to fight life-threatening challenges to fulfill his dream, he finally opens the restaurant, which marks the end of his life as an assassin.
The feelings that bloom in Toronto when he meets Anne also show him how he is emotionally distancing himself from the brutality of an assassin. After quitting, he starts dating Anne and accepts Teddy as his friend, two things that haven’t happened in his life before. Toronto steps into a life of calmness and contentment as his mind is not preoccupied with bloodshed and violence anymore. However, he may get forced to return to the world of crime in the future.
Before putting an end to his life as an assassin, Toronto kills the Handler and several other high-profile assassins. If the Handler is only a subordinate of superior power, possibly an influential individual who is part of international crime syndicates, the person may retaliate against Toronto, forcing him to lay his hands on guns again. Otherwise, the possible individual may ask Toronto to complete a mission for him as the cost of his actions. The possibilities suggest that Toronto may not be able to relinquish his identity and life as an assassin altogether even if he wants to.
Read More: Will There be a The Man from Toronto Sequel?
